As many of you know, the Soberanes Fire is roaring just south of us. Their containment date is the end of this month but that could obviously change. At this time, Toro Park is being used as a base camp for the firefighters and is closed to any other use. So, for now, after looking at all our options and restrictions including other dates and locations, we have decided to stick to the plan. Earlybird is still set for September 10th at Toro Park. IF the fire is not contained and the park is not reopened by then the meet will be cancelled. We will obviously let you know as soon as we know but we are crossing our fingers at this point that all will be well and the meet will be on. I know we have teams traveling from far away and I wanted to make sure we gave everyone the heads up of the possibility of the meet being cancelled. For now, stick to the plan and make sure your athletes are registered on athletic.net by the deadline on 9/6/16 by 8 PM. Also, continue to send in payments and we can cancel checks or mail them back if the meet is cancelled. If you need any information please visit the meet webpage http://nmcxc.tripod.com/id22. The meet competition is the best we have ever seen and I know your teams and kids will enjoy the meet! The meet preview story will be out the week of the meet. If you have any questions please email me gusibarra@netscape.net Thanks! |
| Gustavo Ibarra, North Monterey County Earlybird Meet Director |
Thursday, August 18, 2016
Update on the Earlybird Invitational
Posted by Albert Caruana at 8/18/2016 07:30:00 AM 4 comments
Labels: 2016 Cross Country, Race Announcement
Tuesday, August 16, 2016
Sportsmanship at the Olympics
Here is what Nikki Hamblin had to say about Abbey D'Agostino after their collision in today's Olympic 5,000m heat. pic.twitter.com/HxTFsKkcZy— Jonathan Gault (@jgault13) August 16, 2016
Posted by Albert Caruana at 8/16/2016 11:31:00 AM 5 comments
Labels: 2016 Track and Field
Saturday, August 13, 2016
Bay Area ties for two Olympic Gold Medalists
In the pool, Maya DiRado won the 200m backstroke with a great finish to defeat 3 time gold medalist Katinka Hosszu of Hungary. You can check out the finish to that race at this LINK. Maya attended Maria Carrillo HS and Stanford University. You can check out her bio at this LINK. Her dad Ruben (below, far left) was an assistant coach on the Cross Country and Track & Field teams.
On the track, Michelle Carter won the gold medal in the shot put on her last throw. The mark was a new American Record and was the first gold medal for an American woman in the event. Her dad Michael, was a former 49er. He won the silver medal in the shot put at the LA Olympics in 1984. He joined the 49ers immediately after the summer games and was part of their Superbowl winning team. It's the only time that an athlete has won an Olympic medal and a Superbowl in the same year. Michael and Michelle at one time both held the high school records in the shot put. Michelle's mark was surpassed recently by fellow Olympian Raven Saunders. Michael's record (81'3.5") still stands and some consider it the greatest high school Track & Field record of all. You can check out the video below from his throws from the 1981 Golden West Invitational.
Posted by Albert Caruana at 8/13/2016 08:18:00 AM 0 comments
Labels: 2016 Track and Field
Tuesday, August 09, 2016
Top Cross Country programs in Northern California
=====================================
The following is a list of cross country programs in Northern California who have won multiple section titles and have been consistently successful in the past decade. As with any list, it's possible I may have left deserving teams so if you feel other teams should have been listed as well, feel free to add those schools in the comment section below. The coaches listed next to the schools are their current coach for this coming season. The teams are listed in alphabetical order.
Bella Vista SJS Harold Kuphaldt (boys)/Melanie Cleland (girls)
San Rafael NCS Jason Jacobson
St. Joseph Notre Dame NCS Tony Fong
Posted by Albert Caruana at 8/09/2016 04:30:00 PM 70 comments
Labels: 2011 Cross Country, Norcal Rankings '11
Monday, August 08, 2016
Alex Mason, St. Joseph Notre Dame XC & TF coach
Posted by Albert Caruana at 8/08/2016 04:16:00 PM 0 comments
Thursday, August 04, 2016
2016 NCS Division IV pre-season Cross Country rankings (Boys)
For the upcoming season, several teams that move down from Division III will definitely be a factor. The favorite at this point is Miramonte which finished in 4th place in Division III last year and qualified for the state meet. They return 6 out of their 7 from last year including their #1 runner, Jonathan Fierro (4:33.38/10:14.99). They will be after their first section title since 2012 in Division III. Word on the street also has the Matadors adding a transfer from the Sac-Joaquin Section who will definitely be in their top 5 if the rumor is true.
