Sunday, June 30, 2013

Central Coast Section Top 10 Individuals (Boys and Girls)

Boys
1)  Steven Sum Saratoga Division II
2)  Scott Edwards Scotts Valley Division IV
3)  Steven Velarde San Benito Division I
4)  Terence Rabuzzi Los Altos Division II
5)  James Welsh Monterey Division III
6)  Corey Gonzalez Harker Division IV
7)  Chris Foster Los Gatos Division II
8)  Justin Robison Lynbrook Division II
9)  Ben Zaeske Los Altos Division II
10)  Jose Pina Abraham Lincoln Division I

Girls
1)  Anna Maxwell San Lorenzo Valley Division IV
2)  Sarah Robinson Gunn Division I
3)  Lauren Jacob Los Altos Division II
4)  Claire MacMillan San Lorenzo Valley Division IV
5)  Gillian Meeks Gunn Division I
6)  Kendall Hacker St. Ignatius Division II
7)  Yulisa Abundis Aptos Division III
8)  Melissa Reed Mt. View Division I
9)  Clare Peabody Aptos Division III
10)  Hannah Allen Homestead Division I

Did I miss anybody?  Who should move up?  Who should move down?  Who is going to be a big surprise in the fall?

Saturday, June 29, 2013

2013 CCS Cross Country Top 10 Teams (Boys and Girls) Pre-Season










Boys
1)  Bellarmine (Division I)
2)  St. Francis (Division II)
3)  Carlmont (Division I)
4)  Homestead (Division I)
5)  Aptos (Division III)
6)  Los Altos (Division II)
7)  St. Ignatius (Division II)
8)  Scotts Valley (Division IV)
9)  Seaside (Division IV)
10)  Lynbrook (Division II)

Girls
1)  Aptos (Division III)
2)  Salinas (Division I)
3)  Gunn (Division I)
4)  San Lorenzo Valley (Division IV)
5)  Menlo Atherton (Division I)
6)  Monta Vista (Division I)
7)  Archbishop Mitty (Division II)
8)  St. Ignatius (Division II)
9)  Homestead (Division I)
10)  St. Francis (Division II)

This is a very rough first estimate.  Feel free to comment in the section below on who should move up or down or if I missed a team or two that deserve to be ranked.

Coming up next:  CCS Top 10 Individuals (Boys and Girls)

Sunday, June 23, 2013

Jenn Carey(2009 Burlingame High) Running 4x400m In European Team Championships

From one of her high school coaches at Burlingame HS, Frank Hunt:
Jenn Carey BHS and UCSB grad (last week!) today ran for Ireland on their 4x400m Relay team. They took 1st in their heat and 3rd overall in the combined 2 heats with total of 12 teams. Time was 3:38.43 I believe.  Not bad for a young women who ran in PALs and CCS just 4 years ago now on little bigger stage. Just a couple of weeks past she PR'd at UCSB setting the school record in the 400m in low .52's! She was always a tough competitor and not your proto-typical looking 400m runner.
I had opportunity to coach her during XC at BHS along with Obbie. Great young woman now I think her team qualified to go to Moscow for the World Championships...

Shannon Rowbury and Kim Conley qualify for World Championship team in 5k

Picture to the left courtesy of Cameron Potter at the Cowchip Classic in 2001 when both were in high school.  Conley on the left ran for Montgomery HS and Rowbury on the right ran for Sacred Heart Cathedral.

Here are the results for today's 5k:
http://www.usatf.org/2013OutdoorsResults.aspx (Conley will get to compete with Simpson opting for the 1500m.)

Friday, June 21, 2013

2013 NCS Division III Pre-Season Rankings (Girls)

DIII girls synopsis by Andy Lindquist: 
Much like their male counterparts, last season's chase for the NCS title was yet another 3 team affair featuring the top teams in the DFAL: Las Lomas, Campolindo, and Acalanes. They all waged a season long battle with Las Lomas coming out on top in DFAL competition only to see Acalanes rise to the occasion at the NCS finals and claim its first girls team title since 1986 as both Las Lomas and Campolindo incurred off days and finished 3rd and 4th respectively with Redwood grabbing runner up honors. It was the lowest finish by a Campolindo girls' team since 1994 (last time they didn't qualify to the state meet as a team), however look for the Cougars to yet again return to the dominance they are accustomed to as they attempt to win their 11th section crown. Campo returns 6 out of 7 from last years team, and had a phenomenal track season to put them squarely in the drivers seat as it stands now. Las Lomas returns their entire top 7 as they look to close down the gap while Redwood, Bishop O'Dowd and Miramonte look to lead the chase pack for the final 2 state meet berths. Again, I have no idea which teams will be getting fast freshmen or transfers, but on paper now this is how things look.

