Buchanan girls, Newbury Park boys set the pace at state cross country meet

If McFarland High is the past of the greatest high school cross country meet in the country, the present and future belongs to the Buchanan High girls and the Newbury Park High boys.

Oh, and don’t overlook the upstart Matilda Torres High boys team as part of the future.

Those three teams journeyed Saturday to the mecca of high school school cross country courses – Woodward Park and its hilly 5-kilometer course – to test themselves against the elite in 10 divisions.

The highlights:

▪ Buchanan didn’t show any worries when rival Newbury grabbed the early team lead after the first mile to claim its second straight girls Division I title, 51-72 against Newbury Park, using the energy of two freshmen, a sophomore and three juniors. And, that was despite carrying on when No. 2 runner Grace Hutchison collapsed near the end of the race and finished last among the 180 competitors.

▪ Newbury Park, the country’s No. 1-ranked team, showed why it’s considered among the best in history by grabbing the first four places and totaled 16 points to capture the boys Division I championship. Senior Colin Sahlman flirted with Germán Fernández’s course record of 14:24, set in 2004, before settling for the second-best mark at 14:26.5. The team has four juniors and a sophomore, so expect continued success.

▪ Matilda Torres High opened its doors in north Madera two years ago, but is already aiming high with its boys cross country team under head coach Conner Nolen who was elated with his team’s 18th-place showing in Division IV.

Buchanan girls brush aside Newbury Park, Hutchison’s fall

Hutchison’s role on the Buchanan squad is vital, judging the junior’s second-place finish at the CIF Central Section meet to help the Bears pocket their 23rd section title since 1993.

Buchanan simply picked up top 10 finishes from junior Sydney Sundgren (3rd, 17:30.4) and freshman Elliana Lomelí (8th, 17:54.6).

They were followed by sophomore Stephania Sesock (14th, 18:06.5), junior Caroline Mendyk (20th, 18:19.2) and freshman Sierra Cornett (22nd, 18:22.3).

Was Weaver concerned when Newbury Park took the team lead after the first mile?

No.

“You know in the state meet most of the time, people go out pretty fast and there’s always major changes,” said Weaver. “Everybody slows down at some point. I think we just found a good rhythm on the first mile and just continued to keep moving along and progressed the whole race.”

At the Clovis Invitational on the same course on Oct. 9, Buchanan squeezed past Newbury Park, 57-64. The previous month, Newbury Park came out on top at the Woodbridge Classic while Buchanan placed third.

Weaver believes his younger runners are experienced because “they see what the older girls have done.”

“They’ve read about it. They’ve been around it. They have their goals,” said Weaver. “That’s what drives them, and the culture that the girls team has to continue to push has been really important for them.”

Among those stepping in and delivering is Lomelí, a highly successful runner at Alta Sierra Intermediate.

“She did some pretty amazing things when she was in junior high running pretty fast,” said Weaver of Lomelí. “We saw the potential in her. It was just a transition going from a 3,000 (meters) to a 5,000 (meters).”

Lomelí was happier with the team title than with her top 10 finish.

“It’s always a special touch to any event that you win,” said Lomelí. “I know that every single girl out here today worked their tails off and also put their hearts on the line. I’m just thankful for everything that we’ve got to accomplish now.”

Clovis North junior Ashlyn Leath placed 11th in 18:00.9 to lead her team to an eighth-place finish.

McClatchy High (Sacramento) junior Anna McNatt overtook Newbury Park senior Samantha McDowell in the final yards to win the Division I individual title in 17:07.5.

Newbury Park boys showed up for a coronation

The only questions for the nation’s top-ranked team were a) would they grab the first five individual places and b) would the older Sahlman brother shatter the course record.

Newbury Park didn’t accomplish either, but they did dominate the race as expected by placing six runners among the 10. Its 16 total points were a Division I record, and its combined 73:23 time was also a record.

Second-place Loyola High was a distant 135 points. Only Davis High senior Zachery Ayers broke up the Newbury Park pack by placing fifth in 14:55.6.

Clovis High junior Christopher Caudillo broke into the top 10 with a 14:59.2 time, good enough for sixth.

His race strategy was to go out with the leaders and stay with them. However, near the 2-mile mark he fell back a bit.

“I kind of dozed off a bit too much,” said Caudillo. I’m glad I went sub-15 today. If I didn’t go sub-15 today, I probably wouldn’t be able to live with myself.”

