Bigger Could Be Better for Orange County Championships

The Orange County Cross-Country Championships will feature a record number of schools, a slightly different course and some much-needed additional parking for those who will descend on Irvine Regional Park Saturday.

The starting area has been increased to accommodate the 57 schools that will fill the fields for the 16 races, which is down from 21 last season. The first half mile of the 3.05-mile course also has been altered to allow for more parking in the 477-acre park. Additionally, 15 teams have been entered into both the boys’ and girls’ sweepstakes races, in which entries were limited to 12 in past years.

The underclassmen races begin at 8 a.m., with the girls’ sweepstakes race kicking off the varsity competition at 9:30. Four lower-division varsity races will follow before the boys’ sweepstakes race begins 10:45. There is a $6 per car charge to enter the park.

BOYS’ TEAMS TO WATCH

Katella--The Knight runners stunned everybody except themselves when they won the county title last season by 38 points over favored Santa Ana, but they won’t be sneaking up on anyone this time, especially with four of their top five runners returning.

“We think our first three will run real solid and finish among the top five or six runners,” Katella Coach Mike Cochrane said. “The other two should be among the next 20.”

Santa Ana Valley--The Falcons were impressive in winning the Division II senior race at the Woodbridge Invitational last month. Valley’s top five ran under 16:17 on the three-mile course.

Coach Jose Sanchez said his team is healthy and predicts his top seven runners will need to finish under 16:20 to topple Katella.

“We’ll have to have a perfect race to win,” he said. “I think Victor Lopez will get in the top three and I’m hoping for our seventh runner to get under Katella’s fifth.”

Santa Ana--The Saints have steadily gained respect from coaches across the county and beyond. They might not put anyone in the top 10, but they could stick five in the teens.

Santiago--Coach Rex Ressler hoped to have his squad in shape by the county championships and the Cavaliers appear on schedule after winning the Division I varsity race at the Central Park Invitational in Huntington Beach last Saturday.

El Toro--Coach Rick Hagin would like to think his Chargers could finish as high as second, if all the pieces fall into place.

“I think if we have a great day we could be second or third,” Hagin said. “I don’t think we can knock off Katella, but I hope we can compete with Valley, Santa Ana and Edison. If we have an average day, we can finish in the top five or six.”

BOYS TO WATCH

Augie Escobar--The Villa Park senior is the hands-down favorite to win his first Orange County title. He was runner-up at the county championships last season, finished third in the Southern Section Division II finals and 11th at state. Unless he oversleeps or runs off course, he should add another trophy to his collection.

Ryan Bousquet--The Esperanza senior, a good friend of Escobar’s, already has set four course records this season, including two on the Yorba Regional Park course. Bousquet was sixth at state and third in Division I in the 1,600 last spring.

Danny Mejia--The Katella senior has kept a low profile this season but his past performances include a Southern Section Division II individual title.

Victor Lopez--The Santa Ana Valley senior finished first in the Division II senior race at the Woodbridge Invitational in 15:29.

GIRLS’ TEAMS TO WATCH

Corona del Mar--This team began the season as the favorite for this race, and nothing has happened to change that.

Corona del Mar won the Division III title at the Laguna Hills Invitational. At the Sunny Hills Invitational the next weekend, eight Corona del Mar runners finished under 20 minutes and the school won the team title by more than three minutes.

Two weeks ago, Corona del Mar had four runners finish in less than 20 minutes at the Stanford Invitational--site of another team victory.

Esperanza--The Aztecs have kept a fairly low profile this season, but the defending county champions can’t be overlooked.

Their top four runners finished under 19:06 at a dual meet in Yorba Regional Park two weeks ago. However, a week earlier on the same course, no Esperanza runner broke 19:35.

Foothill--The Knights have moved up the county, Southern Section and state rankings after some impressive early victories.

At the Stanford Invitational, Foothill, then the third-ranked team in the state Division II poll, toppled top-ranked Santa Margarita, 92-119.

Santa Margarita--The Eagles looked strong early but have dropped back after their loss to Foothill at Stanford and a narrow victory over Mater Dei last week. Santa Margarita is strong through the first three runners, but past that is young and inexperienced.

Woodbridge--The Warriors improved their stock by winning the team title at a 24-team meet in Greensboro, N.C., last month. Woodbridge also finished second to Santa Margarita in the Division II race at its own invitational.

