According to pressdemocrat.com, Sonoma Academy claimed both Coastal Mountain Conference cross country titles on Thursday at Spring Lake with a dominating sweep.
The sweep marks the seventh straight pennant for the boys and the third in a row for the girls. Oregon-bound senior Josie Hill secured her third prep career CMC individual title by clocking a 17:15.9, crossing the finish line nearly 30 seconds ahead of the competition.
The performance set a new school and CMC record on the course. It broke state champion Rylee Bowen’s 2014 school record of 17:36 and St. Helena runner Harper McClain’s 2019 conference record of 17:18, moving Hill to No. 11 all-time in area history at Spring Lake.
The Sonoma Academy girls placed four runners in the top 10. Sophomore Annie Leyba finished fourth in 19:44, junior Kiara Alvarez Ceja took eighth in 20:50, and senior Amelia Butkus placed ninth in 20:54.4.
On the boys side, Sonoma Academy placed six runners in the top 10. Freshman Roman Imahara led the squad with a third-place run of 16:37.8, followed by sophomore Asher Dobson in fourth at 16:42.8 and junior Beckett Lynch in fifth at 17:43.1.
Junior Charlie Rubenstein crossed in seventh at 16:48.6, freshman James DiBartolo placed ninth at 16:59, and junior Arman Mohammadi finished 10th in 17:29.9.
Technology junior Will Engh repeated as the individual champion, winning the race in 16:04.4, according to pressdemocrat.com. That time set a new school record, eclipsing Bailey Williams’ 2018 mark of 16:17 and moving Engh to No. 11 all-time in CMC history at Spring Lake. Junior teammate Beckett Hepp took second in 16:31.4.
As reported by pressdemocrat.com, the Casa Grande boys and Justin-Siena girls were awarded Vine Valley Athletic League pennants on Friday at Spring Lake. The title is the fourth straight for the Gauchos, who held off Napa by six points in the team competition.
Napa junior Joshua Nunez-Torres won the individual VVAL title with a record of 16:01.2, winning by 19 seconds. The best-ever boys finishes for their respective schools in the VVAL were achieved by Sonoma Valley senior Calvin Hofstetter, who took second in 16:20.3, and Justin-Siena junior Stuart Falace, who placed third in 16:21.5.
Junior Matthew Lindeman led the Gauchos with a fifth-place finish in 16:24.3, while the team secured five runners in the top 20.
The Justin-Siena girls captured their first-ever team title and individual championship as a member of the VVAL, pressdemocrat.com reported. Sophomore Piper Chafen won the race in 18:31.6 to set a new school record on the course. The Braves placed four runners in the top 10 to finish with 31 points.
