CIF-SS Championships: Storylines On and Off Script

CIF Southern Section Finals

DIVISION II


Newbury Park junior Nico Young set a course record in winning the Division II title. (Frank Bellino photo)

BOYS

  • Team storyline: Would anyone be able to challenge Newbury Park? Turns out, no. Getting a 1-4-8-19-24 finish propelled NP to 51 points, well ahead of runner-up Claremont's 104. 
  • Individual storyline: Would Canyon Country Canyon's Ethan Danforth be able to defend his title or would the momentum of Newbury Park junior Nico Young continue with his breakout season? Young, who won at Woodbridge and has been fast all season, was an 11-second winner in a course record 14:24.2 over Arroyo senior Noah Hibbard (14:35.1) and Danforth (14:40.0). NP junior Jace Aschbrenner was fourth (14:42.8) and senior teammate Ethan Ronk was eighth (14:57.0) in adding to the team runaway. Senior Ryan Cowgill was ninth (14:58.7) to lead Claremont, the 2017 team champion. 


Race Recap: Newbury Park and Claremont came in projected to be one of the closest matchups of the day. But, in placing three in the top 10 early on, Newbury Park refused to let off the pedal in what ended up being a convincing 53-point victory!  What a difference a year can make as junior Nico Young pushed the pace from the gun and roared home with, not only the title but a new course record!  His 14:24.2 performance continued to prove why he is one of the best in the nation but his support crew brought this one home as Jace Aschbrenner put a mid-season injury behind him, in rolling to a fourth place, 14:42.8 effort.  Ethan Ronk (eighth place - 14:57.0), Kyndall Long (19th place - 15:07.9) and Nicholas Goldstein (24th place - 15:12.3) closed out the scoring as the Panthers shattered the Division II course record and was only eight seconds behind Great Oak's overall course record, set just 30 minutes earlier.  They missed the State Meet with their eight place finish in Division I last year, but do return for the second time in three seasons. 

Claremont actually broke the previous Division II course record as they performed well, with the fifth fastest team time on the day.  Ryan Cowgill crossed in ninth place at 14:58.7, while Adam Trafecanty stepped it up, ran his best race yet, finishing in 12th place (15:00.3).  Jacob Moran (17th place - 15:05.9), Yoon Cho and Aaron Reyes closed out their scoring as this is Claremont's fifth straight trip to the California State Meet.  With Newbury Park showing up with one of the best performances in the state this season and Claremont clearly off their 'A' game, we suspect a much tighter matchup next weekend!

Loyola came in with a crew that returned only one boy from 2017's varsity lineup.  With that, they still ran faster than the previous Division II record and the sixth fastest of the day.  Mason Ratkovich (seventh place - 14:56.7) claimed their top billing today, with Anthony Stone (18th place - 15:06.9), Vinnie Giachini (28th place - 15:14.6) and Roberto Ruelas (33rd place - 15:20.2) provided ample support for their 12th straight trip (16th in 17 seasons) to the State Meet.    

We knew El Toro would give Thousand Oaks a push for that fourth place spot, but the Chargers showed up with their best race of the season.  In running to the tenth fastest team time on the day, El Toro opted to sit back (ninth place at the 1.7-mile split) and leapfrogged the field the last portion of the race.  Mitch Groff moved up from 34th place to finish 10th overall (14:58.8) while Juan Torres (27th place - 15:14.4) moved up 26 spots in that same span!   Jonas Hartline (34th place - 15:20.5) also headlined their performance and moved up 18 spots.  They return to the State Meet in back-to-back trips for the first time since 2010-2011 and for their 11th time in 15 seasons!   Three of their top four return next year as well.  

Thousand Oaks was led by a step-out performance by junior Michael Mireles (fifth place - 14:51.1) while other frontrunner, Mitchell Burr struggled.  Ethan Bersley was their third scorer today as they rolled to their first State Meet berth since 2008!   Their regular finish order we've seen this season from the Lancers was defintely 'off' and we would not be surprised to see a better performance next week.  As they held on for a fifth-place finish, expect a positive rebound at the California State Meet.

Moving up from eighth place at the 1.7-mile split, Simi Valley punched their ticket to the State Meet by moving up to sixth place with a 47-point improvement and only five points behind Thousand Oaks.  Leading the charge and roaring from 49th place up to 23rd place over the last 1.3 miles, Ian Gerth (15:12.2) was their top boy for the first time this season.  He passed Joshua Moncada (26th place - 15:13.4) over that last stretch.  Nick Williams moved up from 56th place up to 39th place for added support.  This is the Pioneers' first trip to the State Meet since 2013. 

Finally, Woodbridge also stamped their ticket to their first ever State Meet trip!  Caleb Terefe (15th place - 15:04.7) and Brett Knutson (15:28.4) led the way for the Warriors.   Ben Choi supported those two while Ryan Welton ran over 22 seconds faster than he did on the same course a month ago.   

Individually, while Young was motoring up front, Arroyo's Noah Hibbard remained steadfast and used the rapid pace to record the second fastest time of the day.  With the field completely spread out with 800 meters to go, defending champion, Ethan Danforth of Canyon/CC and Aschbrenner looked to move in on Hibbard, but to no avail.  Mireles led the chase pack while Newport Harbor's Alexis Garcia moved up the last mile to qualify for his State Meet.    

Individual Qualifiers: Noah Hibbard (Arroyo) 14:35.1; Ethan Danforth (Canyon-CC) 14:40.0; Alexis Garcia (Newport Harbor) 14:55.9; Daniel Rush (Golden Valley) 15:00.1; Ewan Macfarlane (Peninsula) 15:01.2. 