Chasing them will be last year's 2nd place Division IV team, McKinleyville. They return 5 out of their top 7 which includes their top 3 from last year's section meet, Austin Nolan (2:01.47/4:32.18/10:14.71), Joe Rieder (4:37.82/10:19.47) and rising sophomore Trent Padilla (4:33.14/10:08.20). Also in the mix will be Sir Francis Drake (above following their victorious NCS MOC effort with coach Robyn Berry) who will be led by impressive rising junior Wyatt Miceli (15:55.6 at Hayward). He runs Cross Country in the fall and is a competitive cyclist in the spring. The Piedmont boys missed the state meet last year by an agonizing one point and will be fired up to qualify to race at Woodward Park. Along with Drake and Piedmont, Bishop O'Dowd and San Rafael drop down from Division III and will both contend for that 3rd and last 3rd state meet spot. Piner and Albany each return two runners under 17 minutes but will need to regroup to be in contention. St. Mary's Berkeley has been one of the strongest team in this division for many years and can never be counted out.
The race for the individual title will be an interesting one. Last year's second place finisher, Brian Schulz of El Molino, would have been the fastest returner here will now be chasing Cooper Teare of St. Joseph Notre Dame in Division V. The fastest and top returner from last year's section final will be Kellen O'Neill of Arcata who finished in 3rd place with a time of 15:31.0. The other runners that also broke 16 minutes at the section final were Jonathan Fierro of Miramonte (15:44.3) and Wyatt Micelli (15:55.6) of Sir Francis Drake.
Division IV Boys (Top 3 Advance to State)
1) Miramonte-Slight favorite with the best returning team from last year's section meet.
2) McKinleyville-Rising program looking for their cross country section title in school history.
3) Sir Francis Drake-They are the defending champion but will need to somehow replace their #1.
4) Piedmont-Hoping for top 3 finish after just missing the state meet in '15.
5) Bishop O'Dowd-They are ranked 5th now but could easily place in top 3.
6) San Rafael-Won this division 3 times since 2010. Kabbara gives them strong #1.
On the bubble: Albany, Arcata, Piner, St. Mary's Berkeley
Top 5 returning individuals, (place) and 2015 NCS meet time:
Kellen O'Neill (3 in Division IV) Arcata 15:31.0
Jonathan Fierro (7 in Division III) Miramonte 15:44.3
Wyatt Miceli (7 in Division IV) Sir Francis Drake 15:55.6
Jonny Vargas (17 in Division III) Piner 16:03.4
Munir Kabbara (20 in Division III) San Rafael 16:11.3
Comments? Do you know of impact freshmen that will attend at any of the above schools? Feel free to chime in the comment section below. Did I miss anybody? How would you rank this division differently?
Posted by Albert Caruana at 8/04/2016 02:16:00 PM 0 comments
Labels: 2016 Cross Country, 2016 Pre-Season XC Rankings, NCS Rankings '16
Tuesday, August 02, 2016
2016 NCS Division III pre-season Cross Country rankings (Girls) courtesy of Campolindo assistant coach, Andy Lindquist
1. Redwood
The Giants return the best 1-2 in this division with footlocker finalist Glennis Murphy and middle distance standout Gillian Wagner. Both excelled this track season with Murphy running a superb 10:40 for 3200 and Wagner running 5:00 for 1600 to go with a 2:12 performance in the 800. After those two there is a bit of a drop off to Annie Fogarty who was a regular varsity member last season and had a productive spring running 5:27 in the 1600 and 11:27 in the 3200. Those 3 will give Redwood an impressive front end but after that there are some serious depth concerns. Sophia McWhorter did run a solid 19:48 for 5k at the Clovis Invitational last fall but struggled the remainder of the season, never breaking 20:00 for 5k again. She ran a solid 2:23 in the 800 during track but it still remains to be seen if she can translate that into a consistent season of racing. Lucie James ran a respectable 12:31 for 3200 during track season and looks to be the #5 coming into the season. In order for Redwood to capture the title it will take an improved back end to keep the team score from getting too high but for now the Giants have the inside track to take home the hardware at the end of the season.
