It appeared she was about to keel over.

"I thought I was," she said, "but they wouldn't let me."

Running at Belmont's Crystal Springs Cross Country Course for the very first time Saturday - a course that is said to be only 20 seconds faster than Salinas' Toro Park - Alarcon scaled the course's heralded hills at the start, then trekked her way to a personal-record time of 18:20 at the Central Coast Section Cross Country Championships, and easily punched her ticket to state.

Alarcon, who shed some 52 seconds from the 19:12 she recorded two weeks ago at the TCAL Championships in Toro Park, had every right to be a little tired afterward.

"When I first started, I was just nervous," said Alarcon, who finished third overall behind Erin Robinson (18:19) of Gunn and Carlmont junior Jessie Petersen (17:28). "But after the first hill, I was like, it's not too bad. I just kept pushing myself.

"I'm happy with myself."

Despite not advancing to the state meet as a team, the Gilroy girls had plenty to be happy about on Saturday as well. Finishing third overall with 63 points behind Carlmont (42) and Gunn (39), the Mustangs will send three girls to the state championships, including sophomore Maritza Ruelas and senior Patricia Hernandez.

"I just tried to stay with my teammates," said Hernandez, who finished 12th overall in 19:06 at Crystal Springs. "We know what we can do and we tried to stay together. They really pushed me."

Hernandez took a full minute off her 20:06 time from the TCAL Championships at Toro, while Ruelas improved by one minute and one second when she recorded an 18:52 on Saturday.

"We're a little disappointed not making it to state," Gilroy head coach Art Silva said. "But the girls, I think they all PR'ed, and you can't ask for anything more.

"Both Gunn and Carlmont are very good teams."

Gilroy sophomore Savannah Silacci finished just outside of a state bid when she clocked a 19:13 Saturday to take 14th place overall. Meanwhile, Brandie Rodriguez rounded out the Mustangs' scoring when she took 20th overall in 20:01.

Freshman Christina Collett was 75th overall in 22:25 and Kelly Leung was 78th in 22:46.

The 2.95-mile course at Crystal Springs tends to tire out a majority of the pack right from the start. With a steep downhill sprint during the first 400 meters, harriers can often get boxed in toward the back, or simply run out of gas when the race loops around back up the hill.

"The last two miles I was confident," Alarcon said. "I was just worried about the first hill."

A little less hilly is Woodward Park in Fresno, where the CIF Cross Country State Championships will be held Nov. 28.

Although the Mustang boys fell short of earning a state bid, the team did show improved times across the board.

Gilroy was led by senior Juan Velasquez, who recorded a 16:18 to finish 25th overall, while teammate Timothy Williams trailed two spots behind with a 16:21. Kyle Collett, meanwhile, recorded a 16:28 to grab 32nd place, senior Daniel Apuzzo ran a 17:03 for 62nd place, and junior Jose Gabino Ramirez completed the team's scoring with a 67th-place finish in 17:08.

Salinas' David Perez earned the individual title on Saturday with a 15:14, but the Cowboys finished out of a state berth with 113 points. Carlmont (34) and Bellarmine (59) both ran away with the top two spots on Saturday, and will represent Division I at state later this month.

The Mustangs, which also included Humberto Gaeta (69th, 17:15) and Armando Cobarrubias (93rd, 17:47) compiled 207 points to finish in eighth place at CCS, but were seven points away from a sixth-place spot.