Lauren Soobrian, left, and Chris Caudillo, right, were the top winners on Saturday at Woodward Park. (File photos by Patrick Corsinita and DeAnna Turner)
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A pair of juniors -- Chris Caudillo and Lauren Soobrian -- won the championship races at the CA Regional cross country meet held Saturday at Woodward Park in Fresno.
The event, added after the traditional Team Nationals event in Portland was cancelled for a second consecutive year, attracted high school athletes to another shot on the 5000-meter State Meet course.
(All athletes competed unattached. High school affiliations are referenced here for identification purposes.)
Caudillo, a junior at Clovis (CS) who is well versed on the Woodward Park layout, established a personal best on the course, 14:53.2, handily in front of Michael Julian, a senior at The York School (CC), who crossed second in 15:02.6.
Caudillo had placed sixth in the Division I race dominated by Newbury Park at the CIF-State Meet a week before. In doing so, he went under 15:00 for the first time, clocking in at 14:59.20. He had run 15:00.00 for sixth place at the Clovis Invitational held in early October.
Julian had placed fifth in the Division V race at the State Meet.
Soobrian from Los Altos (CC) ran the course in 17:40.6, to beat Clovis North junior Ashlyn Leath by 7.2 seconds. Leath was 1.5 seconds faster than Soobrian in the Division I race at the State Meet, where they placed 10th and 11th, respectively. Soobrian had placed sixth at the Central Coast Finals.
Other boys placing in the top 10
3. Nathaniel Avila (Clovis/CS/Sr.) 15:14.6; 4. Daniel Trampe (Dublin/NC/Sr.) 15:23.3; 5. Carter Spradling (Clovis East/CS/So.) 15:33.5; 6. Mason Ma (Ayala/SS/Sr.) 15:36.3; 7. Milo Skapinsky (San Luis Obispo/CS/Jr.) 15:37.1; 8. Andrew Cape (Clovis North/CS/Sr.) 15:38.0; 9. Rhys Pullen (Campolindo/NC/Sr.) 15:40.8; 10. Lewis Westwood (San Luis Obispo/CS/Sr.) 15:42.1).
Trampe was the leader in Dublin's 15-point perfect score to win the North Coast Section Division 1 title. Skapinsky and Westwood were instrumental in SLO's upset team victory in Division II at the State Meet. Here, the group calling itself the San Luis Distance Club won the team crown over Dublin, 51-68, in a 78-runner field.
Other girls placing in the top 10
3. Evangeline Marheineke (Archbishop Mitty/CC/Fr.) 18:01.2; 4. Tatiana Cornejo (St. Francis/SJ/Sr.) 18:01.7; 5. Brynn Garcia (JSerra/SS/Fr.) 18:04.0; 6. Renae Searls (Alhambra/NC/So.) 18:14.6; 7. Arielle McKenzie (La Canada/SS/So.) 18:15.8; 8. Gianna Bomarito (Clovs North/CS/Sr.) 18:24.8; 9. Kinsey Pogue (Monte Vista/NC/Sr.) 18:32.4; 10. Adeline Johnson (Branson/NC/Jr.) 18:33.5.
Garcia had led JSerra to the State Division IV title the week before. Here, that group -- aka JSerra TC -- placed second behind the team calling itself the Clovis North Running Club, led by Leath, Bomarito, and senior Miliana Perez, who placed 12th in the 55-runner field.