1. Campolindo: The Cougars are coming off of an impressive track season that saw 4 runners all run under 11:21 in the 3200. Frontrunner Brighie Leach, enjoyed an impressive postseason capturing the NCS MOC 3200m. title in 10:41 while Hana Sun enjoyed a breakout season clocking 11:16 over 3200. Veterans Mary Orders and Rachel Johnson also ran 11:16 and 11:21 respectively and both have personal bests of the sub 19 min variety on the Woodward Park course and will provide Chuck's Army with plenty of firepower upfront. Of course, in cross country, you are only as good as your 5th runner, something that Campo has in senior Haley Shipway who ran 11:39 during the spring, giving the Cougars a potent combination of front-running and depth that will be tough to beat. The number 7 runner for most of last season, Ellen Hann, also had a solid track campaign clocking 5:34 in the 1600 to go along with a 12:27 3200. Backing up the varsity returners are Hannah Mattioda, Robin Powell, and Emily Lawrie, who swept the top 3 places at last year's DFAL frosh/soph championships. If those three can continue to improve and close down the gap on the scoring pack, the Cougars will be lethal come championship season.

2. Las Lomas: The Knights return their entire varsity team from last season and will look to build upon last year's DFAL championship and 6th place finish at state. Sophomore Chloe Hansel followed up a top 20 finish at last years state championships with an explosive track season, running a 5:05 1600 and advancing to the NCS MOC finals. Megan Wenzel, Emma Hight, Madi Hight, and Clare Orton all ran under the sub 20:00 barrier at Woodward Park last season giving the Knights a tight pack margin between their 2-5 scorers. Out of the 4, Clare Orton (11:43 3200m) and Madi Hight (12:07 3200m) had the most productive track seasons. Closing down the pack margin will be critical to Las Lomas improving upon their past performances because despite having one of the better front runners in the section, the low points Chloe Hansel could potentially score would be negated if the number 4 and 5 scorers get caught too far back in the pack. As for now, the Knights looked primed and ready for another close battle with the rest of the DFAL as well as a return trip to Fresno.

3. Bishop O'Dowd: After narrowly missing a state meet berth the past two seasons, look for the Dragons to at long last punch their ticket to Fresno this season. Led by individual state qualifiers Emily Fiberling (19:10 at Woodward) and Julia Cooke (19:16 at Woodward), Bishop O'Dowd returns their entire varsity team from last season. Both also excelled in track as Cooke improved to a 11:29 3200 while Fiberling clocked a 5:08 1600. Behind them appears to be Meredith Nix, a 5:20 1600 performer and Alyssa Byer, the team's number 3 finisher at the NCS finals, who ran 5:29 in the 1600. Senior Miranda Dos Santos also dipped under the 5:30 threshold with a 5:28 to give O'Dowd five girls returning with 1600m. times under 5:30. The big issue will be translating these track times over to the longer and more rugged cross country courses. The x factor for O'Dowd could be middle distance standout Keisha May who ran 2:17 in the 800 this past spring as well as a 5:24 1600. If she can be convinced to do XC and make the adjustment to the longer distance it could pay huge dividends for the Dragons. As it stands now, look for O'Dowd to be the most improved team this season as they make a push to land a trip to the state meet and close down the gap on the front end teams in the division.

4. Miramonte: The Matadors return five from last year's 6th place team and will look to make the jump this season into the top 4 and in doing so land their first state meet berth since 2005. Leading Miramonte are Lindsay Buckel and Georgia Roden who focused more on middle distance during track season and came away with identical 2:19 clockings for 800 meters. Also in the mix for the pack-centric team are Sarah Rockwood (12:01 3200) and Sondra Abruzzo (11:54 3200). A few ticks back would be senior Camille Anderson, running 12:09 in the 3200 and behind her would be Andrea Tamminga a 12:23 3200 performer. There are good and bad aspects to having a team that is really close together time and place wise, the good being the ability to work together during races, using the pack as a way to better manage the stresses of racing by sharing the burden among teammates. However, the bad side of this is that without a standout front runner it becomes much more difficult to wade through the throngs of runners on the course that are present in the middle pack of the race. Getting buried behind too many runners could significantly increase Miramonte's team score and hurt their chances of cracking the top 4. It will take a total team effort to move the entire pack up in fitness and race savvy, but as it stands now, the Mats have a great crop of athletes returning who are hungry to capture a state berth.

5. Acalanes: Defending champ Acalanes has been hit hard by graduation and only returns 3 members: Caith Wright, Mary Lewerenz, and Sammy Taketa. However, they return three quality frosh/soph runners in Brooke Lennox (5:39 1600), Raea Gragg (2:34 800) as well as Claire Inman who finished 4th in last season's DFAL frosh/soph cross country finals. After that, not much more is known but if the team can be consistent over the summer and rally around the new coaching staff, they could certainly improve upon this ranking and close the gap on the rest of the DFAL.

On the bubble: Redwood, Tamalpais, Albany.

Comments?  Fire away!

Female Athlete of the Year: Maddie Price

Thursday, June 20, 2013

2013 NCS Division II Pre-Season Rankings by Peter Brewer

You can take a look at his top 5 teams for both boys and girls for this upcoming season at this LINK.

