Wolfpack secures both Division 1 titles for fifth consecutive year, with Panthers capturing both Division 2 crowns for the first time in program history; Nico Young runs 3-mile Riverside course record of 13:54.1

By Landon Negri for DyeStat

California’s top two cross country programs flexed their muscle Saturday, igniting hope for an epic showdown in two weeks in their neighboring state.

Great Oak’s boys, ranked No. 1 in the nation, and Newbury Park, ranked No. 2, were winners in Division 1 and Division 2, respectively, at the CIF-Southern Section championship meet at the Riverside City Cross Country Course.

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The wins were sweeping victories, as well, as Great Oak’s girls, No. 5 in the nation, and Newbury Park, ranked No. 30, won in both divisions.

In all, 10 team and individual champions were crowned and one program, Saugus High, competed for the first time since a Nov. 14 shooting on its campus. The Centurions finished second to Great Oak in the Division 1 girls final.

The boys teams from Great Oak and Newbury Park have met head-to-head twice this season, with Newbury Park winning at the Woodbridge Classic in September and Great Oak winning in October at the ASICS Clovis Invitational at Woodward Park in Fresno, the same course that holds the CIF State Championships, scheduled for Nov. 30.

Being in different divisions, they cannot meet at the state meet but could – and should – at the Nike Cross Nationals meet Dec. 7 in Portland, Ore.

The programs took different paths to their titles. Newbury Park ran a full lineup, led by standout ace senior Nico Young, who trounced the Riverside 3-mile course record by 30 seconds and won for the second consecutive year in 13 minutes, 54.1 seconds.

“I thought today I was going to be in the low 14s,” said Young, who ran 14:24.2 last season. “I think I kind of didn’t realize how fast I was going.”

In fact, the Panthers’ No. 2 runner, senior Jace Aschbrenner, ran 14:23.2 and would’ve set a course record himself, if not for Young. Newbury Park won with 59 points, ahead of second-place Dana Hills (132) and third-place Redlands East Valley (134).

“We really came here to run hard,” Aschbrenner said. “We wanted to go out fast and control the race, like right from the get-go. Having Nico up there just kind of makes it feel like every other hard workout we’ve done. I know where I need to be in the race behind Nico, and usually, that ends up turning out pretty well.”

Great Oak’s approach was one of conserving energy. Coach Doug Soles, who has been known to run his ‘B’ team at league finals and CIF-Southern Section prelims meets, rolled the dice and ran six of seven runners from the Nos. 8-14 spots in his lineup.

It really wasn’t much of a gamble, and he’s often said he feels like he has a ‘B’ squad that could win a state title. The Wolfpack boys then proved it Saturday, winning the Division 1 title with 96 points over runner-up Crescenta Valley (145) and third-place Roosevelt (149).

Behind winner Jeremiah Castellano of Upland (14:48.4), who captured his school’s first individual title since 1979 to advance to next week’s state meet, Great Oak was led by junior John Worthy (sixth, 15:01.1) and senior Leandro Candray (eighth, 15:04.4).

The thinking, of course, was for the Wolfpack to capitalize on their depth and save the top seven for next week at Woodward Park. It was Great Oak’s fifth consecutive Division 1 crown.

“I definitely saw some teams that we’re going to be facing in the future go a lot harder than we did today,” Soles said, “so that’s a good sign for me as a coach to be able to to plan on that. I’m going to have some fresh kids next week and I think we’ll be perfectly peaked and ready to run at (Nike Cross) Nationals.”

On the girls side, Saturday marked a benchmark for Newbury Park, which won its first section championship in Division 2 by knocking off three-time champion Claremont, 65-116. Perhaps the deepest race of the day was won individually by Riverside North standout Mackenzie Browne in 16:53.7, a freshman record for the 3-mile Riverside course.

Sophomore Sam McDonnell led Newbury Park with an eighth-place finish in 17:19.1, with senior Hailey Golmon securing 13th in 17:27.3.

“We’re really proud of ourselves because we worked as a team and we trusted in our training to prove to ourselves that we’re just as good as our guys’ team,” said Golmon, a Westlake transfer.

“We really stepped it up this year.”

In Division 1, Great Oak won its eighth consecutive section championship and 10th in 11 years by running a full lineup behind race-winner Hana Catsimanes of San Clemente (17:21.4). Saugus, running 10 days after a school shooting killed two on campus, was second with 112. Vista Murrieta was third with 198.

The Wolfpack were led by seniors Audrey Dang (fifth, 17:38.6) and Aubrie Nex (sixth, 17:38.8) and freshman Kelli Gaffney (seventh, 17:39.0). Defending section champion Tori Gaitan, recently signed with Northern Arizona, ran sick but still finished in 29th.

“I think our team this year is definitely much more close together,” Dang said, “as you can see by how we finished today, with five of our runners in the top 15.”

Agoura won its first section since 1993 in Division 3, outlegging Royal of Simi Valley, 94-128. Senior Keith Murray of Moorpark won individually in 14:49.7 for the first title in program history.

“We’ve been putting a lot of effort in; a lot of work,” said Agoura senior Beau Bordelon, who was fourth in 15:08.4. “And it’s great to just let ourselves go.”

A 1-2 finish propelled Palos Verdes in Division 3 to a 70-84 victory over runner-up Brea Olinda. Seniors Savannah Scriven (17:28.5) and Samantha Steman (17:40.7) were first and second, respectively, for Palos Verdes, which captured its fifth championship in the past seven seasons and 13th in program history.

“We knew this would be a close one,” Scriven said, “and that just made it more meaningful.”

Foothill Technology of Ventura won in Division 4 over Cathedral and Laguna Beach for the boys, with JSerra senior Anthony Grover capturing his second section title in three seasons in a time of 14:53.9.

In Division 5, Flintridge Prep tallied 100 points and St. Margaret’s junior Jackson Adelman (15:20.2) each won repeat section titles. St. Margaret’s was second as a team with 116 points.

Following a pair of runner-up finishes, Mayfield junior Audrey Suarez won her first section title in Division 4 in 17:24.7. Orange Lutheran won a team title for the first time since 2009 with 75 points, ahead of second-place Laguna Beach with 136.

And in Division 5, Village Christian junior Mia Barnett won her third consecutive section championship in 17:45.9, ahead of runner-up Liesel Blau of St. Maragaret’s, which won the team title in the division for the second year in a row with a 54-136 victory over Linfield Christian.

“My main goal was just to get the win, secure it, and I’m happy with how I did today,” Barnett said.