By Bill Sheehan
 
FULLERTON, Calif. – Bella Smith is finishing her collegiate cross-country career with a flourish.
 
The Cal State Fullerton senior won the Mark Covert Classic in August, outpacing 77 competitors on the Titans' 6-kilometer campus course in a personal-best time of 20:35.0. At the UC Riverside Highlander Invitational this month, she lowered her 6K time to 20:31.1 while placing second in a field of 258 runners.
 
Smith cites multiple reasons for her success. "I have a lot of experience as a four-year team member, and I have never been more fit," she said. "But most importantly, I developed a new mindset."
 
"I've always been passionate about running, but I'm really going after it this year. I'm not putting limits on myself. I'm able to push as hard as I can and explore what I can do, whether it is in training or in a race," she said.
 
Smith's mother, Stephanie Gorton, said she noticed change in attitude during her daughter's junior year. "Bella has learned to run happy; that's the biggest change. She used to beat herself up for what she perceived as a failure. Now she sees failures as opportunities for growth."
 
On Friday, Smith has a chance to shine when she and her Fullerton teammates compete at the Big West Men's and Women's Cross Country Championships in Honolulu. The meet, which will be held at Queen Kapi'olani Regional Park, will start with the men's 8K race at 7:30 a.m. HT. The women's 6K race will follow one hour later.
 
Smith, who hails from Temecula, believes Fullerton can place among the top three women's teams. She is shooting for a top-10 individual finish. "The top 10 finishers earn All-Big West honors. That's a goal I have been chasing the last four years, and this is my last shot to do it."
 
Jorge Jabaz, the Titans' first-year assistant coach, is impressed with Smith's performances this season. "Her biggest strength is that she is a mentally tough athlete. Bella is tough as nails. That's what we need more of on the team."

Bella Smith's "biggest strength is that she is a mentally tough athlete," says Titans cross-country assistant coach Jorge Jabaz.

"Bella stepped up running more miles. She adopted a new training philosophy and embraced pushing tempo," a workout where athletes run at a comfortably hard, sustained pace to improve metabolic fitness and lactate tolerance. "She is more comfortable than uncomfortable in her workouts. That's great to see as a coach," said Jabaz, whose teams will compete in the NCAA West Regionals on Nov. 14 in Sacramento.
 
A year ago, the Fullerton women placed ninth at the Big West meet. "Our goal is to move up four or five spots. And we really think the men's team can finish in the top three."
 
Smith praised Jabaz for "pushing the limits, not just with me but the whole team. Having a team that works hard motivates you as an individual. He pushes us in either miles, speed or whatever it is. It helps to have that energy around."
 
The 5-foot-5 Smith runs both cross-country and track and field for the Titans. At the 2025 Big West track finals, she placed seventh in the 1500m with a 4:41.42 time and ninth in the 5000m with a personal-best of 17:04.59. Earlier that season, she had a personal best of 4:29.61 in the 1500m at the Desert Heat Classic in Tucson, Ariz.

Bella Smith gets a hug from her father, Paul, at the Big West Track Championships at Long Beach State last May. Smith placed seventh in the 1500m and ninth in the 5000m.

"Bella is a versatile athlete who can run both middle and long distances," said Quinn Roldan, a teammate and freshman-year roommate. "She is very intuitive when it comes to racing and is a smart competitor. Bella skillfully times her own moves and knows when to respond to opponents."
 
Cross country and track are both "super-fun," Smith said. "They have their own unique atmospheres. I love cross country, being out there for a longer race and having so many people to compete with, using different courses. Track is more of an individual discipline, and there are so many different events, which is cool."
 
Smith competed in just one cross-country meet as a freshman. In her sophomore year, she finished 31st in the Big West cross-country finals and clocked a season-best 21:44.4 at the NCAA West Regionals while placing 136th. As a junior, she finished 29^th in 21:03.7 at the Big West finals and 89th (21.18.2) at the NCAA West Regionals.
 
On the track oval, Smith ran a personal-best 5:05 in the mile as a freshman at the Steve Scott Invitational at UC Irvine. A year later at the Big West Championships, she ran a season-best 4:37.17 in the 1500m prelims and placed 10th in the 1500m finals with a
4:43.96.
 
Growing up in Temecula, she participated in soccer, jujitsu and cheerleading before joining a youth track team in middle school. "I had done Turkey trots and running in PE, but I didn't start organized running until seventh grade. I stuck with it and really fell in love with the sport," Smith said.
 
"Bella was starting to thrive by herself," said her mother. "With a team, everyone has to show up for practice. If teammates didn't show or have the same work ethic, she would get frustrated. With running, the competition was with herself in a manner that was way more intense."
 
As a teenager, she competed for the Temecula Valley Time Machine track club. At Vista Murietta High School, she earned multiple All-Southwestern League honors in cross country and track. She also finished third in the mile at the CIF meet.

Flanked by her Vista Murietta High coaches Coley and Karen Candaele, Bella Smith celebrates her third-place finish in the mile at the CIF track finals.
 

Her father, Paul Smith, is a retired Marine who works as a civilian contractor for the military. Her mother operates three businesses. One of them, Energuy, partners with building contractors to provide energy rating, permit and rebate services. She also founded Thrive, a nonprofit that empowers and assists teenage mothers.

Paul played football in high school, while Gorton was a soccer player.
 
Smith is a middle child. Her older sister, Elysia, was a high school hurdler who switched to wrestling. Her younger sister Alyvia competes in cross country and track at Visa Murietta High.

Bella Smith of Temecula, left, is joined by her mother Stephanie Gorton younger sister Alyvia and older sister Elysia.

This spring, the 21-year-old will graduate with a Biological Science degree focused on Marine Biology. As part of her studies, she conducts research along the Southern California coast, working in tidepools and surveying areas aboard boats. Smith will skip the winter indoor track season because of time conflicts with her field work.

 
"I have always been passionate about the conservation of marine ecosystems. I want to get into research early, get more hands-on experience, and refine my survey skills." In conjunction with the Underground Research Opportunity Center, she will present a research poster about the limpet species Lottia pelta to the Western Society of Naturalists in San Diego this fall.

Fullerton senior Bella Smith conducts research on marine life on Lido Island in Newport Beach as part of her Biological Science studies.
 

She plans to pursue a master's degree in marine ecosystems conservation and wants to later earn a doctorate. Eventually, she would like to work for a nonprofit or agency with the goal of mitigating human impact. She would also like to teach part time.
 
In her down time, Smith finds joy in hiking, going to the beach, reading and writing. "Most of the writing is just random nonsense," she said, laughing. "I like painting with watercolors, but I don't have much time for hobbies."

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