GIRLS


  • Team storyline: Claremont, the defending section and state champion, was always the favorite, although eyes remained on the likes of Mission Viejo and Serrano. But it was the Wolfpack claiming a third consecutive section title with a 1-11-14-19-24 overall finish and 69 points. The Diablos of Mission Viejo were second with 114, edging Serrano by four points. 
  • Individual storyline: Who would take it in a wide open field? The answer is Claremont freshman Maddie Coles (16:54.2), who overcame pre-race asthma issues to outlast Riverside North sophomore Makayla Browne (17:05.2) with Ventura junior Madeleine Locher third (17:06.8). Freshmen in the top 10 included Anaheim Canyon's Emma Hadley (fourth in 17:07.7) and Serrano's Tiani Goeson (fifth in 17:08.7). Yale-bound senior Kelli Hines was eighth (17:13.5) to lead Mission Viejo. 

Race Recap: Of the 10 races, this was one of the most competitive showdowns on the docket.  In the end of the day, seven of the top ten teams on the day came from this Division II competition! Claremont's girls came in as one of the top-ranked teams in the nation, and despite fighting illness and not at 100%, delivered to capture their third straight title.  Continuing to move up the statewide charts, freshman Maddie Coles moved away over the 1200 meters to a mild upset and new freshman course record of 16:54.2.  Sydney Hwang (11th place - 17:26.9), Azalea Segura-Mora (14th place - 17:36.5) and Kalinda Reynolds (19th place - 17:46.0) secured the victory.  Julia Marriott and Angie Gushue will bring their best next weekend as Claremont looks to defend their state title and receive another invitation to NXN.  This will be their sixth straight trip up to Fresno.

    Mission Viejo came out strong over the first half of the race, where at the 1.7-mile split, they were only one point behind Claremont.  In the end, Claremont proved to be untouchable while  Kelli Hines, matriculating to Yale next year, crossed at eighth place (17:13.5) while Emma Hicken (13th place - 17:35.5) continued to display her improvement.  Morgan Calcagnie (25th place - 17:51.9), Sophie Mendelson (31st place - 18:02.8) and Ashley Johnson (37th place - 18:10.8) closed out the scoring for the Diablos.  They held off Serrano, 114-118 as Johnson outscored Serrano's fifth, 37-50.   

      Interchanging all season long in those second through fifth place rankings, Serrano has been one of the best squads in California.  Tiani Goeson and Maribel Aguilar pushed up front all race while freshman Goeson (17:08.7) rolled to a fifth-place finish with her fellow Diamondback in sixth place (17:11.6).  Elizabeth Martin continued her successful senior campaign with a 21st place finish (17:50.2) while Samantha Ulloa crossed in 18:10.2 for 36th place.  This is the sixth time in seven seasons that Serrano moves on to the State Meet as their team time was the fourth fastest over all divisions.     

      Saugus checked in for their yearly invite to the State Meet as they did just that for a fourth-place finish.  Jacqueline Cascione led her crew with a 15th place finish (17:40.7) while Hannah Fredericks stepped it up with her best of the season in finishing 23rd place with a 17:51.0.  Meanwhile, freshman Isabella Duarte (26th place - 17:53.5) provided an added punch.  Hailey Rutter (32nd - 18:02.8) stepped up with a seasonal best effort, while moving up 12 spots over the last 1.3 miles of the course.  In their 14th straight season of competing at the State Meet and impressive history on the Woodward Park course, don't be surprised to see Saugus reaching into the top three next weekend. 

      Canyon of Anaheim Hills qualified to the State Meet for the fourth year in a row.   Freshman Emma Hadley performed brilliantly in moving up to take fourth place in 17:07.7.  Sarah Paino continues a superb season 17th place finish, which saw her move up 12 places over the last portion of the course.  Paino's 17:42.3 was almost a minute faster than her 2017 Finals effort.  Isabella Frisone,  Graciela Retiguin, and Isabella Rubalcava closed out the scoring in finishing within ten seconds apart.  Retiguin came in as their seventh runner, but finished fourth for the team.  The Comanches moved up from sixth place and into fifth over the last mile of the course. 

      Coming on strong this past month, Westlake rose up to the expectations, powering through a sixth-place finish, and much closer to the top five than our pre-race projections.   Rebecca Shultz (12th place - 17:32.2) paced the Warriors while Ashley Gonzalez pushed through with her top performance of the season (22nd place - 17:50.6).  Hailey Golman also provided an extra spark with her 29th place finish (17:57.8).  Westlake qualified for the California State Meet for the first time since 2005.    

      El Toro's girls have been just outside those five powerhouses all season and cut into that gap today.  Alexis Neuville (20th place - 17:47.0) led the Chargers while Kasey Lynd crossed in 30th place with an 18:00.8.  Taylor Slouka had her best race of the season, finishing just ahead of Grace Griffin.  El Toro advances on to their third straight State Meet, with the previous two being earned from Division I. 

      Individually, sophomore Makayla Browne of JW North led the pack through the first two miles of the course with Newbury Park's Archana Mohandas, Claremont's Coles and Ventura's Madeleine Locher joining them with 1000 meters to go.  But, with 800 meters to go, that's when Coles took over for good, extending it out to an 11-second victory over Browne.   Canyon's Hadley moved up well over the last 400 meters, to secure a fourth-place finish.  Colony sophomore Amber Rios also finished strong over the last 200 meters to punch her ticket to another State Meet.  Three of the top five are freshmen. 

      Qualifying Individuals: Makayla Browne (JW North) 17:05.2;  Madeleine Locher (Ventura) 17:06.8; Amber Rios (Colony) 17:13.1; Carly Corsinita (Capistrano Valley) 17:20.0; Jill Walker (Simi Valley) 17:20.3.