GIRLS TO WATCH

Liz Morse--The Corona del Mar senior has emerged as the favorite after an impressive victory at Stanford. Morse, who finished third in the state in the 800 last spring, trailed San Francisco University High’s Aliza Cohen by 20 yards with 100 yards to go, but surged at the end to finish one second ahead of Cohen in 18:58. Although Mission Viejo’s Sarah Rettmann, Marina’s Vanessa Kelly and Fountain Valley’s Julia Allen are in a separate varsity race, the girls’ individual competition should be top-notch.

Lori Mann--The Santa Margarita junior had one of the better resumes coming into the season after finishing second in the state in Division II last season, with the best time of any county runner in any division.

Jenny Sears--The Mater Dei sophomore proved she belongs with the top runners after defeating Mann in their Serra League dual meet last week, running a Fairview Park course-record time of 17:59.

Amber Steen--The Newport Harbor junior finished right behind Mann at Stanford (19:09) and at the Laguna Hills Invitational (18:40) but has the speed to make up ground down the stretch, as evidenced by her victory in the 1,600 at the Masters Meet last spring.

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Cross-Country Polls

Southern Section Coaches’ Poll

BOYS

Division I--Chino Don Lugo, 2. Rialto, 3. Katella, 4. Long Beach Poly, 5. Santa Ana Valley, 6. Santa Ana, 7. Murrieta Valley, 8. Hesperia Sultana, 9. Mission Viejo, 10. El Toro.

Division II--1. Barstow, 2. Tustin, 3. Burbank Burroughs 4. Newbury Park, 5. Agoura, 6. Valencia, 7. Temescal Canyon, 8. Villa Park, 9. Santiago, 10. Lake Arrowhead Rim of the World.

Division III--1. Covina South Hills, 2. Rosemead Don Bosco, 3. La Canada, 4. San Luis Obispo, 5. La Puente Bassett, 6. Ridgecrest Burroughs, 7. Temecula Chaparral, 8. South Pasadena, 9. La Puente, 10. Goleta Dos Pueblos.

Division IV--1. Agoura Oak Park, 2. Ojai Nordhoff, 3. Corona del Mar, 4. Fillmore, 5. Los Angeles Salisian, 6. Orange Lutheran, 7. Laguna Beach, 8. Sherman Oaks Notre Dame, 9. Estancia, 10. Morro Bay.

Division V--1. La Canada Flintridge Prep, 2. Lancaster Desert Christian, 3. Downey Calvary Chapel, 4. Oxnard Santa Clara, 5. Apple Valley Granite Hills, 6. Sierra Madre Maranatha, 7. Riverside Woodcrest Christian, 8. Claremont Webb, 9. Riverside Martin Luther King, 10. St Margaret’s.

GIRLS

Division I--1. Palos Verdes Peninsula, 2. Rialto, 3. Yucaipa, 4. Hesperia Sultana, 5. Woodbridge, 6. Esperanza, 7. Redlands East Valley, 8. University, 9. Mater Dei, 10. El Toro.

Division II--1. Foothill; 2. Santa Margarita, 3. Brea Olinda, 4. Tustin, 5. Pacifica, 6. El Modena, 7. Barstow, 8. Westlake Village Westlake, 9. Newport Harbor, 10. Lakewood St. Joseph.

Division III--1. Covina South Hills, 2. La Canada, 3. San Luis Obispo, 4. Rosary, 5. South Pasadena, 6. Lompoc, 7. LaVerne Bonita, 8. La Puente Bishop Amat, 9. Rancho Alamitos, 10. Ridgecrest Burroughs.

Division IV--1. Corona del Mar, 2. Ojai Nordhoff, 3. Woodland Hills Louisville, 4. Morro Bay, 5. Pasadena La Salle, 6. Orange Lutheran, 7. Laguna Beach, 8. Santa Maria St. Joseph, 9. Flintridge Sacred Heart, 10. Ventura St. Bonaventure.

Division V--1. Northwood, 2. Palos Verdes Chadwick, 3. Lancaster Desert Christian, 4. Bermuda Dunes Desert Christian, 5. Sierra Madre Maranatha, 6. La Canada Flintridge Prep, 7. St Margaret’s, 8. L.A. Baptist, 9. Pasadena Poly, 10. Whittier Christian.