Caudillo enjoys the challenge of testing himself against Newbury Park runners.

“I need to have the mentality of ‘I have to be the best’ and you can’t let anybody in front of you willingly,” he said. “If you hold yourself back and wait, then the race is already over for you.”

Teammate Nathaniel Ávila stayed with the main pack most of the race before fading to finish 14th in 15:31.4.

Madera South, the CIF Central Section champions, placed 11th in the team standings with 283 points, sandwiched between 10th-place Clovis West (267 points) and 12th-place Clovis North (364 points).

Torres High spirits high in Division IV

The miles that a group of underclassmen ran in the boys Division IV race didn’t translate to medals or trophies, but they were turned into smiles for the 2-year-old program that began with three runners.

“I think our team did amazing,” said Nolen, a standout runner at Fresno Pacific and Clovis North. “We had a lot of PRs. So if you are in a meet, that’s all I can really ask of them.”

Nolen believes Torres High can reach the elite cross country programs that have been reached by city neighbors Madera South and Madera.

“Our team motto is: ‘Faster runners, better people,’” said Nolen. “We want to develop these kids into not just fast runners but also just all-around better human beings.”

He wants to pass along what running has “taught me, like growing up, how to mature and be a man.”

Saturday, his best runner, sophomore Ozzy Hernández, placed 70th in 16:42.8. Sophomore Esaud Vargas was 73rd in 16:45.2.

“Our biggest strength as a program is the fact that we don’t really have a top runner, but we have a pack that works together and they all push each other in practice,” said Nolen.

Hernández focused on soccer in middle school but decided to try cross country.

“I finally got back into it last year and I’ve just stuck with it ever since,” said Hernández, who relishes the challenge of helping build the program at Torres High, which qualified for the state meet by finishing second in the section meet.

His first taste of the state meet was “surreal.”

“It was packed with over 200 kids on the (starting) line, and I feel like all of them pushed me, like through a wave just to go, go and get a fast time,” said Hernández.

Also running for Torres High were freshman Buffalo Soito, sophomore Omar Jayme, junior Ricardo Silva, and, sophomore Miguel Ramírez.

“We hope to be very competitive,” said Nolen. “We want to run really fast and be up there with all the best schools in the Valley and, ultimately, the state.”

Fast runners, fast times

Highland High sophomore Mía Torrecillas placed seventh in 18:10.2 in the girls Division III race. She shaved 14 seconds off her CIF Central Section-winning time.

“I just wanted to stay with the pack and see who was going to take the lead,’ said Torrecillas. “I just wanted to make sure I was up there to compete for a good spot.”

Torrecillas said it was “a little bit nerve-wracking knowing that there’s girls faster than you.”

“I just tried to calm myself down knowing that I can do good and can compete with them,” said Torrecillas, who feels motivated to put in more practice time.

Farmersville High senior Julissa Ávila, the Division IV Central Section champion, also found herself in fast company. She finished 31st in 19:06.6.

“It was very competitive, and by far one of the hardest races I’ve ever run in my whole running career,” said Ávila. “But, it was very cool and it was a great experience for me.”

Ávila said being from a small, rural community doesn’t make for competitive races.

“I’m barely learning,” she said. “This is one of the first times I’ve run with competitive people.”

Chino High senior Mía Chávez was thrilled with a fourth-place finish in the girls Division III race with a time of 17:55.0.

“They’re saying I’m the first Chino High runner to get on the podium, and that is so amazing being the first to do it,” said Chávez, who said her mindset going into the race was winning.

“If you don’t think you’re going to win, you won’t win,” she said.

Central Section boys Division II runner-up San Luis Obispo stormed back to win the state title with 105 points, ahead of Granada High’s 112 points. Section champion Sanger High, which won the section title by 1 point, was 12th on Saturday.

However, Sanger High senior David De Loera placed higher than any SLO competitor by taking 10th place with a time of 15:38.

De Loera, who finished second in the section meet to teammate Emanuel Salas, missed his personal best by 3 seconds.

Tulare Western, the section boys Division III champions, finished 12th in the team scoring. It was led by junior Carter Mendes, 40th in 16:07.

In the same division, Oakdale placed fourth with 204 points (West Torrance won with 57 points). Oakdale was led by junior Caleb Cavanaugh who was 12th in 15:35.8.

Mira Costa High senior Dalia Frías captured the girls Division II title in 16:52.0 and helped her team win the team championship.