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2002 California State
Seasonal Summary - Girls - Division I-II (III-IV-V coming up)
Sultana and Ventura
- Dean Ryan Photo
Division I
Murrieta Valley, under Coach Steve Chavez, came out charging this year
since September, and probably carried out a season at one of the highest
levels in State history, with a 93:01 team time and 61 points in the state
finals to remain ahead of an outstanding group from Thousand Oaks HS under
Coach Robert Radnoti. Liza Pasciuto and outstanding frosh Karen Camburn
were joined at the state meet by a super effort by Bonghabia Shey to lead
the squad to what should be a very significant national ranking, in that
they broke the Woodward Park Course record of 93:04 (but had that stomped
seriously by Sultana (Hesperia) later in the day). Thousand Oaks finished
in super style, with their 68 point total (94:09 team time) among the
top fifteen efforts ever in the State competition. Whitney McDonald finished
in fine style for the team, with an impressive 30 second 1-5 gap after
18:31 leading State meet finisher Kathleen Vance. This division was basically
nails, with early season top-ranked Dana Hills (Dana Point), under new
coach Coach Andy Sims doing a fine job at 95:04 and 109 points in third
at state, with teams back through fifth here (Royal, Simi Valley who kept
league-mate Thousand Oaks honest all fall, and Peninsula (Rolling Hills)
finishing among the top thirty-two teams ever on the team time watch at
the Fresno Woodward course!! This was easily the deepest team race in
terms of quality ever on the Woodward Park course. 109 athletes ran under
20:00, with the top fourteen squads under 100:00!! Wow!!! Next year, Thousand
Oaks returns five of its scorers here between 18:31 and 19:31, and will
lead the team chase from early on.
Individually, Rachel Bryan (Laguna Creek, Elk Grove) picked up where she
left off in track with an impressive second in the State Meet for 3200
meters, with a great Fall that just ended with her qualifying for the
Foot Locker National Championships as an individual. The Laguna Creek
junior had a series of stunning efforts capped by a comfortable state
meet win. Liza Pasciuto (Murrieta Valley) led her squad in super style,
second to Bryan in State. The depth individually at State was among the
top ever through tenth place. A dozen of the top returnees, led by the
top two, return for 2003, so it will be another barn-burner!!!
Division II
Sultana (Hesperia), returned a super group this Fall, then had super frosh
Danielle Varela joined Coach John Mahr's team to make them a stunner on
top, with their state meet run of a stunning 91:56 clocking that blew
away the low 93 minute times run by Peninsula two years back and Murrieta
earlier in the day. With their top five in before anyone else had three
across the line, Coach John Mahr’s group immediately brings to mind
comparisons with the group felt to be the best in California history,
the University of Irvine group in the early 1980’s led by national
mile record holder Polly Plumer. The University group, like many at that
period, did not run as an entire team in the Kinney (today Foot Locker)
series, with the participation in those contests at Fresno in the early
years totally counted in the hundreds, not the thousands as today. With
no State Meet until 1987 the 92:25 that Uni ran on the old Mt. SAC course
before it was altered a few years back, combined with the National Distance
Medley record of 11:43.53 from 1982 finally broken by San Lorenzo Valley
in 2000 at 11:41.28, led most to believe they were the top prep group
of distance runners ever gathered. They ran 4:35.24 (full mile) 5:00.0
(1600) - 5:02.5 (1600) - 5:06.0 (1600) and 5:13.5 (1600) for the scoring
five in track that school year, with Theresa Barrios, the 5:00.0 1600
runner 10:29.03 for 3200m in track. I had a girl run 19:04 at the old
Mt. SAC course in 1981 when we were stuck in a CIF prelims heat with Uni
and she did not qualify for the Finals as an individual, as five Uni girls
beat her in the trials race, shutting her out of the Finals as an individual!
Polly Plumer ran 17:27 on the Mt. SAC old course that year, with Barrios
17:43 on the squad coached by now Canyon (Canyon Country) Principal Bob
Messina. It would be a heck of a race, with the Sultana group returning
all of its runners for next Fall, so with another full year, and continued
improvement, the Sultana crew has the potential to be considered California's
All-Time Great harrier squad on the female side. Sultana, who will end
the year ranked among the very top group nationally, is faced with the
question of venturing out early next year to face the juggernaut from
Saratoga Springs, New York, a squad coached by the husband-wife team of
Art and Linda Kranik, with the upper New York State school able to year
after year after year turn out runners at a level that is truly frightening.
We are sure contact will be made with both teams for the early season
Great American CC contest, with Coach Mahr needing to weigh the cost of
such a contest early on in the season long plan. Saratoga story--one time
I was at a back-east indoor meet after Saratoga had stomped the rest of
the east and their state with some ridiculous low state cc point total
in the 30's (they run all divisions at the New York Federation Meet, so
it is like a Division I-V combined race out here). They had a girl show
up in indoor track who was not a part of the cross-country team and she
had run about 5:07 for a full mile. I asked Art and Linda about the student,
and they replied that she had a very busy family life, very active in
church groups, and all, but that they had talked her into coming out for
indoor track. After two months they had her down below 5:10 in the mile
to add to a group considered among the top in the entire nation already!
It ain't easy to train in Saratoga, New York many times of the year, with
the school parking lot and two trash cans to run between, with rock salt
melting the snow to a tolerable level, laid down to create a running path
many times in the winter over the years.
Sultana's efforts in Fresno overshadowed some amazing running at this
level also, with the depth here far beyond what has ever taken place at
this level in the State Division II contests, with five squads among the
top fifty-two team times ever run at Woodward Park, and fifteen teams
under 100:00 on the team time watch! Any of the teams through the top
ten to twelve are deserving of awards as teams, with depth that is very
overwhelming. Coach Bill Tokar of Ventura deserves special accolades for
taking his entire under-class squad past a huge group in the preseason
considerations to a runner-up job at the State Meet. A frosh with the
last name Spiker (Emily this time) raced magnificently in helping Ventura
(144) just edge Montgomery (Santa Rosa 146), who themselves had a super
fall, With both Ventura and Montgomery six back (remember Sultana returns
everyone), College Park (Pleasant Hill 4th 190 96:16) their top six, and
upstart Villa Park (5th 191 95:59) 4 of their top 5, this division will
cook in 2003! People rise to the level of their competition, and anyone
who slacks in the next twelve months politely finding their act pushed
down their throats by the dynamic groups that inhabit this division!!
We do not like to dangle the potential for better things in 2003 in front
of folks, but another definite possibility at this level. The quality
here is amazing!
Individually up front Caitlin Chock (Granite Bay) completed a stellar
2002 campaign, pacing her efforts carefully and peaking here in super
style!!! As another returnee look for some big things from here on in!!!
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