2013 LIVE Webcast of the USA Outdoor Track and Field

Go to this LINK.
Results are posted HERE.

2013 NCS Division III Pre-Season Rankings (Boys)

DIII boys synopsis by Andy Lindquist:
Last year's race for the NCS title was a back and forth affair between the top 3 teams in the Diablo Foothill Athletic League (DFAL): Campolindo, Acalanes, and Miramonte, with Miramonte ultimately prevailing at the section finals and winning their first section crown since 2001. In fact, it was the first time a team not named Campolindo, Maria Carillo or Petaluma had won an NCS title since 2002. This year, the standings look to be shaken up a bit  as both Bishop O'Dowd and Redwood look to move up and challenge for the section title. Both Miramonte and Acalanes lose a good portion of their varsity teams from last season and will need to fill in some major gaps, while Chuck's Army (Campolindo) returns a good portion of their top 7, led by defending NCS and state champion Aidan Goltra. Here are the rankings in order with overviews of each team. Note: I know nothing with regards to transfers, so it is of course possible that with the new transfer rule in place, one or two students moving schools could drastically affect these rankings. (Also my apologies for being a bit DFAL centric with the write ups but that is the league I know best) So here they are:

1. Bishop O'Dowd: Last year's 3rd place team returns 5 varsity runners, led by senior Andrew Melendez who has run 9:32 in the 3200 as well as 15:29 at the Hayward course at last year's WACC XC finals. Backing him up are a strong support cast including rising soph Nick Downs who clocked a 4:33 1600m this past track season to go along with a 17:02 mark at the Clovis invitational last fall. Junior Riley Cooke also has a productive track season dropping a 4:34 1600m while the Burke twins, Colin (9:46 3200m in track) and Sean (16:04 at Hayward last fall at the WACC finals) look to round out the scorers. Also returning is Julian Siow who owns a personal best of 16:47 at the Woodward Park course. These 6 should give O'Dowd a solid and talented group of runners, however depth may be a concern if one or two go down with injury or have an off day. As it stands now, with this many quality returners, look for the Dragons to be a major factor and favorite this coming fall as they look to capture their first section title since 1995.

2. Campolindo: The Cougars managed to extend their DFAL unbeaten streak to 5 consecutive seasons last year in capturing the regular season and league championship titles. However, they had a major off day at the section finals and struggled to a 4th place finish only to flip the script on the rest of the NCS at state in landing a 6th place finish, besting the rest of the section. Led by defending section and state champ Aidan Goltra, Campo will have a big advantage considering the fact that Goltra is likely to score 1 point in each race to help keep the score low. However, it is not a one man show as seniors Ben Weinberg and Will Moran, who both court pr's in the 16:40s at Woodward Park, had solid track seasons with both dipping under the 10 minute barrier in the 3200. Senior Walter Brennan, who was normally Campo's number 4 runner last year, was injured for the majority of the track season and was only able to put up a 4:42 1600. However, his pr of 16:36 at Woodward Park puts him right in with the rest of the cougars scoring contingent. The real key to the success of Chuck's Army year in and year out (Campo has made the state meet each year since 2002 and has finished in the top 10 each of those years) would be the depth at the frosh/soph and jv levels. Last year's DFAL JV Champion, Issac Valverde as well as key frosh/soph components in junior Kevin Buckley (4:47 1600 this past spring) and sophomore Nathanel Saurberg (4:46) are key returners that could make a major impact. 2012 DFAL frosh/soph champ Parker Lothamer competed as a sprinter this past track season, so it remains to be seen if he can close the gap and make it into the top 7. With a load of talent and depth, the key for Campo will be closing down the gap between the 2-5 scorers and getting new varsity members up to speed when it comes to racing the 3 mile distance as non-varsity races in the DFAL are 2 miles not 3. That being said, the cougars have the potential to close the gap on O'Dowd and take home another section crown.

3. Miramonte: The Matadors came up big last year to capture the section title.  With the core of their team graduating, it will take a step up effort from the lower level runners in order to maintain a spot in the top 4, but on paper, things appear to be in their favor right now. The top returner at this point looks to be Charlie Zamanian who ran 16:40 at state last year and ran 9:45 in the 3200 this past track season. Behind him, it looks to be swiftly rising junior Brian Haulfer who clocked a 4:30 1600 during track. Backing them up would be Dennis Finger (17:13 at state) and Miles Mccaulou who ran 17:24 at state and 10:17 in the 3200m this track season. Miramonte also produced a number of quality frosh/soph runners with Andrew Lewis being the best of them, running 10:23 in the 3200 and 4:42 in the 1600 at the DFAL frosh/soph finals this spring. Rounding out the list of returners are Jeff Lee and Sid Bagga, who have pr's at 10:26 and 10:32 respectively for 3200m. It will be critical for Miramonte to work on closing down the gap between scorers and giving the newer varsity members enough time to adjust to the rigors of competition on the varsity level. They have a young group of guys that are all relatively close together and it will take all of them stepping up as a group to close down on the distance between them and the top of the DFAL.

