Avina, Hernandez finish first at Desert Athletic Conference cross country finals

PALM DESERT, Calif. (KESQ) -- The Desert Athletic Conference cross country finals featured several standout performances, including individual championships for Palm Desert's Marina Avila and Indio's Jonathan Hernandez.

Avila, a standout at PDHS, captured the DEL girls individual title, finishing ahead of the rest of the field to cap a strong season.

Avila credited her hard work and trust in her coach's training for helping her reach the top of the podium. With the postseason approaching, she has her sights set on advancing to the CIF State Championships.

"I'm very proud of how the season has gone," Avila said. "I'm very excited for CIF. I'm hoping to obviously make it to state this year."

In the Desert Valley League, Cathedral City senior Nevaeh Cardoza claimed her third consecutive league championship, continuing her impressive run at the top of the girls competition.

The boys race featured a tightly packed field with little separation between the runners, setting up an exciting finish.

In the end, Indio senior Jonathan Hernandez emerged to capture the Desert Empire League individual championship.

Hernandez was proud to represent the Rajahs and reinforce what he believes is the standard at Indio.

"Indio is the standard," Hernandez said. "No matter where anyone is, we are the standard. We're a sign of it, and I just proved it today."

Shadow Hills was also among the standout programs, earning recognition as one of the team winners at the conference finals.

See the full results below.

With the regular season championships decided, the runners now turn their attention to the CIF postseason and the opportunity to extend their seasons.