SAN BRUNO, Calif. – Santa Clara’s Milaina Almonte beat the field by 14 seconds at the Sean Earl Lakefront Invitational to claim the West Coast Conference Women’s Cross Country Runner of the Week award.
 
WEST COAST CONFERENCE WOMEN'S CROSS COUNTRY RUNNER OF THE WEEK – MILAINA ALMONTE, SR. – SANTA CLARA
Milaina Almonte broke the winner's tape and the Santa Clara women's cross country team earned a fifth-place finish Friday in the open race at the Sean Earl Lakefront Invitational, hosted by Loyola Chicago at the Sydney Marovitz Golf Course. Milaina Almonte blew away the competition Friday by grabbing her first individual win of 2026 and the second of her career. Almonte beat the field by 14 seconds, crossing the finish line in first place with a time of 20 minutes, 14.82 seconds, over the 6-kilometer course. She led wire-to-wire and made her biggest move with a strong kick over the final 1,000 meters, growing her lead from six seconds through 5 km to 14 seconds at the finish.
 
Also nominated: Viola Paoletti, Portland

2026 West Coast Conference Women’s Cross Country Runners of the Week 
September 8: Lizzy Crawford, Pepperdine
September 22: Lizzy Crawford, Pepperdine
September 29: Milaina Almonte, Santa Clara