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DEWEY FORGET FOR THE PRESS DEMOCRAT HAYWARD – Petaluma cross country coach Jim Lynch will be the first to acknowledge that winning a section championship is much easier than defending the title - and less stressful. When you are a two-time champ, expectations are raised another notch, and the pressure is noticeably more intense. The Petaluma boys successfully defended their North Coast Section cross country title last year in Division II. The Trojans expected to add a Div. III trophy Saturday at the NCS Meet of Champions at Hayward. An easier spot you might think. No way. With the likes of traditionally strong cross country teams like Campolindo, Las Lomas and Acalanes in Div. III, a third section title was far from a given for the favored Trojans, who are ranked second in the state and first in the section. Campolindo, with four runners in the top ten, upset Petaluma, 37-42. Campolindo has won five of the past six Div. III titles. Las Lomas was third and Acalanes fourth. All four teams qualify for state Saturday at Woodward Park in Fresno. “It doesn’t get any easier, “said Petaluma coach Jim Lynch. “The ultimate goal, of course, is winning at state. Today was a chance for us to see what we have to do next week. There is a lot of pressure on the kids; sometimes it can be too much. “To win at state, you have to have some good luck. A lot of elements have to come together. This is the hardest part of the season. For the seniors it’s their last hurrah. That’s why today hurts so much. We have to regroup and go after it next week.” Petaluma’s Sterling Lockert, the defending NCS Div.II champ, ran 20 seconds faster than last year, to take home the first-place medal. His 15:04 is one of the fastest times ever over the 3.0 mile course. Robert Pulford, Campolindo’s top runner, was second in 15:10. Erik Olsen (Novato) was third. Lockert is ranked No.1 in the section. “I was hoping to go under 15,” said Lockert, who prefers to start conservatively and finish strong. “I have the speed to finish the last mile, that’s when I usually make my move. The hills here can be brutal if you go out too fast.” However, Sterling didn’t have the luxury of setting a leisurely pace. Pulford, Olson and Campolindo’s Ross Geiger ran as a foursome for the better part of two miles before Lockert began to pull away. Hugh Dowdy (Petaluma) was fifth and Devin Lockert, Sterling’ twin, was seventh. Luis Luna (Piner) ran 16th, but his 15:58 time qualified for state. Jacque Taylor, one of the state’s most accomplished competitors, added another first-place medal to her resume. The Casa Grande junior, ranked second in the state behind Kaylin Montgomery of Saugus, sprinted to the front in the first 400 yards and cruised to a comfortable Div. II win in 17:17, a personal-best for her at Hayward. Heather Gaffney of Carondelet was second (17:30). “I went out too fast,” said Taylor, who found herself behind Rachel Mitchell of American on the run through the opening 200 yards. “That girl started so quick. I didn’t expect that. I wanted to do around 5:30 for the first mile, but I went 5:18. I guess I had a lot of adrenaline. I love this course, it’s a fun one.” Montgomery’s Julie Nacouzi and Celeste Berg, who won the North Bay League meet last week at Spring Lake, were fourth and fifth. Both advance to state, along with Santa Rosa’s Suzi Rozga (9th, 18:31) and Windsor’s Amber Piersol, who was 11th. Montgomery just missed a state invitation, running fourth only three points behind Casa. “All five of our girls ran PR’s,” said Montgomery coach Valerie Sell. “We are returning all but two next year. Isabel Andrade, who was running over the course for the first time, found it to her liking. The Petaluma junior picked up her first NCS Div. III championship, finishing in 17:47. Maria Carrillo’s Lauren Curtin was fourth (18:14). Francesca Honey (Petaluma) advanced to state with a fifth place finish. Carrillo’s girls once again proved to be the sections top Div. III team. The Pumas outran Campolindo and Bishop O’Dowd for the gold medal. Carrillo has now gone to state eight consecutive years. The Carrillo boy’s seven-year run was stopped by a 10th place finish. The Pumas’ Sarah DiRado fell at the start and found herself last in the field of 110. She rallied for an improbable 14th place. “I did a real superman,” DiRado said. “Then all I could think was I had to catch up. I knew I had to run what I usually run for the team.” Rory McLeod, Santa Rosa’s top runner and the NBL champ, advanced to state in Div. II with a strong third place effort in 15:23. The Panthers’ team will make the trip to Fresno, as well. Andrew Zellman (Ukiah) advances with an eighth place finish. El Molino teammates John Whitman and Micah Shaw-Henderson move on to state, along with Cardinal Newman’s Brian King in Div. IV. Meredith Inman of Healdsburg also qualified in that division with an 11th place finish. In Div. V, Grace Hafner (Sonoma Academy) ran sixth to advance to state for the third time. And Skyler Thomas of Mendocino qualified with the same place in the boys race.
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