Sarah Baxter is running wild again. Sports Illustrated has taken notice.

A sophomore superstar for the Simi Valley High girls’ cross country team, Baxter is featured in the magazine’s Nov. 14 issue in “Faces in the Crowd.”

“She said, ‘Why do they want me in there?’” said Pioneers head coach Roger Evans.

Baxter leads a formidable Simi Valley squad into the CIFSouthern Section finals Saturday at Mt. San Antonio College.

Local teams and runners will race in Walnut for a chance to advance to the state meet.

Westlake’s boys and girls will compete at the section finals, along with the Thousand Oaks girls, Oak Park’s boys and La Reina.

Moorpark’s Monika Gyalay and Brianne Holland of Royal advanced as individuals among Division 2 girls.

Simi Valley, the top-ranked Division 2 team in the state according to an ESPN poll, easily won its heat during the CIF-SS preliminaries last weekend at Mt. SAC.

Five Pioneers finished in the top 11 at the 2.91-mile flat rain course, paced by Baxter in first place in 16 minutes, 9 seconds.

Erika Barr (17:07, fifth), Karla Vernola (17:08, sixth), Sarah Riggs (17:21, eighth) and Rachel Vinas (17:32, 11th) followed Baxter.

Desirae Jones (17:33, 13th) and Charlotte Utash (17:48, 17th) also raced well for Simi Valley.

“They have to run like they’ve been running,” Evans said.

“Everyone has down days— that’s to be expected. If somebody does fall, we’ll need someone to plug that hole.”

Saugus and Redondo Union will be Simi Valley’s toughest foes, according to the coach.

There’s no question the Pioneers are talented and tough. They also compete with class.

After the Marmonte League finals, Simi Valley and Thousand Oaks varsity runners snapped pictures together.

“They conduct themselves in an honorable manner as champions,” Evans said. “We feel honored (to run), and we respect our competitors. We work hard on sportsmanship.”

Westlake had a memorable jaunt at preliminaries.

The boys finished third in the Division 2 heat while the girls squeaked into the finals by notching fourth in its heat.

Only the top four teams in each heat advanced to this weekend’s meet.

Mikey Giguere, a sophomore, secured seventh place in 14:53 for the Warrior boys. Rocky Peterson (15:16, 18th), Chris Costa (15:17, 19th), Sean O’Bryan (15:24, 26th) and Nick Sommers (15:26, 28th) steadied Westlake.

Giguere’s freshman sister, Jenny, finished third (16:39) in her race. Nicki Ghazarian (17:26, 14th), Clarice Douille (17:44, 15th), Katrina Jenkins (18:24, 31st) and Kelly Colwell (18:44, 43rd) bolstered the Warrior girls.

“They’re a young team. They’ve progressed very nicely throughout the season,” Westlake head coach Joe Snyder said of his squads.

“They seem to be running their best now when we need them to.”

The Giguere siblings are also on a tear.

“Mikey’s really stepped it up from a leadership standpoint,” Snyder said. “We lost four seniors last year. We needed someone to step up, and he’s embraced that role. Mikey’s been very consistent.

“Jenny’s a refreshing young girl. She’s extremely humble. She’s a very talented young girl who’s done quite well. From my perspective, the team is what’s most important. She runs for the team.”

Snyder said the Warrior girls can run without pressure.

“Girls’ Division 2 is tougher than any division I’ve seen,” Snyder said. “ They have nothing to lose.”

Oak Park’s boys are no longer under the radar. Not after winning the Ventura County Championships and placing second in their Division 3 heat at the section preliminaries.

The Eagles, however, are not content to reach the finals.

“They’ve had one goal in mind since back in May,” Oak Park head coach Marc Minasian said. “That is, of course, to get to state this year.”

Sahm Bazargan ( 14: 59, eighth), Patrick Thedinga (15:16, 11th), Eric Jones (15:21, 17th), Ryan Zelada (15:23, 19th) and Christopher Carlson (15:39, 30th) pace the Eagles.

Tyler Milles, Jacob Lowry, Austin Baker and Ben Goldstein provide depth for Oak Park.

“It’s a matter of desire, teamwork and strategy,” Minasian said. “Everybody wants it just as bad as the other guy. It’s whether they execute under pressure that determines who will go.”

Thousand Oaks’ girls, who finished second in their Division 2 heat, will count on Melanie Joerger (17:08, seventh), Caitlin Turner (17:32, 12th), Ashton Padberg (17:38, 14th), Kalin Padberg (17:46, 17th), Kori Groenveld (17:53, 20th), Genevieve Johnson (17:56, 22nd) and Rachel Smiley (18:26, 37th) to race well Saturday.

La Reina, which nabbed second in a Division 4 heat to Harvard Westlake, relies on Ariana Brajkovich (18:52, fifth), Alyssa Frank (19:17, seventh), Krista Andreassen (19:17, eighth), Jordan Jeworski (19:32, 12th) and Kelly Reinke (20:26, 34th).