BOYS SOUTHERN SECTION - TOP 25
Great Oak's boys, including Mateo Joseph (1608) and Gabe Abbes (1600), are looking toward the post-season following team invitational wins at Great American, Clovis and Mt. SAC. (Credit: DeAnna Turner)
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1) Great Oak (Div. 1) -- Scary when you hardly notice when one of their top runners does not score while someone else steps up in their place for the Wolfpack. Solid victory in the Team Sweeps but perhaps, more impressive performance in the JV National Sweeps where they placed first through seventh, headlined by Leandro Candray's 15:25!
2) Newbury Park (Div. 2) -- They rested their top six last weekend, while allowing their newcomers to get onto the Riverside Championship course. Absolutely incredible when their No. 7, Thomas McDonnell, crosses with a 15:05 last weekend!?! Freshmen Leo Young and Aaron Sahlman ran 15:22 and 15:35 respectively!
3) Dana Hills (Div. 2) -- They captured their fifth straight title at the Orange County Championships with ease two weekends ago. Sophomore Jai Dawson is improving with every meet as he crossed with a 15:00 at last weekend's Riverside Invite which they won with a 77:29 team time, despite sitting out three of their top five, including Carrick Denker.
4) Claremont (Div. 2) -- They rested out their varsity squad last week but their junior varsity all finished within the 16:20-16:40 range at Mt. SAC. That would have placed them second in the JV National Sweeps, and with faster times in the nicer conditions of the morning.
5) West Torrance (Div. 2) -- They placed third in the Team Sweeps at Mt. SAC, led by Jake Parker's 15:18 effort. While they held out their no. 3 from Clovis, they bounced back to outlast Thousand Oaks in that same race with a 78:40 team time last weekend.
1) Great Oak (Div. 1) -- Scary when you hardly notice when one of their top runners does not score while someone else steps up in their place for the Wolfpack. Solid victory in the Team Sweeps but perhaps, more impressive performance in the JV National Sweeps where they placed first through seventh, headlined by Leandro Candray's 15:25!
2) Newbury Park (Div. 2) -- They rested their top six last weekend, while allowing their newcomers to get onto the Riverside Championship course. Absolutely incredible when their No. 7, Thomas McDonnell, crosses with a 15:05 last weekend!?! Freshmen Leo Young and Aaron Sahlman ran 15:22 and 15:35 respectively!
3) Dana Hills (Div. 2) -- They captured their fifth straight title at the Orange County Championships with ease two weekends ago. Sophomore Jai Dawson is improving with every meet as he crossed with a 15:00 at last weekend's Riverside Invite which they won with a 77:29 team time, despite sitting out three of their top five, including Carrick Denker.
4) Claremont (Div. 2) -- They rested out their varsity squad last week but their junior varsity all finished within the 16:20-16:40 range at Mt. SAC. That would have placed them second in the JV National Sweeps, and with faster times in the nicer conditions of the morning.
5) West Torrance (Div. 2) -- They placed third in the Team Sweeps at Mt. SAC, led by Jake Parker's 15:18 effort. While they held out their no. 3 from Clovis, they bounced back to outlast Thousand Oaks in that same race with a 78:40 team time last weekend.
6) Agoura (Div. 3) -- In our overall merge of the top squads at Mt. SAC last weekend, we did take into consideration the difference in weather as the Chargers had to perform after sitting in the dry sun (and against far less competition) on Friday afternoon. With a 79:09 and 98-point victory, Ryan Koepnick (15:19)and Beau Bordelon (15:24) both shined with top-five finishes.
7) La Serna (Div. 1) -- Competing at the Riverside Invite, they utilized the same five scorers for the fourth meet in a row. Gerald Baltzer crossed in 15:16 while the scoring was concluded only 33 seconds later and with a solid 78:10 team time. They've developed some nice consistency this past month while their stock continues to rise.
8) Thousand Oaks (Div. 2) -- Michael Mireles continues to dazzle with his 14:41 performance, leading his crew, one week after he captured the Ventura County Championships. They performed well with a 78:18 team time but they did have the largest scoring gap (1:33) among the top seven teams in the Team Sweeps at Mt. SAC.
9) Redlands East Valley (Div. 2) -- They took last weekend off. They were very impressive in their victory at the Inland Empire Championships several weeks ago, despite one of their top guns not scoring due to illness. Their performance at the Central Park Invite earlier this month was their best thus far.
10) Burbank (Div. 1) -- While they could not keep pace with Crescenta Valley at their league meet, they returned to get the best of them at Mt. SAC last weekend. Placing sixth in the Team Sweeps at Mt. SAC, they were only seven points behind Thousand Oaks. Victor Goli's 15:15 spearheaded the effort as this was their best performance of date.