4. Redwood: Last year, Redwood narrowly missed out on a state meet berth finishing 5th. Look for them to move up this year and make it back to state as a team. The Giants are led by a fantastic 1-2 punch in Fred Huxham and Andy Ehrenberg who finished 2nd and 10th respectively at last year's NCS MOC finals and continued that momentum through to the track season as well with Huxham running a 4:14 1600 and Ehrenberg running a 9:49 3200. Backing them up are juniors Austin Heller and Culley Desisinger who clocked 4:45 and 4:44 respectively in the 1600 at the MCAL finals this track season. Other returners include Blake Alm and Dillon Foehre who will give Redwood enough depth to challenge any of the teams vying for a top 4 spot. It will be critical for the Giants to hone down the back end of the pack and close the gap between the 3,4,5 runners and the front 2. If that can be done look for the Giants to mix it up and contend with the top end schools in the section.

5. Acalanes: The big news surrounding Acalanes has to do with a coaching change that recently took place. Long time coaches Manny Myers and Tad Beach both retired and David Bayliss, a long time youth club coach, has stepped into the head coaching position. He will have two great building blocks in senior Michael Wang, who rocked to a 4:14 1600m this past spring, and sophomore Cameron Gaskell who clocked the 4th fastest frosh 3200m time in the state with a 9:28 during track. The next returner after those two would be Alec Webber who ran a 17:07 at last year's DFAL finals on the brutal Hidden Valley Park course (a course that compares favorably to Woodward). However, after that there is a bit of a drop, as the next potential varsity runner would be junior Nima Leclerc who finished 8th at last year's DFAL frosh/soph championships and has a personal best of 17:42 at Woodward park. The steep drop off continues as it would appear that Jared Ericksen would be next in the scoring order, with a personal best of 19:34 at Woodward Park. In order for Acalanes to be competitive and secure a state meet berth, it is paramount to work on gradually bringing the younger athletes along in training so that they can make an impact. Acalanes usually gets an impact frosh or two so look for the dons to be in the mix for a spot in the top 4.

On the Bubble: Las Lomas, Petaluma, Ygnacio Valley

Thank you to Andy for the above rankings.  Feel free to add your thoughts on this division in the comment section below.  Girls' Division III rankings will be posted next.

Tuesday, June 18, 2013

Arcadia fires nationally recognized cross country coach

Postal National Championship Results

Southlake Carroll HS, Southlake, Texas boys claim the 2013 NHSCA Postal National Championship (9:07.90 average for their top 5 3200m. runners!)  De La Salle, Bellarmine and Campolindo ranked 35th, 36th and 37th respectively.

Park City HS, Park City, Utah girls claim the 2013 NHSCA Postal National Championship (10:53.13 average for their top 5 3200m. runners!)  St. Francis, Sacramento and Campolindo ranked 21st and 25th respectively.

Here are the boys' all-time records with the 26 best teams:
http://www.xcnation.com/#!boys postal records/c1iy6

Here are the girls' all-time records with the top 19 best teams:
http://www.xcnation.com/#!girls postal records/c23p8

What is the average of your school's 5 x 3200m. team?

Sunday, June 16, 2013

2013 NCS Division V Pre-Season Rankings (Boys)

It's hard to believe that with all the success of the University HS girls with their 10 state championships, no boys team from NCS had ever won the state team title in this division until 2012.  Since the inception of Division V in 1996, the following NCS boys teams have won 2nd or 3rd place plaques at state:
1997 University 3rd Place
1998 University 3rd Place
1999 University 3rd Place
2000 University 3rd Place
2001 University 2nd Place
2006 College Prep 2nd Place
2007 University 2nd Place
2008 University 3rd Place
2011 St. Joseph Notre Dame 3rd Place

The St. Joseph Notre Dame boys finally reached the top of this division last year with their narrow 1 point defeat of 2nd place Flintridge Prep.  They return 4 out of their 7 runners and seem to have reloaded quite well for this season with some solid performances during this past track and field season.  Senior Gabe Arias-Sheridan will once again lead the Pilots after his best track and field season to date.  At the NCS MOC meet, Arias Sheridan finished in 4th place in the 3200m. with a lifetime best time of 9:22.77.  Just as Stanford had Frick and Frack (The Hausers), St. Joes have the Murphy twins (Michael 10:12.54 and Matt 10:04.71).  They will be juniors this coming season and although they haven't gotten the publicity like Arias, Luis Rodriguez and Nick Ratto, they have been just as important to the success of the team.  Senior Chris Melendez has been in the top 7 mix over the past two seasons and will look to make more of an impact this coming season.  As one rival coach said, "Like everyone else, I believe SJND is untouchable."

