CIF state cross country meet: Buchanan 3-peats, plus here are the other strong showings
No matter what obstacles the Buchanan High girls cross country team faced all season, they found a way to overcome.
Saturday’s performance at the 35th California Interscholastic Federation state championship at Woodward Park in Fresno was no exception.
The Bears captured their fourth state title — and a third straight — with an all-time Division I team-best 40 points and a fourth-best D-I combined time of 1 hour 29 minutes 32 seconds on the 3.1-mile course.
“Great day,” Buchanan coach Brian Weaver said. “The race plan was to go out and run as a team, which they started off really good and came through by the 2-mile looking wonderful.”
At the 1-mile mark, the Bears were at 27 points with four runners in the top 10. Buchanan continued to dominate at the 2.1-mile mark when it had 20 points with five runners in the top 10, led by Grace Hutchison with a time of 11:49.8.
Hutchison, who will move on to Brigham Young, ended up second (17:30.3) behind Tessa Buswell of Poway (17:25.0).
Sierra Cornett was fifth (17:41.6) and Tayler Torosian ninth (17:47.8).
Buchanan’s season-long habit of finding adversity carried over to the state meet as Elle Lomeli fell 400 yards from the finish. She’s been dealing with a knee sprain. Lomeli finished 158th.
She wasn’t the only Bears runner to experience rough going during the season.
Sydney Sundgren had been ill recently and placed 26th. Hutchison said she had a stress fracture since July.
“It’s kind of hard to come back from that,” she said. “It didn’t go away for a couple of months. That was really hard. I tried to stay positive for my team and know that the later races in the season matter.
“We performed really well together and we’re happy with what our team did. Third time winning state is pretty amazing. I’m grateful to be a part of it.”
Weaver gave his runners a lot of credit for persevering throughout the season.
To cap it off with another state title, he said, is “exciting.”
“They are pretty good friends and very talented, hardworking young ladies (and) that, I think, brings out the other person’s desire to be good as well.”
Clovis North girls put on a strong showing
Broncos coach Jason Lienau couldn’t be more proud of how his team did at the state championships.
Clovis North finished third behind Buchanan and Oak Ridge.
“I’m incredibly proud of them,” he said. “They did a great job. We had a race plan, and to not focus on any other team. We have a certain way we like to run this course and we have groups within our team that work together in practice and work together in races and that was our focus: run the way we run this course and run within our groups and attack the last part of the course. They stuck to that the best they could and it paid off.”
Leading the way for the Broncos was Ashlyn Leath, who placed 10th (17:54.1).
Clovis’ Caudillo places second
Christopher Caudillo of Clovis finished second in the Division I boys race.
He finished in 15:03.9 in a race won by Matthew Donis of Highland (14:51.3).
Caudillo was sixth last season.
Even then, he said he wasn’t feeling good.
“My body is really fatigued,” he said. “I think I definitely came down with something, but I still made this (an excellent) race.”
His mile mark was 4:46.4 and his 2-mile time was 10:12.2.
Caudillo led Clovis to a seventh-place finish.
Yosemite boys take third
It was a a lot better showing for the Badgers this time around.
Yosemite finished the Division V race in third place, an improvement after placing 14th in D-IV last season.
Ben Olney took 10th in 15:44.9 and twin brother Jack Olney was 15th in 15:50.8 as the Badgers totaled 120 points. Crystal Springs Uplands (73) and Menlo (77) finished 1-2 in the team standings.
“Looking at how much we’ve done this year, in one year, it’s kind of incredible especially with the young group of boys,” Yosemite coach Kimberly Lawhon said.
“Just really excited today, for the first time bringing home a team trophy for our school. We’re really excited about that and to get on the podium and come back with our full team next year.”
Future looks bright for Torres High
Torres had an impressive showing in the Division IV race.
The Toros came in sixth and totaled 178 points, behind 21st-place finisher and Central Section champion Benjamin Fernandez.
“I told them we ran a hard race and showed the other schools that Torres could be there up in the front,” Fernandez said.
Torres competed in its second state championship since the school opened in 2020.
Immanuel girls among the best
Led by freshman Clara Riddle’s 10th-place finish (18:44.9), the Eagles placed seventh in Division V with 243 points. They were actually tied with Francis Parker, but were awarded seventh because of time differential.
Immanuel coach Connor Nolen credited Riddle for her strong performance.
“She’s a freshman and possesses a lot of the intangibles of hard work and the commitment and leadership,” he said.
