Prophesy Fulfilled and Iffy No Longer

Here’s my take on the state meet. No bricks, just bouquets.

Aside from the obvious winners: Centennial’s boys, led by Nick Hartle and Palo Verde’s girls, led by Katie Gorczyca, there were some other big winners.

I will start with North Tahoe, winners of the Boys 2A. For Coach Warren Mills’ North Tahoe boy’s team it was a 15^th state championship, their first since 1998. The Lakers are back! Did anyone else, besides me, notice that North Tahoe had the second-best boys team score in the Combined Scoring? (Centennial 56, North Tahoe 126, Galena 134, Coronado 139)

It was also a huge day for Whittell’s John Robinson, the individual winner of the Boys 2A race. Robinson’s time of 16:38 was the third-fastest time of the day, behind Hartle and Jordan. Who’s to say he wouldn’t have beaten them both if all three of them had been competing head-to-head? If you recall, John had a faster time than Bryan at Stanford, where he, John Robinson, won the 5A race.

Assuming the three of them—Hartle, Jordan, Robinson—all run at the NXN SW Regional in Mesa, Arizona, in two weeks, it should be a great rematch.  

The next tier of boys weren’t too shabby either: Jordan Cardenas of Reno, the only sophomore in the Top 25 (Combined Boys Results); Nathaniel Williams of Sierra Lutheran; Carl Greene of Foothill; and Josh Thompson of Moapa Valley, who successfully defended his State 3A title. All four of these guys were under 17 minutes, over the tough Veteran’s Memorial Park state course. Well done, all.

How dominant was Centennial is winning the Boys 4A? The Bulldog’s fifth scorer finished ahead of runner-up Coronado’s first scorer. Double Centennial’s score of 43 points and they still win over Coronado’s 88 points.

Back in 2008 when Centennial upset Carson by one point (and Reno by two) some said it was a fluke, while others said it was the beginning of a dynasty. Nathan Williams was only a junior; Nick Hartle was a freshman. Then in 2009 Williams moved with his family to California and Centennial finished second at state behind Carson with Bryan Jordan beating Nick. So much for a dynasty.

But let’s take another look at it.

Next spring Centennial graduates their three outstanding seniors: Kyle Merritt, Dominic Lopez, and Bryce Fessler.  All three made All State this year (Top 15). But they bring back Hartle; Jackson Carter and George Espino, both freshmen; and their alternate, Ian Lee, a junior, who would probably have been Top 7 on every other 4A team.  McGuire doesn’t rebuild next year; he reloads! Do I hear, “Repeat,” anyone?

We’ll see. It’s one thing to win on your home turf. The true test of a dominant team is to win back-to-back, North and South. Since the 90’s it has been done by only one team: Reno, who pulled off a 5-peat from 2002 to 2006.

Meanwhile, well done Coronado. Without a single runner in the top 20, the Cougars still took home the 2^nd-place plaque, beating Galena. The time spread among Coronado’s five scoring runners was just 27 seconds. The Bridesmaid Award goes to Coach Mark Tondryk of Coronado who coaches both teams. His girls finished second at state in 2008 and now his boys finish second in 2010.

My Unsung Hero or Fifth Man Award for the boys goes jointly to Jackson Carter and George Espino of Centennial, the first two freshmen to finish. Jackson finished 20^th and George 26^th  (13 and 15 for scoring) as the 5-6 runners for the winning Centennial Bulldogs.

And before I leave the boys, I want to recognize three other coaches—besides Mark Tondryk—for their outstanding efforts in 2010: Warren Mills, Mike McGuire, and Robert Davis. Coach Mills is already a Legend among us. Nothing more needs to be said. Coach McGuire, on the other hand, has now nailed down two state championships and a runner-up in his three years at the helm of the Centennial boy’s program. That speaks for itself too. Finally, Robert Davis, the Palo Verde girl’s coach, got my vote the first time. I suspect that if the voting for Sunset Coach of the Year had been after state, rather than before the Regional meet, the outcome might have been different.   

And speaking of girls, what a year for Katie Goczyca! Palo Verde wouldn’t be 4A State Champions but for this precocious freshman. Six months ago Katie was an 8^th grader at Alexander Dawson and undecided about for whom she would be running this fall. Now Palo Verde is in a position to establish a four-year dynasty with Katie leading the way. Granted, the Panthers graduate Kelsi Koch, a four-year state qualifier and All State twice (9^th overall this year), but Coach Robert Davis also brings back her sister, Ashley Koch, a sophomore; freshman Marissa Suan, who ended up as the number three 9^th grader in the South; and sophomore Sara Leiserowitz, better known for her success on the track as an 800 meter runner this past spring.

Back in September I wrote in a mid-season cross country report that after Katie Gorczya and Kelsi Koch, Palo Verde was “iffy.” I’m told it became a source of motivation for the team to prove me wrong.

Thanks to Marissa, Ashley, and Sara, you did.

With that, I’m naming Sara Leiserowitz as my Unsung Hero and winner of the Fifth Man Award for the girls this year. According to Coach Davis, Sara hadn’t run for seven weeks (due to injuries I assume). She showed up as Palo’s #5 at the Sunset Regional and finished 19^th overall. At State, against much tougher competition, she ran 10 seconds faster and finished 29^th (21 for scoring). Granted, all five scoring runners are vital in the scoring but sans Sara, Palo Verde doesn’t win State; they finish third! Palo’s #6 was 56^th (43 for scoring). The margin of victory over Damonte Ranch and Carson was 10 points and 17 points. Do the math. 

And speaking of Damonte Ranch, kudos to them for their runner-up finish. They upset the Northern champs, Carson, and beat, handily, the the other five teams from the South.

Other girls deserving of bouquets include Alyssa Rapovy, Green Valley, runner-up behind Gorczyca; Erika Root from Reno, third; Alex Drozdoff of Carson, fourth; and Andrea Gonzalez of Arbor View and Meagan Wood of Damonte Ranch who finished fifth and sixth, less than a second apart.

And, finally, a big round of applause is due to John Dixon and his crew for putting on a flawlessly-run meet. The weather was great too.

I hope to see many of you in two weeks in Mesa for the NXN SW Regional. Let’s show the rest of the Southwest, and Nike, that what Wade Meddles did last year was no fluke.

(Phil Lawton)