MAKING FINALS WILL BE TOUGHER.

Byline: Sean Martin Special to the Daily News

The Saugus High girls' cross-country team will have to sweat out some tense moments if it runs today like it did at last year's Southern Section Div. I prelims.

The Centurions finished fourth in their heat at the 2004 prelims at Mt. San Antonio College. That automatically qualified them for the section final, where they finished 10th. This year, a fourth-place finish in a preliminary heat doesn't guarantee a team will advance in the postseason.

That's because the Southern Section Div. I finals field has been reduced by two teams - from 16 to 14 - this year. Now the top three teams in each of four heats qualify for the final, as do the two teams posting the best aggregate time among teams that finished worse than third in their heat.

Half of the 16-team Div. I and II finals run since 2000 have resulted in a restart because of a runner falling. Only 11 percent of the 13-team Div. III, IV and IV finals during that time period have been restarted, according to dyestatcal.com editor Richard Gonzalez.

``I don't think (the change) was necessary,'' Saugus High coach Christian Standley said. ``You look at how many teams they pack on that airstrip during the invitational. Sometimes falling is a part of sports.''

Sixteen teams competed in some races at this year's Mt. SAC Invitational, despite safety concerns at next week's sectional finals.

Standley's team still would have qualified for last year's final under the new rules. The Centurions tied for the fastest team time among squads finishing outside the top three of their heat.

The new rule could cause some agonizing near misses, which are always a possibility at qualifying races. The Rio Mesa High of Oxnard girls

qualified for last year's Div. II final. Under the new rules, they would have missed out by 17 seconds, less than four seconds per scoring runner.

Saugus High senior Chelsea Johnstone, facing her final opportunity to run in the state meet, isn't concerned with the rule change.

``We know we have to run hard (Saturday), but we've been training all year as if we're going to state,'' Johnstone said.

--Heisman hopefuls: Johnstone and Canyon High's Brenda Cohen were among 10 female state finalists for the Wendy's High School Heisman.

``I never thought I'd get that far,'' said Johnstone, who was nominated by the school's athletic director. ``I didn't even know about it until one of my teachers told me they read about it online.''

She wants to become a pediatric emergency doctor. Johnstone has a 4.3 grade-point average and volunteers in the emergency room at Henry Mayo Memorial Hospital. Saugus' No. 3 runner is debating running in college, or focusing on her demanding studies.

``She's been a steady presence,'' Standley said. ``She's never seen herself as just a high-school student. She always has these big ideas.''

Cohen takes cross-country, which counts as a class, for a pass/fail grade because even an 'A' would lower her GPA. She's carried a 5.0 GPA, on a four-point scale, for more than a year because of her honors and Advanced Placement courses, according to Canyon coach Dave DeLong.

Cohen would definitely get top marks in running if she wanted to earn a grade. Cohen finished second at the Foothill League finals last week, leading Canyon to victory.

--Snap the streak: The Hart High boys' team has already ended two droughts this season, winning its first league title and having its first individual champion since 1995.

Hart will try to end another 10-year streak on Saturday by advancing to next week's Southern Section Div. I final.

Sean Martin, [phone]

sean.martin(at)dailynews.com