“She likes to pump up the team at practice and push them and work out. An all-around leader and a great kid. I’m happy that she was able to earn that spot today.”
Nolen said he gave advice to his team before the race started.
It resonated well with his runners.
“My expectations were to allow them to run their best race,” he said. “What I told them is I hope they can stay relaxed, confident and trust in the training they’ve done. They went out pretty aggressive and they settled in into their pace and really proud of how they did.”
More notes from the meet ...
The Newbury Park boys won their fourth straight state title with a D-II best course score (24) and team time (74:34), led by senior Lex Young, who had all-time best individual finish of 14:28.
Sophomore Hanne Thomsen of Montgomery repeated as the D-III champion with a second-best all-time divisional time of 17:13.
Campolindo’s girls won their seventh state title, repeating as D-III champions with a third-best all-time team time of 92:08, while JSerra Catholic repeated as D-IV champs (fifth all-time title).
Great Oak’s boys won their seventh D-I championship and Oakdale won its first state title in D-III.
Francis-La Cañada and Crystal Springs Uplands won their first state titles in D-IV and D-V boys, respectively.
Results
Boys
Division I
Teams: 1. Great Oak 67, 2. San Clemente 80, 3. Crescenta Valley 167, 4. Trabuco Hills 172, 5. San Luis Obispo 172, 6. Arcadia 218, 7. Clovis 253, 8. Loyola 266, 9. Westview 266, 10. Madera South 272.
Individuals: 1. Matthew Donis, Highland, 14:51.3; 2. Christopher Caudillo, Clovis, 15:03.9; 3. Parker Simmons, Crescenta Valley, 15:09.7; 4. Milo Skapinsky, San Luis Obispo, 15:10.9; 5. Cameorn Rhone, Long Beach Poly, 15:13.0; 6. Jason Parra, Millikan, 15:13.7; 7. Carter Spradling, Clovis East, 15:18.0; 8. Shane Badcock, Dougherty Valley, 15:23.0; 9. Mark Cortes, Great Oak, 15:23.5; 10. Juan Chantaca, San Clemente, 15:25.5. Also: 36. Nathaniel Nodal, Clovis West, 15:56.4; 39. Sam Dresick, Clovis West, 15:59.9; 60. Zach Weaver, Buchanan, 16:09.8; 64. Cole McNeal, Clovis, 16:13.7; 69. Estevan Medina, Madera South, 16:17.7; 76. Adrian Hipolito, Madera South, 16:22.1; 77. Isaac Chavez, Madera South, 16:22.1; 83. Dylan Devine, Madera South, 16:26.8; 84. Vidal Luna, Madera South,1 6:26.8; 88. Jalen Morales, Clovis, 16:28.7; 96. Joaquin McGee, Clovis, 16:34.4; 99. Sawyer Pugliese, Sanger, 16:37.6; 101. Isaiah Watkins, Clovis, 16:40.6; 124. Josiah Delgadillo, Clovis, 16:54.3; 153. Ricky Martinez, Clovis, 17:25.9; 171. Edwin Quiroz, Madera South, 18:03.1; 180. Juan Ramirez, Madera South, 18:57.1.
Division II
Teams: 1. Newbury Park 24, 2. Granada 99, 3. Ventura 129, 4. Whitney 182, 5. Mira Costa 211, 6. Redwood 218, 7. Tesoro 220, 8. Santa Barbara 283, 9. Grossmont 284, 10. Saugus 314. Also: 18. Tulare Western 410, 23. Monache 23.
Individuals: 1. Lex Young, Newbury Park, 14:27.9; 2. Leo Young, Newbury Park, 14:38.4; 3. Aaron Sahlman, Newbury Park, 14:41.1; 4. Anthony Fast Horse, Ventura, 15:08.5; 5. Aydon Stefeanopoulus, Los Gatos, 15:14.7; 6. Ethan Miller, Monte Vista, 15:15.5; 7. Dev Doshi, Newbury Park, 15:17.2; 8. Garrett Hartlin, El Toro, 15:20.0; 9. Trey Caldwell, De La Salle, 15:21.2; 10. Roland Ruckmann-Barnes, Granada, 15:21.9. Also: 27. Alazar Teffra, Central, 15:47.1; 45. Devin Ibarra, El Diamante, 16:03.0; 48. Carter Mendes, Tulare Western, 16:06.7; 72. Jacob Diaz, Reedley, 16:27.1; 79. Joseph Flores, Tulare Western, 16:33.5; 96. Santiago Basurto, Tulare Western, 16:42.8; 143. Erik Delgado, Tulare Western, 17:23.9; 155. Julian Valdivia, Tulare Western, 17:34.1; 158. Monte Moore, Monache, 17:34.2; 164. Conner Machado, Monache, 17:43.1; 168. Salvador Martinez, Monache, 17:50.3; 169. Alberto Andrade, Monache, 17:50.7; 175. Joseph Toledo, Monache, 18:04.0; 185. Jake Estrada, Monache, 18:33.1; 189. Joziah Hagedom, Tulare Western, 18:43.6; 194. Felipe Figueroa, Tulare Western, 19:08.7.