10t) Crescenta Valley (Div. 1) -- They handled Burbank in their last league meet, but a couple of hiccups from two of their scorers pushed the Falcons down to an 11th place finish in the Team Sweeps race at Mt. SAC. As Dylan Wilbur continues to improve up front, the Pacific League Finals should be one of the best in the section!
10t) Crescenta Valley (Div. 1) -- They handled Burbank in their last league meet, but a couple of hiccups from two of their scorers pushed the Falcons down to an 11th place finish in the Team Sweeps race at Mt. SAC. As Dylan Wilbur continues to improve up front, the Pacific League Finals should be one of the best in the section!
12) El Toro (Div. 2) -- They ran the Riverside Invite under a well-controlled pace, crossing within a 17-second scoring gap. Serving as a primer for the upcoming postseason, we still have not seen their best, with everybody clicking together. We became wary after Orange County Championships, but they looked sharp last weekend.
13) Roosevelt (Div. 1) -- They have only run their varsity seven in one race this season and have been VERY selective towards their racing schedule. They have improved the back part of their scoring lineup over this past month, while possessing a lethal trio up front.
14) Loyola (Div. 2) -- The Cubs captured the Individual Sweeps at Mt. SAC, with Anthony Stone leading with a 15:26. With a nice 40-second scoring gap, Gus Marshall continues to improve as they look down the road at earning one of those seven spots to the Division II State Meet.
14t) Poly Long Beach (Div. 1) -- With Ronan McMahon-Staggs leading the way, they placed second in the Individual Sweeps at Mt. SAC with a 79:33 team time. This was the smallest scoring gap they've had (37 seconds) all season as the veteran group prepares for another State Meet berth.
16) California (Div. 1) -- The Condors took a step back at Mt. SAC in placing a distant 13th place in the Team Sweeps at Mt. SAC. With two scorers slightly off their recent efforts and the loaded competition, it magnified in their overall placing. They are much better than what we saw last weekend.
17) Arcadia (Div. 1) -- One of the most improved squads this past month, Arcadia has been in the shadow of league foes, Crescenta Valley and Burbank. Well, that's slowly changing as they put out another solid effort at the Riverside Invite last weekend, averaging 15:53 per scorer. That was without their top gun, Jacob Hsu who has finished right with Tianyuan Pei (15:23 at Riverside) all season.
18) Vista Murrieta (Div. 1) -- Planned on competing at Mt. SAC but with several under the weather, they figured that they would save that extra race for a strong push in November. The Broncos jumped up our rankings after the Hole-in-the-Wall Invite several weeks ago. In that race, they finished in a 17-second scoring gap and keep in mind, it was a 5K.
19) Mira Costa (Div. 1) -- Rested Billy Atkinson in trying to get him back to early September form, along with several other varsity boys last week at Mt. SAC. Vista Murrieta got the best of them at the Hole-in-the-Wall Invite in Washington several weeks ago.
20) Rancho Cucamonga (Div. 1) -- This group rose up and surprised us at the Inland Empire Championships. In backing that effort up with their 80:39 performance at Mt. SAC and solid team victory in a non-Sweeps race at Mt. SAC. They possess an interchangeable line-up that can stay together all throughout.
21) Beckman (Div. 1) -- While they did not quite shine as bright as we saw at the Orange County Championships, where they were runner-up, this squad continues to linger around the top ten in Division 1. Sitting out a major scorer at the Riverside Invite, they still managed a 79:50 team time. While they possess a solid quartet up front, they need to shore up the gap to their last scorer to be in the State Meet conversation.
22) San Clemente (Div. 1) -- They sat out two of their top four scorers at Mt. SAC while the rest seemingly controlled their pace. They placed third at the Orange County Championships with a solid team time of 76:48, led by Caleb Mettler's 15:04 performance.
23) Woodbridge (Div. 2) -- Raced to a 79:35 team time at the Riverside Invite last weekend. Led by Ryan Welton's 15:28, returning back to the State Meet from Division 2 will be a tall task in 2019. Great match-up next week going against Beckman for the Pacific Coast League crown.
24) Royal (Div. 3) -- With an 82:22 team time in Friday afternoon's Divisions 3-5 Sweeps Race, they placed third despite Angus Fitzgerald (fifth overall the week earlier at the Ventura County Championships) not factoring into the scoring.
25) Martin Luther King (Div. 1) -- We remain puzzled on this group as they possess the talent to be much higher. Their varsity group at Mt. SAC was underwhelming but we did witness some solid efforts from several others at the Riverside Invite.