Whether that is the case or not, they will still run the races and there are teams in this section that will keep the Pilots honest.  The top contender at this point appears to be the Marin Academy boys.  They have two runners who are more than likely the best tandem for any CA team in this division.  Junior Trevor Reinhart improved his 9th place finish from his freshman season to win the state title last year as a sophomore.  Teammate and senior to be James Kinney also finished in the top 10 with a 6th place finish.  As a team they finished in 7th place at the state meet and with 6 of their top 7 returning this year, MA will be in the hunt for their first league and section title.  The key to their season will be sophomores Michael Dunne (4:48.01/10:22.22) and Henry Fleming who can close the gap with the top 5 teams in the state with improved efforts from them.

The next best team appears to be be the Lick Wilmerding boys.  They won the BCL West meet last year  (ending University's stranglehold of the league at 18 years), placed 4th at the NCS MOC meet and 11th at the CA state meet.  Aside from the SJND boys, LW will have the best pack from 1-7.  Their challenge will be to get a couple of their top runners to mix it up with the leaders up front in the bigger races.  Their top runners will include Matt Jenkins (10:04.75), Steve Page ( 4:34.27/10:14.80) and Corey Robinson (1:58.44).  They will also return 6 of their 7 state meet runners and their JV boys team steam rolled the rest of the BCL West competition.  They are definitely a team to watch and could leap from Marin Academy for 2nd place.

The rest of the teams in the hunt for the final two state meet berths all have potential but will need to restock their artillery for this coming season.  Athenian has the best two runners in this group and will challenge once again for BCL East supremacy.  Tanner Shaw (4:29.78/10:03.70) and Gabe Elliott (4:37.52) have helped revive the Athenian program over the past two seasons with state meet qualifying efforts and a 6th place team finish last year at CA state meet.  Danny Aldridge has brought Sonoma Academy to prominence in the same way he did with Maria Carrillo.  Last year SA finished in 2nd place at NCS and just missed the state meet podium with a 4th place team finish.  Patrick Loftus (4:40.81/10:33.x) will be their lead returning runner after a solid junior season.  College Prep has been a consistent contender in this division and look to have an up and coming team following their performance on the track in the spring (Matthew Romer 4:41.26/10:25.50, Stephen Sloan 4:40.47 and Tristam Dodge 10:22.26).  University will be led by Ben Tracy (10:21.66) and Jack Tannenbaum (2:01.89) and with the addition of a couple of formidable freshmen could be contenders once again.  Stuart Hall showed signs of being competitive during cross country following their track and field season with Thomas Namara (4:47.07/10:31.02) and Dunham McBride (4:55.64).

The race for the individual title has a lot of subplots.  The favorite based on his 2012 XC season is Trevor Reinhart.  He won the Stanford Invitational, BCL West, NCS and state meet races.  Not bad for a sophomore who dabbled in running the summer and fall.  His main competition should come from 2011 NCS MOC champion and Hayward HS Division V course record holder, Gabe Arias-Sheridan.  You will notice he is not listed below among the top five returners due to multiple falls during last year's section mudfest but Gabe is a really tough competitor and his 9:22.77 performance on the track demands attention.  Another contender is Reinhart's teammate, James Kinney, who had an outstanding junior XC season and who's track season ended prematurely due to a stress fracture.  The front pack could also include Michael and Matthew Murphy of SJND and Tanner Shaw of Athenian.

Division V Boys (Top 5 Advance to State)
1) St. Joseph ND-Overwhelming favorites at this point.

2) Marin Academy-Best duo in this division with Reinhart and Kinney.
3) Lick Wilmerding-Could easily be ranked #2.
4) College Prep-Young group that could impress in the fall.
5) Athenian-Tanner Shaw leads the way for the Owls.
6) Sonoma Academy-Coming off best season in school history.
7) University-Always a dangerous threat and can't be counted out.
On the bubble:  Berean Christian, Stuart HallUrban

Top 5 returning individuals, (place) and 2012 NCS meet time:

Trevor Reinhart (1) Marin Academy 15:51
James Kinney (3) Marin Academy 15:57
Michael Murphy (5) St. Joseph ND 16:08
Matthew Murphy (6) St. Joseph ND 16:08
Tanner Shaw (8) Athenian 16:24

Comments?  Who did I miss?  What can you add to my rankings?  Also feel free to link this article to your team website/facebook etc.

Saturday, June 15, 2013

Lowell 800-meter runner Maxwell Niehaus races to the max

Drake track coach Taylor making his 18th Arete West trip with a small group of students

California State Track and Field Championships 2014 "At-Large" Standards

        Boys Girls
100 10.69 11.92
200 21.75 24.50
400 48.29 55.94
800 1:52.98 2:11.80
1600 4:14.24 4:55.15
3200 9:08.64 10:35.79
110/100 Hurdles 14.42 14.23
300 Hurdles 38.19 43.54
4x100 Relay 41.92 47.53
4x400 Relay 3:18.31 3:51.27
High Jump 6-07.00 5-05.00
Pole Vault 15-02.00 11-07.00
Long Jump 22-10.00 18-04.00
Triple Jump 46-10-00 38-04.00
Shot Put 57-09.00 41-02.00
Discus 171-05.00 134-03.00

Friday, June 14, 2013

North Coast Section (NCS) Division III Individuals by Andy Lindquist

Overview: One of the most competitive divisions in the whole NCS, division III looks to be another hotly contested affair with the top two finishers at last years NCS championships returning and coming off stellar track seasons. Look for Aidan Goltra and Fred Huxham to resume their rivalry and battle it out for the individual title, while a host of talented upstarts look to land a spot in the top 7.

