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BEI'S SEASON IS ONE OF THE ALL-TIME GREATS
DATE: Tuesday, December 26, 2000 BYLINE: By ERICK STUDENICKA THE PRESS DEMOCRAT EDITION: CITY SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C6 MEMO: Year In Review Empire Story Of The Year Whether she was gauging when to peak when to begin her finishing kick, Montgomery High's Sara Bei displayed perfect timing during the 2000 cross country season in which she became the individual national champion. After finishing in second place in both the North Bay League and North Coast Section races to league-rival Amber Trotter of Ukiah, Bei won both the state and national titles with strong finishes. At the state meet in Fresno, Bei trailed Trotter through two miles and waited until the final 250 meters of the race to finally pull away. With her first-place finish, Bei became the first runner in California high school history to win four consecutive titles. After qualifying third at Mt. Sac a week after the state meet, Bei traveled to Orlando, Fla., for the Foot Locker National Cross Country Championship. In 32nd place out of 32 runners after one mile, Bei crept through the pack and rejoined the lead runners with less than 800 meters left in the race. Bei won in the race's final meters, outsprinting nemesis Anita Siraki of Glendale at the finish line. Trotter also turned in an All-American performance and finished seventh to give the Empire unprecedented success at the national championship. Bei was Santa Rosa's second national champion within six years. Santa Rosa High's Julia Stamps won the national title in 1994.
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