Division III
Teams: 1. Oakdale 56, 2. Campolindo 109, 3. Dana Hills 127, 4. Westmont 174, 5. Sage Creek 206, 6. Thousand Oaks 229, 7. Moorpark 230, 8. West Torrance 234, 9. St. Ignatius 250, 10. Santa Margarita 253.
Individuals: 1. Evan Noonan, Dana Hills, 15:04.3; 2. Dax Daley, Oakdale, 15:17.9; 3. Joshua Bell, Templeton, 15:18.3; 4. Jude Devries, Montgomery, 15:19.5; 5. Omar Alsaidi, Oakdale, 15:19.8; 6. Josh Chu, Ponderosa, 15:24.5; 7. Caleb Cavanaugh, Oakdale, 15:28.4; 8. Julian Doak, Placer, 15:29.0; 9. Jacob Niednagel, La Costa Canyon, 15:30.4; 10. Carson Hedlund, Pioneer, 15:30.8. Also: 72. Tyler Speir, Fresno, 16:42.5; 75. Alesandro Escarzaga, Porterville, 16:43.5; 86. Noel Carrasco, Fresno, 16:50.5;
Division IV
Teams: 1. St. Francis 93, 2. Cathedral 114, 3. Albany 118, 4. St. John Bosco 132, 5. Palos Verdes 172, 6. Torres 178, 7. Scotts Valley 180, 8. Foothill Technology 220, 9. Bishop O’Dowd 221, 10. Oaks Christian 237. Also: 22. Garza 594.
Individuals: 1. Emmanuel Perez, Cathedral, 15:05.4; 2. Sean Morello, Albany, 15:08.8; 3. Broen Holman, Sonora, 15:12.4; 4. Benjamin Hughes, San Marino, 15:26.0; 5. Emmanuel Hernandez, Cathedral, 15:27.6; 6. Eli Fitchen-Young, Santa Cruz, 15:28.3; 7. Ethan Smith, Oaks Christian, 15:28.5; 8. Zion Ortiz, Burroughs Ridgecrest, 15:31.5; 9. Luca Romero, El Segundo, 15:31.7; 10. Jonah Billings, Foothill Technology, 15:32.4. Also: 20. Evan Torres, Parlier, 15:51.8; 21. Benjamin Fernandez, Torres, 15:53.8; 48. Ozzy Hernandez, Torres, 16:29.6; 55. Hunter Hannah, Torres, 16:32.9; 57. Noah Felix Andrade, Torres, 16:33.2; 76. Esaud Vargas, Torres, 16:52.9; 96. Baker Carlisle, Foothill Technology, 17:09.6; 98. Alvino Diaz, Torres, 17:12.9; 109. Emanuel Gomez, Torres, 17:23.9; 127. Zelalem Teffra, Garza, 17:39.9; 165. Landon Rivera, Garza, 18:28.4; 172. Esteban Yanez, Garza, 18:34.9; 195. Justin Ramirez, Garza, 20:33.3.
Division V
Teams: 1. Crystal Springs Uplands 73, 2. Menlo 77, 3. Yosemite 120, 4. Lick Wilmberding 136, 5. University 157, 6. College Prep 218, 7. Liberty Charter 240, 8. Francis Parker 287, 9. The Nueva School 296, 10. Providence-Burbank 298. Also: 24. Central Valley Christian 655.
