Claremont resident and Vivian Webb junior Lily Miller literally ran away from the field to win the second heat of the girls varsity race during the 2019 Bellarmine-Sacred Heart Invitational on Saturday in Griffith Park.

Miller, who won the race last year, had a time of 18:55 over the hilly 2.9 mile course, 51 seconds faster than second place.

The defending champion changed her race strategy slightly, saying that last year she held back on the course’s easier portions, but this time went all out. “This year I pushed the uphill and tried to keep the pace going through the flats and downhill parts. The downhill finish is something I took easy last year and this year I just pushed it almost to the breaking point,” she told Prep Cal Track after the meet.

The girls varsity team placed sixth in their division and the boys team took fourth.

The Gauls easily defeated all other teams in the first San Juaquin League meet last week in Claremont. The boys crossed the finish line in perfect order, claiming the top five spots for a team score of 15 points. Avalon was second at 70 and Samueli Academy third at 77.

The girls also dominated, claiming the top four spots and a seventh place finish for a team score of 17. Samueli Academy was second at 70 with Connelly third at 76.