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Petaluma running up to expectations By RICH RUPPRECHT Press Democrat Staff Writer Published: Tuesday, October 14, 2008 A cross country season is a lot like a hilly race course, riding out the ups and downs of injuries and illnesses, all the while trying to keep going and having the stamina to collect the big prize at the end — a state championship. The Petaluma boys haven’t run into many obstacles so far this season and lived up to their No.1 state ranking in Division III with an impressive performance last weekend in the Clovis Invitational, which just happened to be run at Woodward Park in Fresno, home of the state high school championships. Senior Sterling Lockert finished 13th in the boys’ seeded race, which included all divisions. Lockert ran a 15:25, the same time as Elsie Allen’s Celedonia Rodriguez and third-best at Woodward Park by an Empire male. Lockert was two seconds off Ukiah’s Ryan Mack’s best of 15:23 in 1998. Healdsburg’s Todd Trask ran a 15:24 in 1986. Petaluma coach Jim Lynch’s top-five runners’ times came out two minutes faster than last year’s second-place finish at state in the Div. II race. With the move to Div. III, there are new teams to contend with, but in finishing fifth at Woodward, the Trojans had the satisfaction of being the top Div. III finisher. “I just told our guys I wanted to see us compete and let it all out,” Lynch said. “Collectively, each guy was about 20 seconds faster than last year at state.” State Div. III teams ranked behind Petaluma are Campolindo (NCS), St. John Bosco (Southern), Palos Verdes Estates (Southern), Foothill (Southern) and Barstow (Southern). Petaluma junior Isabel Andrade won the girls’ medium-school race in 18:42, a second faster than Lori Shanoff’s school record at Woodward Park, set in 1980. Andrade has been having a superb season after last year rolling her ankle and suffering a bone chip, an injury that ended her season. Andrade has only been running cross country for a little over two years. “She’s the sweetest kid and all business,” said Lynch. Petaluma will run at Hayward’s Garin Regional Park on Saturday in the Mariner Meet.
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