Individuals: 1. Micah Sanchez, Liberty Charter, 15:13.6; 2. Justin Pretre, Menlo, 15:24.6; 3. Eyan Turk, Woodcrest Christian, 15:28.1; 4. Landon Pretre, Menlo, 15:34.8; 5. Benjamin Bouie, Crystal Springs Uplands, 15:36.0; 6. Tiernan Colby, Sonoma Academy, 15:36.0; 7. York Bourgeois, Francis Parker, 15:39.5; 8. James Ponzio, Monte Vista Christian, 15:39.8; 9. Andrew Burr, Sac Country Day, 15:42.3; 10. Ben Olney, Yosemite, 15:44.9. Also: 15. Jack Olney, Yosemite 15:50.8;27. Ford Stegge, Yosemite, 16:22.4; 43. Anthony Ruiz, Yosemite, 16:53.0; 63. Noah Graffigna, Yosemite, 17:12.8; 66. Reid Bishel, Immanuel, 17:16.2; 124. Koen Ensz, Immanuel, 18:06.5; 160. Robby Gresham, Yosemite, 18:48.4; 170. Logan Beumont, Yosemite, 19:09.9; 175. Jayden Forsyth, Central Valley Christian, 19:11.8; 191. Wytt Talk, Central Valley Christian, 19:58.9; 192. Jordan Reynbolds, Central Valley Christian, 20:05.0.
Girls
Division I
Teams: 1. Buchanan 40, 2. Oak Ridge, 158, 3. Clovis North 161. 4. Del Norte 166, 5. Great Oak 172, 6. Torrey Pines 178, 7. Rancho Cucamonga 183, 8. Menlo Atherton 203, 9. Santiago Corona 228, 10. Trabuco Hills 252.
Individuals: 1. Tessa Buswell, Poway, 17:25.0; 2. Grace Hutchison, Buchanan, 17:30.3; 3. Rylee Blade, Santiago Corona, 17:36.5; 4. Jaelyn Williams, Eastlake, 17:38.9; 5. Sierra Cornett, Buchanan, 17:41.6; 6. Phoebe Benun, Santa Monica, 17:45.9; 7. Tatum Olesen, Menlo-Atherton, 17:45.9; 8. Brianne Smith, Quartz Hill, 17:46.6; 9. Tayler Torosian, Buchanan, 17:47.8; 10. Ashlyn Leath, Clovis North, 17:54.1. Also: 11. Kynzlee Buckley, Buchanan, 17:58.7; 16. Kaitelyn Emmons, Clovis North, 18:17.3; 26. Sydney Sundgren, Buchanan, 18:33.6; 36. Erika Nyberg, Clovis East, 18:53.7; 44. Samantha Ebell, Clovis North, 18:57.6; 63. Avery Hutchison, Buchanan, 19:19.7; 64. Aubrey Pacheco, Clovis North, 19:19.9; 67. Miya Maltos, Clovis North, 19:20.5; 77. Keira Quigley, Clovis North, 19:39.7; 89. Daniela Munguia, Clovis North, 19:48.6; 158. Elle Lomeli, Buchanan, 21:42.2.
Division II
Teams: 1. Los Altos 80, 2. Newbury Park 93, 3. St. Fancis 106, 4. Palo Alto 132, 5. Ventura 189, 6. Whitney 193, 7. Granite Bay 221, 8. Citrus Valley 291, 9. Mira Costa 291, 10. Canyon-Anaheim Hills 298.
Individuals: 1. Sadie Engelhardt, Ventura, 16:57.9; 2. Anna Chittenden, Mira Costa, 17:32.0; 3. Aelo Curtis, Ventura, 17:42.1; 4. Ailish Hawkins, Newbury Park, 17:48.1; 5. Kinga Czajkowska, Palo Alto, 17:54.3; 6. Elizabeth Fetter, Palo Alto, 17:56.3; 7. Hillary Studdert, Palo Alto, 17:56.9; 8. Jadyn Zdanvage, Portola, 17:58.1; 9. Tiffany Sax, Newbury Park, 18:01.3; 10. Emily Soobrian, Los Altos, 18:03.9. Also: 59. Abigail Spain, Bullard, 19:24.8; 82. Bianca Scott, Madera, 19:44.0;
Division III
Teams: 1. Campolindo 63, 2. Cathedral Catholic 128, 3. University City 130, 4. Dana Hills 172, 5. Willow Glen 205, 6. South Torrance 235, 7. Montgomery 253, 8. La Costa Canyon 255, 9. Sage Creek 263, 10. Ponderosa 328, 11. Yorba Linday 328.