1.Aidan Goltra (Campolindo) – Defending state champion in division III, “The King of the North” produced a quality track season, finishing 10th in the state in the 3200 with a time of 9:10. Looks to be the clear favorite at this point and will challenge for top overall NCS honors at both the section finals and state championships. Is the 2nd fastest returner in the entire state at Woodward Park.

2. Fred Huxham (Redwood) – Huxh am continued his breakout year with a 4:14 1600 this spring and looks the best suited to closing the gap on Goltra. Finished 3rd at state last year in 15:30 and is the 2nd best returner in all of division III.

3. Michael Wang (Acalanes) – Had a massively successful track season, dropping a 4:14 1600 and while he appears to be more of a track specialist, look for Wang to make another great leap forward this cross country season.

4. Andrew Melendez (Bishop O'Dowd) – A consistent performer around the oval, Melandez courts the 3rd best 3200m time of all returners in this division with the 9:32 he ran at the NCS finals. Owns a sub 15:30 pr on the ncs championship course so look for more consistent improvement this year.

5. Cameron Gaskell (Acalanes) – Had a surprisingly successful frosh campaign in track, dropping down to a 9:28 3200, the 4th best freshman time in the entire state. Look for another step forward as the Dons look to have the best 1-2 punch in the section. Stiff competition in the DFAL will give him plenty of opportunities to compete with the sections best.

6. Andy Ehrenberg (Redwood) – An individual state qualifier last year as a freshman, running 16:45 at Woodward Park. Continued that upward momentum during track, clocking a 9:49 in the 3200. With a consistent summer he will challenge Gaskell for top underclassmen honors.

7. Colin Burke (Bishop O'Dowd) A solid varsity runner last year for the dragons, running 16:55 at Woodward Park, Burke carved out a successful track season running 9:46 in the 3200. With a talented group of teammates to push him, that improvement curve could continue to go up this cross country season.

On the bubble: Nick Downs (Bishop O'Dowd ) Ben Weinberg (Campolindo) Will Moran (Campolindo) 

Overview: Look for the NCS title to go through the DFAL once again as Brighie Leach looks to continue her recent hot streak and improve upon her runner up finish last year while the rest of the DFAL looks to close the gap. Of course, freshmen will have an impact once the season starts but for now here are how the things look.

1. Brighie Leach (Campolindo) – The top returner from last season, Leach continued to make massive improvements this spring has she captured the NCS MOC 3200m title in 10:41. Also owns the top Woodward park time in this division at 18:42. Look for more of the same this coming season.

2. Chloe Hansel (Las Lomas) – Finished 4th at the NCS finals and 16th at the state finals last year. Got down to a 5:05 clocking this past track season in the 1600 so look for Hansel to improve upon last years' performances.

3. Allie Timbrell (Alhambra) – A breakout performer this track season, ending up with a fine 5:06 1600m time. It still remains to be seen if this can translate over to the longer distance in XC, but competing in the rugged DFAL should provide plenty of opportunity for Timbrell to measure up against quality opponents.

4. Emily Fiberling (Bishop O'Dowd) – Qualified individually for state last cross country season and recently clocked a personal best 5:08 1600m at the Golden West Invitational. Again, track times, especially in the 1600 are not always indicative of XC success, however they are the best starting point to go with in regards to looking at next cross county season.

5. Rachel Johnson (Campolindo) – Another consistent performer for the Campolindo team, Johnson clocked an 11:21 in the 3200 this past off-season. With a personal record of 18:30 on the rugged Hidden Valley Park course (which favorably compares to Woodward park) look for Johnson to close the gap on the rest of the DFAL frontrunners.

6. Mary Orders (Campolindo) – Rebounded from an injury plagued fall to run 11:16 in the 3200 during track. Consistent training with a group of talented athletes on the Campolindo squad coupled with competing in the DFAL should provide the boost necessary to land a medal position.

7. Hana Sun (Campolindo) – Yet another quality returner for the cougars, who posted 11:16 and 5:15 clockings in the 3200m and 1600m respectively. Again, quality competition and a raft of talented teammates should make for another step forward.