2. Campolindo
The 3 time defending champions have some work to do if they want to extend their winning streak as they have been hit hard by graduation loses. Juniors Hannah Ruane and Isabella Chao both ran exceptionally well late into the track season and that will give the Cougars a great starting point but there are some major concerns after that. Varsity scorer Savannah Hilton had a solid spring, running 5:35 and 12:10 for 1600/3200 and should continue that trend this fall. Junior Jenna Miles was injured towards the end of last cross country season and did not compete this track season. She has flashed some considerable talent for Campo in the past and should she regain her previous form she could be a major boost to the team’s depth. For the Cougars to hold their ground against the rest of the teams in this division it will take a season long commitment to working on the 1-5 pack margin: up front they are very close to Redwood but after that there is a drop off that will need to be addressed. All the teams mentioned here are extremely close to each other and any demonstration of improvement from the 4-5 positions could end up being the difference in November. For now Campolindo stands at #2.
3. Las Lomas
The Knights only lose 1 member of their varsity squad from last year and appear to be right in the thick of the team competition. While they may lack a quality front runner at this point in time, they have what many of the other teams in this division currently lack: depth at the back end. Sydney Polich, Katie Saenger, Elise Stankus and Ally Heitmann all ran under 5:40 for 1600 this past track season, with Saenger posting the best 3200 with a 11:59 clocking. Throw in ultra-talented sophomore Veronica Towle (5:17/11:24 1600/3200) and you have the makings of a very solid group. Las Lomas has the added advantage of competing against quality teams from the Diablo Athletic League (Miramonte, Campolindo, College Park and others) the whole season, which should be a great proving ground for them. The only issue here is the lack of a proven frontrunner but with the amount of depth they have coming back that may not be that big of an issue. Look for the Knights to challenge the top teams in this division the entire season and don’t be surprised if they end up finishing higher than their current ranking at the end of the year.
4. Maria Carillo
The Pumas look primed for another trip to state but will have to do some work if they want to compete with the best teams in this division. Aimee Armstrong (5:20 1600) and Sydnie Rivas (11:28 3200) look to be the frontrunners this year for the north bay power. Talia Leano showed great promise over the spring with a stellar 2:18 clocking for 800. If she can successfully make the transition to the longer race distance that could be a huge boon to Maria Carrillo’s chances and landing in the top 3. Megan Field (12:05 3200) and Lily Raymond (5:45 1600) round out the returners at this point in time. For Maria Carrillo to be successful this season it will take a commitment to working on improving at every scoring position. At this moment they lack a strong frontrunner and a strong pack so both of those will need to be addressed if the Pumas want to make some noise this fall.
5. El Cerrito
The Gauchos surprised many last season as they peaked masterfully to capture the final state meet birth, and with their entire top 7 returning this fall they may be aiming even higher than simply making it. It was hard to find track results but both Cailyn Sakurai (11:42) and Naomi Furuya (11:54) posted solid 3200 times while Grace Rusin (5:32) had the best 1600 time out of the bunch. If El Cerrito wants to make a return trip to Fresno they will have to work on improving their pack margin and the ability to hang with teams that have better frontrunners. As it stands now they lack the super deep pack to really challenge the top 4 teams and they also lack a superstar frontrunner that can be in contention for an individual medal and those things will have to be worked on throughout the season. For now they are a talented team with a scary amount of upside that would shock some of the established powers come the postseason.