Individuals: 1. Hanne Thomsen, Montgomery, 17:12.8; 2. Gioana Lopizzo, La Costa Canyon, 17:41.5; 3. Ellie Buckley, Campolindo, 17:53.9; 4. Shea Volmer, Campolindo, 17:56.3; 5. Melisse Djomby Enyawe, Corona Del Mar, 17:59.6; 6. Amelia Stacey, El Cerrito, 18:03.4; 7. Sophie Polay, Santa Margarita, 18:07.5; 8. Allura Markow, Dana Hills, 18:08.4; 9. Marjourie Lopez, Shadow Hills, 18:11.0; 10. Winter Moritz, University City, 18:19.8. Also: 70. Brooklyn Bawanan, El Diamante, 19:48.7; 173. Keira Sorenson, Central, 22:02.2.
Division IV
Teams: 1. JSerra Catholic 71, 2. Oaks Christian 82, 3. La Canada 133, 4. Bishop Amat 152, 5. South Pasadena 165, 6. Scotts Valley 189, 7. Palos Verdes 190, 8. La Jolla 204, 9. Harvard Westalke 218, 10. St. Mary’s 287. Also: 18. Kerman 458.
Individuals: 1. Payton Godsey, Oaks Christian, 17:00.1; 2. Chiara Dailey, La Jolla, 17:27.3; 3. Holly Barker, Laguna Hills, 17:43.7; 4. Renae Searls, Alhambra, 17:45.3; 5. Maya DeBrouwer, La Candada, 17:50.1; 6. Brynn Garcia, JSerra Catholic, 17:57.6; 7. Jesse Redding, Colfax, 17:58.3; 8. Ashlyn Boothby, Scotts Valley, 18:05.3; 9. Kirra Fisk, La Jolla, 18:05.6; 10. Emma Arredindo, Bishop Amat, 18:08.4. Also: 30. Ashley Villafana, Kerman, 18:55.8; 73. Elizabeth Urquilla, Farmersville, 20:12.0; 82. Milani Gutierrez, Kerman, 20:21.8; 83. Alyana Chavez, Roosevelt, 20:22.5; 94. Gabrielle Gutierrez, Garza, 20:34.3; 117. Rhiannon Walker, Fresno, 21:04.2; 148. Cathy Calzada, Kerman, 22:01.3; 152. Baylee Melgoza, Kerman, 22:13.6; 165. Sofia Caloca Pinedo, Kerman, 22:35.3; 180. Kinsley Salsedo, Kerman, 23:13.7.
Division V
Teams: 1. Crystal Springs Uplands 129, 2. University 131, 3. Viewpoint 185, 4. Lick Wilmerding 213, 5. Convent Stuart Hall 225, 6. Francis Parker 243, 7. Immanuel 243, 8. Xavier College Prep 254, 9. St. Margaret’s Episcopal 255, 10. Menlo 295.
Individuals: 1. Kaiya Brooks, Crystal Springs Uplands, 17:54.2; 2. Sienna Faidi, Convent Stuart Hall, 18:18.6; 3. Adeline Johnson, Branson, 18:19.0; 4. Lorelei Barrett, Buckley, 18:23.7; 5. Chloe Elbaz, Xavier College Prep, 18:25.0; 6. JiaLian Mackey, Viewpoint, 18:28.3; 7. Amelie Maltz, Lick Wilmerding, 18:32.2; 8. Samira Kennedy, Castilleja, 18:38.3; 9. Daniella Henderson, Castilleja, Daniella Henderson, 18:43.7; 10. Clara Riddle, Immanuel, 18:44.9. Also: 48. Julia Gray, Fresno Christian, 19:59.1; 70. Sydney Friesen, Immanuel, 20:33.9; 72. Erin Solis, San Joaquin Memorial, 20:36.1; 76. Lexi Schartmann, Immanuel, 20:38.2; 93. Gaby Ramirez, Immanuel, 20:54.9; 94. Emma Connolly, Fresno Christian, 20:56.5; 104. Sarah Larger, Immanuel, 21:09.2; 111. Norah Kostelyk, Central Valley Christian, 21:17.6; 141. Macie Riddle, Immanuel, 22:13.1; 142. Meghan Connolly, Fresno Christian, 22:17.2; 143. Camila Lupa, Immanuel, 22:18.6; 160. Eve Dixon, Fresno Christian, 23:09.5; 186. Addyson Adler, Fresno Christian, 24:52.3; 191. Vivian Cheema, Fresno Christian, 25:35.0; 194. Laina Penland, Fresno Christian, 25:54.9.
This story was originally published November 26, 2022 at 5:36 PM.
