Oak Park, OCHS advance, but Royal won't make trip to State Finals
Liberty Miller of Simi Valley the only local cross country runner that'll participate in Fresno meet
By Thomas Gase tgase@theacorn.com

A coastal fog and cool temperatures made running conditions nearly perfect for the CIFSS Cross Country Finals last Saturday at Mount San Antonio College in Walnut.

Oak Park High quickly took advantage of the weather. The program's boys' and girls' teams placed second and third respectively in Division III races. Both teams advanced to the State Finals, which take place this weekend at Woodward Park in Fresno.

"It was very gratifying for both teams to do well at Mount SAC," Oak Park head coach Kevin Smith said. "We came into the season with very lofty goals for both teams, and we've come close to fulfilling all of them."

The Oak Park girls were led by senior Courtney Lightfoot, who came in ninth place with a time of 18:33. Marissa Diehl finished in 12th place, while Melissa Skiba was 16th.

Leading the way for the OPHS boys' team was sophomore James Goldstein, who finished in fifth with a 15:31. Senior Garrison Gourdeau was right behind Goldstein with a 15:45, good enough for 12th place.

While Oak Park had success in Division III, Oaks Christian did well in Division IV. Oaks Christian will also send both its boys' and girls' teams to Woodward Park. Last weekend, the OCHS boys finished in third place while the girls were second.

Leading the way for the OCHS boys was Charlie Petrie, who finished in third place with a time of 15:50. Petrie's teammate, Hunter Hays, was fifth at 16:07.

The Lion girls' were led by Cristina Garcia, who finished with a mark of 19:06.

"It was really exciting to watch the boys' and girls' teams do well," Oaks Christian head coach Wes Smith said.

"Both finishes were the best in the school's short history, and I'm excited about the standard the two teams have set. Hopefully they're not done yet. We're glad to be state finalists, but we'd like to be state champions as well."

Royal High's boys were ninth in Division I.

Senior Alex Routh contributed to the Highlanders' success by running a time of 15:10, good enough for 10th place. Royal head coach Ryan Luce was impressed with Routh, as well as the rest of his team.

"He (Routh) ran the fourthfastest time at Mount SAC since I've been here, so that should say a lot," Luce said. "In the past he has been just another runner that places, but this season he was definitely our front-runner.

"I was also impressed with a lot of our young freshman and sophomore runners. We had an interesting season with a couple of kids having to leave the team due to mono or grades, and the young kids really stepped up in their place. Guys like Travis Edwards just did a phenomenal job."

The Royal girls finished 14th. Leading the way for RHS was Kally Upson, who finished with a time of 18:59. Her teammate, Nicole McCormick, posted a 19:00.

The Thousand Oaks High boys' team earned a 16th-place finish, with Sean Gildea running a time of 15:37 for the Lancers.

In Division II, Westlake High was 14th. Marcus Lam led the Warriors with a mark of 16:08.

Marmonte League teams were firing on all cylinders on the girls' side of Division II, with Agoura, Simi Valley and Newbury Park all placing in the top 15.

The Chargers came in ninth with Erin Baird running an 18:16. Liberty Miller helped the Pioneers place 11th. Miller finished fourth with a mark of 17:39, good enough to earn her an individual spot in Fresno.

Newbury Park finished in 14th place. Jenny Mallen was 12th overall with a time of 18:03.

Finishing in seventh place in the Division IV girls' race was La Reina High. The Regents were led by Sarah Pearson, who placed fifth with an 18:40.