Individual rankings
1. Glennis Murphy (Redwood) – Has the best 1600 and 3200 times of anyone in this division and looks to be the heavy favorite at this point
2. Hannah Ruane (Campolindo) – Her 10:59 performance in the 3200 is behind only Murphy in this division
3. Gillian Wagner (Redwood) – Primed for a big fall breakthrough after a great track season
4. Isabella Chao (Campolindo) – Had an impressive spring in running 5:06 in the 1600 to make MOC, expect similar things this season
5. Rayna Stanziano (Concord) Mega talent who excelled in track despite minimal training, could easily move up in these rankings by seasons end
6. Lauren Lum (Alameda) – 5:06 for 1600 puts her right in the mix here
7. Veronica Towle (Las Lomas) – Lots of potential based on a solid track season
On the bubble: Amy Stanfield (Sonoma Valley), Lara Vetter (Alameda), Sydnie Rivas (Maria Carrillo)
Posted by Albert Caruana at 8/02/2016 09:40:00 PM 0 comments
Labels: 2016 Cross Country, 2016 Pre-Season XC Rankings, Coach Contributions, NCS Rankings '16
Sunday, July 31, 2016
2016 NCS Division IV pre-season Cross Country rankings (girls)
This coming season, 3 boys teams and 4 girls teams will automatically qualify to the state meet from this division. Several teams who have been Division III teams in the past will now compete in this division including state meet contenders Bishop O'Dowd and Miramonte. Without further ado, here are my pre-season rankings for teams and individuals that will potentially contend for state meet berths on slightly changed Hayward HS cross country course.
For the girls, the team favorite will be the already mentioned Bishop O'Dowd. The school has competed in Division III for over a decade now but the last time they competed in this division in 2004, the result was a section title. BOD was led by individual section champion Ariel Wright and then unknown freshman, Alexi Pappas. She will be competing in the upcoming Olympics for Greece and you can read about her in the just posted article in Rolling Stone magazine at this LINK. BOD returns their entire team from last year's Division III 2nd place team including individual champion, Grace Taylor (17:30.1 at Hayward). They will be challenged by the defending Division IV section champion, Piedmont. The Highlanders return 6 of their 7 participants from last year's section meet and will be led by sophomore, Erin Hong (5:31.30/11:57.36). Miramonte, another Division III competitor last year, finished in 5th place but will be looking for a state meet qualifying spot this year. Also in the mix will be '15 state meet qualifiers McKinleyville and Arcata. Both teams lost their #1 runner but will have the majority of their team members back.
One thing for certain is that Morgin Coonfield will not win the individual title. Following a 4th place finish as a freshman in 2012, Coonfield ran with three straight individual titles. She will be taking her talents to Cal Poly San Luis Obispo which means that Division IV will have a new individual champion. It is however possible that a returning champion from last year could win this division. Grace Taylor of Bishop O'Dowd won the Division III race with a time of 17:30.1. She will compete in this division but her status is up in there air as she did not compete in the spring Track and Field season. The favorite, regardless, will be Cassy Haskell (4:52.29/10:51.37) of Miramonte who finished finished just behind Taylor in the NCS Division III race and had the fastest time at the state meet by a non senior. Piner's Cynthia Rosales (2:22.50/5:27.60), Bishop O'Dowd's Jourdan Aman (2:24.17/5:16.89), Alhambra's Marissa D'Atri (2:17.61/5:11.21) and Piedmont's Erin Hong will all race up front and will be in contention for an individual spot should their teams not automatically qualify to the state meet.
Division IV Girls (Top 4 Advance to State)
1) Bishop O'Dowd-Aiming for first section since 2004 in same division.
2) Piedmont-2-time defending team champion with lots of talent returning.
3) Miramonte-No team in this division can match up with the Mats at the front.
4) Justin-Siena-Made state last year however the challenge is greater this year.
5) McKinleyville-Lose all-world Morgin Coonfield but program will continue to thrive.
6) Arcata-Tigers have been perennial contenders in this division.
On the bubble: Albany, Piner, St. Mary's Berkeley
Top 5 returning individuals, (place) and 2015 NCS meet time:
Grace Taylor (1 in Division III) Bishop O'Dowd 17:30.1
Cassy Haskell (2 in Division III) Miramonte 17:38.4
Cynthia Rosales (5 in Division III) Piner 18:16.7
Jourdan Amen (6 in Division III) Bishop O'Dowd 18:18.5
Marissa D'Atri (7 in Division III) Alhambra 18:21.8
Fastest returning individual runner from 2015 Division IV race
Erin Hong (2) Piedmont 19:01.8
The boys pre-season rankings will be posted next. Comments? Do you know of impact freshmen that will attend at any of the above schools? Feel free to chime in the comment section below.
