A dominant regular season for Turlock High’s boys and girls varsity cross country teams culminated in the unprecedented event where each team simultaneously hoisted plaques representing league championships.
At Wednesday’s third and final Central California Athletic League meet of the season at Tuolumne Regional Park in Modesto, the girls posted a team score of 23 while the boys finished with 20 to each cruise to meet wins to cap off a season sweep of CCAL meets and respectively clinch their overall first-place spots. It marked consecutive league titles for the boys and the first for the girls since 2015.
The Pitman High squads finished runner-up in each event Wednesday, with the boys scoring 87 and the girls 50.
The Bulldogs had the top three finishers in the boys race, which consisted of 66 runners. Senior Theodore Santos crossed the finish line first with a time of 16 minutes, 23.64 seconds. Two seconds behind him was junior Larson Wejmar. Senior Logan Petty rounded out the top three with a time of 16 minutes, 28.51 seconds. Pitman’s top individual time was 17 minutes, 19.02 seconds courtesy of senior Dominic Crawford, who placed 14th.
Downey’s Zoe Leach paced the field of 39 in the girls race. Behind her was a plethora of Turlock and Pitman athletes. Second place was claimed by Turlock freshman Ellison Williams and her time of 19 minutes, 12.76 seconds. Pitman junior Avery Carlson’s time of 19 minutes, 43.57 seconds was good for third. Turlock’s Maya Day, Audrey Webb and Mylie Olson finished with fourth, fifth and sixth.
History for Hilmar at TVL Finals
The Strom Gym on the campus of Hilmar High is full of pennants representing league, section and state championships. This week, a new banner was hung, commemorating the first-ever Trans-Valley League title won by the girls cross country team.
At the TVL Finals at Wildcat Ranch in Sonora on Wednesday, the girls posted a score 25 — just 13 points lower than runner-up Hughson — to claim the conference crown.
The field of 46 was led by Hilmar senior Sophia Lopes, who completed the course in 20 minutes, even. Nearly three seconds behind her was Hughson junior Sophie Benham. Hilmar junior Sidney Logsdon placed third with a time of 20 minutes, 16.19 seconds. Freshman teammate Carson Dickey rounded out the top five with a time of 21 minutes, 16.49 seconds.
The Hughson program made up for the girls’ runner-up finish by winning the team title in the boys race. Their score of 42 was 19 points better than second-place Ripon. Hilmar, meanwhile, ended in fourth with a score of 105.
Of the two schools, it was the Yellowjackets that had the quickest individual time, as senior Jeffrey Mendonca placed third with a time of 16 minutes, 57.25 seconds. He was over 12 seconds ahead of fourth-place runner Bobby Nieto, a Hughson senior. Alessandro Pimentel and Mason Hoyle gave the Huskies a boost in the team score with their seventh and eighth place finishes.
Denair finishes regular season strong
Denair runners Salvador Virgen and Jose Ponce placed in the top three Wednesday at the Southern Athletic League Finals on Wednesday at the River Bluff Regional Park in Ceres to help the Coyotes win the boys league championship.
The SAL has a shallow field, with just 24 runners from three teams (Denair, Delhi, Waterford) competing on the course. It doesn’t make the performance of the Denair kids any less impressive.
Virgen, a junior, came in second place behind Waterford’s Emilio Castillo with a time of 18 minutes, 57 seconds. Ponce, a sophomore, was third after running in a time of 19 minutes, 40 seconds.
The Coyotes’ team score was 32 points, six points better than Delhi.
Sub-Sections next weekend
Runners from all teams will now prepare for the CIF Sac-Joaquin Sub-Section meet Nov. 9 on the Frogtown course at the Calaveras County Fairgrounds in Angels Camp.