On the bubble: Caith Wright (Acalanes) Isabel Moon (Novato) Bella Amyx (Tamalpais)

Marin races

Both events will donate a percentage of their funds toward Jim Tracy via the Running For Jim documentary.  When you register for either of the races, a portion of your registration will go to offset some of his medical bills.  A great cause!
Hi all,
As many of you know, I have been working at bringing a major road half marathon to Marin County, one that showcases the beauty of the bay, bridges, mountains, and all that Marin has to offer.  It has been a long journey but I am extremely pleased to announce the official live launch of the Inaugural Tiburon By the Bay Half Marathon & 5K! 
ALS-TDI is our primary charity partner.
We have early bird special pricing till the end of June.
You will likely receive one of those more fancy emails this week but wanted to send a more personal one to many of you first.
I have really appreciated everyone's support of the various events over the years.  This one has been a vision for a long time, and finally a reality.
The course is a lollipop loop, starting in downtown Tiburon, traversing through Mill Valley, back along the Strawberry Peninsula, and finishing again in Tiburon.
Majestic views, fast course, runner focused with amazing SWAG and sponsors and much more.  Non-Marin folks can take a ferry in from the city to the race!
I hope many of you sign up ... a terrific Fall Half Marathon ... perhaps leading into CIM ... a 5K as well.  Spread the word too!
Thanks,
--Jason Jacobson

Also
On July 21st we have the Inaugural 415-Mile & Miracle Mile.  What is this event all about anyways?
--The 415-Mile is a 5 mile race that is all about the 415!  It is part of a series of area codes races, like the 408-K and the 510-K ... but Marin's version to represent the 415 portion!  We are fully closing down 4th Street for the start/finish with the course doing a loop through Sun Valley.
--Then, there is the standard 1 mile races / heats on a fully closed down downtown SR! 
--Oh yeah, then the Dean Karnazes kids races.
--Think Twilight Criterium, only in the morning and running.  A running festival!
--So run the 5 mile and cheer on the 1 milers, challenge yourself and see how fast you can run the 1 mile, bring the entire family out!  It is part of the PA so wear your team uniforms if part of the team.
--There will be an expo, hey check out the 415-Mile Facebook site for a video of what they do in the 408 to get a flavor.
--Need more, incentive, ok, code 415TAM gives you $5 off, there is family pricing, and if you sign up and refer others, you get $4.15 back for EACH referral.  The code expires soon so register before prices go up.
--Need more, the race supports Girls on the Run.
--NEED VOLUNTEERS TOO!
Hope to see everyone out there!
Thanks,
--J

Peninsula Athletic League (CCS) Athletes of the Year

2013 CIF State Track Meet Intro

Thursday, June 13, 2013

2013 NCS Division V Pre-Season Rankings (Girls)

The North Coast Section girls continued their domination of this division at the state meet level with 5 teams in the top 10 last year.  They also placed 5 individual girls in the top 10 including the top two finishers (Julia Maxwell and Anna Harleen, both of Branson School).  The University girls won their 4th straight state team title (10th overall) and the Lick Wilmerding girls won their first plaque in school history by placing 3rd, just ahead of the Branson girls.  With 6 teams qualifying from the NCS meet, it won't be long before this section gets rewarded with another automatic state meet berth.

The favorite for the team title this year will be Branson.  They return the two best runners in this division and the team will include 6 seniors who finished in 3rd place at the NCS meet and 4th at the state meet.  Maxwell dealt with an injury during the tail end of the track and field season which kept her from competing in the post season meets.  Despite that, she is the most talented runner in this division and should return to her elite status be the beginning of the cross country season.  Anna Harleen finished in 2nd place to her more heralded teammate in many invitationals and meets.  With an influx of one or two talented freshmen, Branson could be quite formidable this coming season as they chase their first cross country section title in school history.

The team that will give Branson all that they could handle is Lick Wilmerding.  2012 was the coming out party for the LW girls as they pushed University to the brink with a narrow 42-43 defeat at the BCL West Championship race.  They then finished 2nd to University at the NCS meet by a score of 66-76.  Their 3rd place finish at the state meet was also by a slim margin as only 16 points separated the top 3 teams (Thacher finished in 2nd place).  Molly Dicke continued her fine running this past track season with a 7th place finish at the NCS MOC meet in the 3200m. (11:15.99).  Teammate Andie Von Eschen (11:56.19) gives LW their own dynamic duo who also return 6 of their 7 from last season.

Another contender for a top 3 finish is Convent and they could leapfrog the top two contenders if all things are clicking along for them next year.  They return their top 2 runners from last cross country season, Camilla Bykhovsky (5:30.17) and Sarah Selzer (12:52.34).  Freshman Mae Singer (2:37.22/5:33.08) and junior Julia Nemy (2:32.35/5:42.82) performed well on the track and give Convent a nice pack of four along with their top 2 runners.  A couple more solid runners and they could challenge the top two teams.

At this point, most divisions drop significantly after the top 3 teams but in this division, we are just getting warmed up.  You can never count out the University girls despite what may seem like significant losses to their team over the past two seasons (Holland Reynolds, Bridget Blum and Jennie Callan).  They return Grace Euphrat-Weston (12:47.56), Izzy Simon (2:32.07) and the Locksley twins (Sydney and Morgan).  University has usually added an impact freshman or two each season so that is always in the mix.  Coach Jim Tracy has also developed new runners or found other gems in other sports.  He must be doing something awfully right to win TEN! state championships.