Posted by Albert Caruana at 7/31/2016 10:30:00 AM 0 comments
Labels: 2016 Cross Country, 2016 Pre-Season XC Rankings, NCS Rankings '16
Friday, July 29, 2016
2016 NCS Division III pre-season Cross Country rankings (Boys) courtesy of Campolindo assistant coach, Andy Lindquist
Boys Overview:
Campolindo still appears to be the team to beat this season, with the 3 time defending champions returning a solid portion of last year’s title team along with a great deal of talented upstarts from the frosh-soph level. Redwood and Maria Carrillo will both be in contention for the title as well as the two schools return a great deal of talent as well.
1. Campolindo
The Cougars lose 4 varsity members to graduation but they return a very solid front end which will be tough to beat. Senior Jared Yabu had an electric fall last year, finishing in 2nd place at NCS and following that up with an 8th place finish at state. While illness and injury derailed the majority of his track season, he still is firmly one of the favorites for the individual section title. Fellow senior Ray Diaz had a remarkable spring in running 9:32 for 3200m and advancing to MOC in that event. If he continues his upward momentum he could also factor into the title discussion. Veteran Richard Gong also excelled in track running 9:49 for 3200m which gives “Campo” the best front end in the section. After those 3 there is some uncertainty as to who will fill out the rest of the lineup but the Cougars have plenty of talent to fill those gaps. Teddy Buckley and Cameron Iniguez-Reyes had fantastic freshman campaigns in track, with the duo clocking 10:16 and 10:25 in the 3200m respectively. Thibault Gourlin, Ethan Sauerberg, and Tim Sams also had productive track seasons at the F/S level and should help fill out the back end. 2015 DFAL JV champ Kyle Flett has experience at the varsity level and should contribute as well. The biggest X factor for Campolindo this season is the addition of NCS MOC 800m champion Niki Moore, who will be doing cross country for the first time this fall. While middle distance performances do not always translate to a 3 mile/5k, Moore ran a solid 4:31 over 1600m during the spring. While they may be a bit short on experience coming into this season, Campolindo has the ability to capture another section title and are the favorites at this point in time.
2. Redwood
The Giants rolled to a 2nd place finish in DII last season and return an abundance of talent which will put them in contention for the section title this year in DIII. Liam Anderson had a remarkable freshman year, making the final in the 1600 at MOC and running 4:18. He was also stellar last fall and will no doubt be looking to make another massive jump this year. Andrew Thomas peaked masterfully down the stretch in track to qualify for the state meet in the 800, running 1:55. He was a scorer last XC season for Redwood and is primed to make another big jump this year. Junior Zach Martinez flashed great potential in running 4:31 for 1600m as did sophomore Austin Patel who ran 4:42 over the distance. Throw in James Conant (10:08 for 3200m) and Ollie Sagatsume (10:14 for 3200m) and you have the makings of an incredibly deep and solid team. The big challenge will be getting newcomers up to speed when it comes to running the longer cross country distance. If the Giants are able to do this they will be right in contention to pull out the victory come November.
3. Maria Carillo
The Pumas captured the DII title last season and will look to contend for the section title once again this season. They are led by the dual threat of Ben Lawson (4:23/9:57) and Scott Kruetzfeldt (4:32/9:38) who are both coming off of great track campaigns and will provide a low scoring 1-2 punch. Zach Lindemann (10:08) and Jacob Wright (10:15) look to be next up in the order and should they continue their improvement curve will give Maria Carrillo with a fantastic starting point. After that there is a bit of a drop off to Taylor Ingram, who clocked a respectable 10:43 for 3200 and Cooper Moore who ran 4:48 for 1600. In order for the Pumas to close the gap on the top 2 teams they will need to address this issue with their back end and cultivate some more depth. As it stands now they have the potential to be in the mix for the title with their great front end, but depth is king in cross country and in order to truly close the gap they will need to be able to go 7 deep. For now things look good!