25t) Capistrano Valley (Div. 2) -- Placed third in the Individual Sweeps at Mt. SAC with a 80:07 team time with Sean Robertson continuing his great season with a 15:14.
Others: Canyon (Ana.), Foothill Tech, Godinez, Long Beach Wilson, Mission Viejo, Quartz Hill, Santa Monica, Trabuco Hills, Westlake
13) Roosevelt (Div. 1) -- They have only run their varsity seven in one race this season and have been VERY selective towards their racing schedule. They have improved the back part of their scoring lineup over this past month, while possessing a lethal trio up front.
14) Loyola (Div. 2) -- The Cubs captured the Individual Sweeps at Mt. SAC, with Anthony Stone leading with a 15:26. With a nice 40-second scoring gap, Gus Marshall continues to improve as they look down the road at earning one of those seven spots to the Division II State Meet.
14t) Poly Long Beach (Div. 1) -- With Ronan McMahon-Staggs leading the way, they placed second in the Individual Sweeps at Mt. SAC with a 79:33 team time. This was the smallest scoring gap they've had (37 seconds) all season as the veteran group prepares for another State Meet berth.
16) California (Div. 1) -- The Condors took a step back at Mt. SAC in placing a distant 13th place in the Team Sweeps at Mt. SAC. With two scorers slightly off their recent efforts and the loaded competition, it magnified in their overall placing. They are much better than what we saw last weekend.
17) Arcadia (Div. 1) -- One of the most improved squads this past month, Arcadia has been in the shadow of league foes, Crescenta Valley and Burbank. Well, that's slowly changing as they put out another solid effort at the Riverside Invite last weekend, averaging 15:53 per scorer. That was without their top gun, Jacob Hsu who has finished right with Tianyuan Pei (15:23 at Riverside) all season.
18) Vista Murrieta (Div. 1) -- Planned on competing at Mt. SAC but with several under the weather, they figured that they would save that extra race for a strong push in November. The Broncos jumped up our rankings after the Hole-in-the-Wall Invite several weeks ago. In that race, they finished in a 17-second scoring gap and keep in mind, it was a 5K.
19) Mira Costa (Div. 1) -- Rested Billy Atkinson in trying to get him back to early September form, along with several other varsity boys last week at Mt. SAC. Vista Murrieta got the best of them at the Hole-in-the-Wall Invite in Washington several weeks ago.
20) Rancho Cucamonga (Div. 1) -- This group rose up and surprised us at the Inland Empire Championships. In backing that effort up with their 80:39 performance at Mt. SAC and solid team victory in a non-Sweeps race at Mt. SAC. They possess an interchangeable line-up that can stay together all throughout.
21) Beckman (Div. 1) -- While they did not quite shine as bright as we saw at the Orange County Championships, where they were runner-up, this squad continues to linger around the top ten in Division 1. Sitting out a major scorer at the Riverside Invite, they still managed a 79:50 team time. While they possess a solid quartet up front, they need to shore up the gap to their last scorer to be in the State Meet conversation.
22) San Clemente (Div. 1) -- They sat out two of their top four scorers at Mt. SAC while the rest seemingly controlled their pace. They placed third at the Orange County Championships with a solid team time of 76:48, led by Caleb Mettler's 15:04 performance.
23) Woodbridge (Div. 2) -- Raced to a 79:35 team time at the Riverside Invite last weekend. Led by Ryan Welton's 15:28, returning back to the State Meet from Division 2 will be a tall task in 2019. Great match-up next week going against Beckman for the Pacific Coast League crown.
24) Royal (Div. 3) -- With an 82:22 team time in Friday afternoon's Divisions 3-5 Sweeps Race, they placed third despite Angus Fitzgerald (fifth overall the week earlier at the Ventura County Championships) not factoring into the scoring.
25) Martin Luther King (Div. 1) -- We remain puzzled on this group as they possess the talent to be much higher. Their varsity group at Mt. SAC was underwhelming but we did witness some solid efforts from several others at the Riverside Invite.
25t) Capistrano Valley (Div. 2) -- Placed third in the Individual Sweeps at Mt. SAC with a 80:07 team time with Sean Robertson continuing his great season with a 15:14.
Others: Canyon (Ana.), Foothill Tech, Godinez, Long Beach Wilson, Mission Viejo, Quartz Hill, Santa Monica, Trabuco Hills, Westlake
NEXT WEEK - WE POST OUR NEW TOP 10 INDIVIDUALS PER DIVISION!!!