The rest of the challengers for the state meet spots will include Marin Academy (led by Bevin McCullough), Urban (led by Molly Carleton) and Athenian (led by Delaney Inamine).  College Prep, a consistent contender here may be in rebuilding mode this season but don't count out traditional success.  Sonoma Academy and St. Joseph Notre Dame have been very successful on the boys side so a couple of additions on the girls side could make them contenders as well.

The race for the individual title starts and ends with Julia Maxwell.  Despite the injury during track season, Julia is still the top runner in NCS, regardless of division.  At last year's NCS MOC mudfest, Maxwell recorded the fastest time of any girl by 24 seconds over Jena Pianin who went on to finish 3rd place in the Division I state meet race.  Maxwell also won her 2nd straight state title by 61 seconds.  With the first place spot out of contention, the battle will be for 2nd place between Harleen of Branson and Dicke of Lick Wilmerding.  Erin Thomas of Mendocino won the Stanford Invitational and finished a competitive 4th at last year's NCS meet.  

Division V Girls (Top 6 Advance to state)
1) Branson-Is this the year, Branson wins their 1st section crown?
2) Lick Wilmerding-No surprise if they win this division.
3) Convent-Impressive track season puts them here.
4) University-4 NCS and state titles in a row.  Tough to bet against them.
5) Marin Academy-Another consistent threat in this division.
6) Urban-A healthy Molly Carleton puts the Blue in state meet contention.
On the bubble:  AthenianCollege PrepHead RoyceSonoma Academy.

Top 5 returning individuals, (place) and 2012 NCS meet time:
Julia Maxwell (1) Branson 17:22
Anna Harleen (2) Branson 18:49
Molly Dicke (3) Lick Wilmerding 19:00
Erin Thomas (4) Mendocino 19:08
Camilla Bykhovsky (7) Convent 19:36

Please feel free to chime in on the rankings above. I won't be offended if you strongly disagree as the above rankings are meant to be a launching pad for conversation. Fortunately section titles and state meet berths are decided by the runners themselves. Did I miss any teams or individuals? Any other impact freshmen that we should know about?

Boys coming up later this weekend...

Moraga July 4th Fun Run

All info can be found at the following link:
http://www.campotrack.com/july4PAGES/july4sectionfrontpage.html

adidas/Heart and Sole Redwood Empire Athletes of the Year!

Tuesday, June 11, 2013

First up for pre-season rankings...NCS Division V

They will be posted by Friday evening.  I think I have a pretty good grasp of the division after getting lots of feedback from many of the competing coaches.  The unsure parts are the incoming freshmen and the motivated summer runners.  We will just have to see about those two aspects once the season begins so until then, ready or not, the first of the pre-rankings are almost here.

Saturday, June 08, 2013

Comparisons of Times 2013

http://www.prepcaltrack.com/ATHLETICS/XC/2013/comparsn.htm
The great stats that Walt VanZant puts out every season will be posted at the above link.  Stay tuned.  Until then, let's hear it CCS fans.  Who are the top individuals, teams.  Who are the surprise teams.  Individuals.  Top Freshmen.

Healdsburg runner Maria Barragan signs with Sacramento State

Wednesday, June 05, 2013

2013 State Meet Team Qualifier changes from 2012

The following was computed by former Gunn HS coach Ernie Lee.  The official numbers have not been released yet so until then, here you go.

DI boys - CCS up to 3, SDS down to 2
DI girls - no change
DII boys - SDS up to 4, CS down to 2
DII girls - NCS down to 2, no one qualifies for the vacant spot. I don't know how this will be resolved
DIII boys - no change
DIII girls - SDS up to 4, CCS down to 2
DIV boys - SDS up to 3, NS up to 3, CCS down to 2, CS down to 2
DIV girls - no change
DV boys - SDS up to 3, NS down to 1
DV girls - no change

Here are the numbers from last season:
http://cifstate.org/images/Cross_Country/2012_XC_Team_Entries.pdf

Tuesday, June 04, 2013

Coming up next...

Pre-season cross country rankings starting with the North Coast Section.  Until they are posted, feel free to comment on the upcoming season.  Who are the favorites in the different divisions?  Who will be the top runners (boys and girls) in the fall?  Who are the top 10 runners (boys and girls) in NCS?  Top 10 teams overall?  Who are the team favorites in each division?  Who will contend for the coveted state meet spots?  Just as an FYI, the amount of teams that do qualify to the state meet will remain the same except for the Division II girls who I believe will only have 2 teams qualify to the state meet.

Here are the NCS Divisions for 2013.  The teams that are in a different division than last season are in bold.

Let's hear your thoughts.

Stanford adds 13 more track and field recruits

Monday, June 03, 2013

Jim Tracy: ailing coach's tale on film

Jim Tracy: ailing coach's tale on film (SF Examiner article)

For those that are interested, the documentary will be playing on 6/7, 6/9 and 6/10 at the SF Indie Film Festival.  All info can be found here.

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