4. Las Lomas
The Knights lose a ton from last season’s NCS runner ups but they return two mega talents in Preston Norris (4:25/9:50) and Parker Wilkerson (2:01/4:46) who are both coming off of impressive freshman track seasons. Both of them were regular varsity members last cross country season and should have no problem stepping up into big time roles on the team this year. Underclassmen Preston Rodriguez (4:49) and Jacob Renaghan (4:53) had productive spring seasons and will look to step up and become contributors in 2016. There is a big drop off after that but Las Lomas regularly has one of the largest teams in the section year in year out (with over 120 athletes on average) so finding the talent to plug in should not be much of a problem for them. With an even keeled approach to the season the Knights will be in prime position to return to the state meet.
5. Northgate
The Broncos find themselves in new territory this year, not only moving down from DII but also moving into the new Diablo Athletic League where they will get to compete against talented squads from Campolindo, Miramonte, Las Lomas, College Park, and Clayton Valley. This should prove a good measuring stick for Northgate as they try to put themselves in contention for a state berth. Omar Kabani, Wyatt Abranches, Connor Kugler, and Michael Wheeler all ran under 4:50 for 1600 this track season which gives the Broncos the needed depth to compete with Las Lomas for the final state meet berth in this division. Add in sophomore Joseph Momich who posted a solid 10:45 in the 3200 as a freshman and Northgate looks like they will be a solid contender this fall. If they can focus on racing and training as a pack, feeding off of each other and working together, the Broncos will be much improved this season.
Individuals
1. Liam Anderson (Redwood) – 4:18 as a frosh is the real deal, looks fantastic coming into this season
2. Jared Yabu (Campolindo) – Has the fastest returning times from Hayward/Woodward and despite a stagnant spring, he has all the tools necessary to take the win
3. Ray Diaz (Campolindo) – One of the biggest improvers over the course of the track season, should continue that trend this fall
4. Omar Maklaf (Livermore) – Continued to impress during track, running 4:20 for 1600 and 9:39 for 3200
5. Scott Kruetzfeldt (Maria Carrillo) – His 9:38 performance for 3200 points to great potential
6. Ben Lawson (Maria Carrillo) – Training with talented teammates in one of the section’s most consistent programs will pay huge dividends this season
7. Preston Norris (Las Lomas) – The talent is there, another year of training should put him in contention for an individual medal
On the Bubble: Andrew Thomas (Redwood), Richard Gong (Campolindo), Parker Wilkerson (Las Lomas)
Posted by Albert Caruana at 7/29/2016 05:49:00 PM 11 comments
Labels: 2016 Cross Country, 2016 Pre-Season XC Rankings, Coach Contributions, NCS Rankings '16
Popular Posts
-
Bumping this back up to the top. The list has not been updated in a few years so if you have athletes that you think deserve to...
-
If you are an athlete and you have a question about race strategy, training or anything else that is pertinent to Track & Field and/o...
-
You can now view all the entrants plus their performance mark from the section qualifier for this weekend's CA State Track and Field ...
-
Central Coast Section Results: http://www.rtspt.com/events/cif/2017Meets/ccsxc17/ Sac-Joaquin Section Section Finals: http://timerhub....
-
Just added: Info for Ghebray Invitational on September 22nd. With one extra Saturday in September next year, I started to hunt down the d...
-
Below is the schedule for the 2013 Cross Country season. If you see any errors, additions or can confirm any dates, please email me at alb...
-
I will continue to update this list throughout the year. Please feel free to add others in the comment section below. I know I do not hav...
-
Bold meets are confirmed for 2014 season. Non bolded dates are from 2013 season. August 2014 8/22 Ryan Bousquet Memorial Run at Yorba Reg...
-
I will once again be writing up the preview article for the NCS Meet of Champions this year. Below are the stripped down version of the ...
-
I will start with one: “Somewhere in the world someone is training when you are not. When you race him, he will win.” — Tom Fleming What...









