“If you don’t feel the pain, that means you’re not going to improve,” said freshman distance runner Alexa Torres.

Torres ran the 10,000-meter run in 39 minutes, 55 seconds at the Bob Rush Invitational on April 3-good enough to earn a state qualifying ‘A’ mark and rank fifth in the state.

It was the first time Torres had ever run the event.

“I had a stomach cramp during it and I still made the ‘A’ mark, so it’s pretty cool,” she said.

Torres also leads the team in the 5,000-meter run, but said she struggled at the beginning of the year. She came into the season out of shape due to a long break from training and also battled an injury. She’s been surprised at the progress she’s made.

“I was looking at the state ‘A’ marks (and) I was thinking, ‘There’s no way I’m going to do that,’ ” Torres said. “But coach Mattis knows what he’s doing, and so far his training’s worked for me.”

Torres stressed the mental aspect of running, saying sometimes she hears competitors bemoaning having to run an upcoming event.

“I don’t think that way, because I think it does affect your performance,” she said, “so I try to stay positive.”

Though Torres is close to a state qualifying ‘A’ mark in the 5,000-meter, she said will focus on training for the 10,000-meter with the goal of qualifying for state.

And though she said she likes to compete, her main goal is personal improvement.

“I do this because I love to run.”

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Freshman sprinter Luke Williams played basketball for Foothill College this past season. He only joined the track team only to stay fit for basketball.

“I thought at the beginning of the season, I’d end up being the slowest person,” Williams said. “But after a few weeks of training with coach Mattis, I realized my full potential.”

He said he will train full time for track now and hopes to earn a scholarship to a four-year university.

Williams holds the team’s season best in the 400-meter dash, and led the team in the 100 and 200 before Donte Williams jumped to the top of the list with runs at the Ed Adams Invitational on April 14.

Williams said technique is crucial to succeeding as a sprinter.

“You can have all the speed in the world, but if you don’t have the perfect form you’re not going to go fast,” he said.

Luke Williams said the 200 is his favorite because “it’s not too long, not too short.”

He’s proud of his 49.9 second time in the 400 he ran at the Chabot Relays & Distance Festival on April 6 because it was the first time he ran it, albeit in an unorthodox manner.

“Most people start off fast, coast, and then fast,” Williams said. “I go slow, fast.”

Several teammates laughed as they recalled watching him and his unusual strategy.

“That was hilarious,” a teammate said.

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Freshman Dominique Guinnane ranks seventh in the state in the 3000-meter steeplechase, a race that features four barrier jumps and a water jump. Guinnane said she likes the variety the unusual event offers.

“I just wanted to try something new, because all the events I’ve done are the two mile or the mile,” she said, “and I like those, but those sometimes are really long, just kind of boring.”

Guinnane said she has received “legit training” during her first year at De Anza, whereas in high school she received more generic guidance.

“They just said ‘oh, do a workout’,” Guinnane said, “but they didn’t actually try to find ways to make you better in certain areas like speed or endurance.”

Guinnane is well-positioned to make the state finals for the steeplechase, something she didn’t expect at the start of the season. She’s glad she took up the event.

“It’s pretty tiring but it’s still fun,” she said. “It’s something different and I enjoy it.”