Del Rio Boys
A very big, very busy week is ahead as almost every team in the SGV will have its second cluster meet.
The second meet is often the most fun, and the most competitive, with teams looking to extend their dominance or to avenge an earlier loss. The athletes are several more weeks fit, so the performances are almost always better. And with the San Gabriel Valley 1 on 1 Challenge postponed until next Saturday, many of these teams will be very well rested!
On Tuesday, 10/11 the Camino del Rey Association will meet at Griffith Park in Los Angles, while the Sierra League will run at Bonelli Park in San Dimas, this time on the 3-mile Invite Course.
Wednesday, 10/12 has four SGV leagues in action: the Baseline at Red Hill Park in Alta Loma, the Hacienda at Bonelli on the Lake Course, the Mission Valley at Legg Lake in South El Monte, and the Valle Vista at Schabarum Park in Rowland Heights.
On Thursday the 13th, the Montview (as always) will be at Schbarum, while the Pacific and Rio Hondo will both be at the hilly Crescenta Valley Park.
The highly competitive Del Rio League will face off on Friday, 10/14 at La Mirada Regional Park.
Previews for Tuesday’s and Wednesday’s Meets after the jump
Tuesday
The Camino Del Rey Asscociation combines the smaller Camino Real league with the larger schools of the Del Rey League. In the first meet a sick and injured Don Bosco Tech were unable to match the strong Cathedral team in the Del Rey, but the Tigers are healthier and are looking forward to a rematch. La Salle’s Daniel De La Torre was held back by wrong turn the first time, and he’ll look to avenge his loss to Cathedral’s Adam Avila. Bishop Amat took the third spot for both the boys and girls, with Lancer frosh Emily Hubert finishing a strong third. In the Camino, Cantwell-SHM edged St. Paul on the boys side, and the results was reverse for the girls. Both teams have made nice progress and it should be a great rematch. Results will be here on the Association Website.
In the first Sierra League meet, Damien followed a strong win by Tom Ebiner to the top spot in the league, defeating Div. II ranked Ayala and South Hills. The Spartans have not raced since, so they should be raring to go. The Huskies won their won Super XC Classic and have rested since, so this should be a great meet. The South Hills and Claremont girls were two/three following the powerful Ayala team. The Wolfpack’s Megan Renken, 4th in the first meet, is coming off of a particularly strong effort at Clovis and could challenge for the win. The Huskies are ranked #8 in Div. III, but they’ll have to tighten up their 1-5 gap to challenge Ayala.
Wednesday
The Glendora girls had their first win in the powerful Baseline League in the first cluster meet, putting their scoring five in the first 12, but rival Rancho Cucamonga was short handed and will have their full team for Wednesday’s rematch. The Tartan boys finished second but were smashed by a perfect 15 from Rancho, who have only improved since then to a #1 ranking in California and top 5 nationally. Glendora will do well to hold their second spot.
The Los Altos boys took their first step toward claiming the Hacienda League title with a solid win over Bonita in the first meet, followed closely by Walnut, Rowland, and West Covina. The order could be really mixed up the second time, and a group of five boys will look to unseat Rowland’s Nick Rivera from the top individual spot. Bonita’s Marissa Scott was solidly first in the opener, and should hold her spot, but will be challenged by Walnut’s fast rising frosh Anahi Betart, fresh from her win at the Super XC Classic. Bonita q won the first team battle, and Walnut will look to unseat them, while Los Altos looks to be solidly third.
The young Northview girls team announced themselves with a clear win in the first Valle Vista League meet, with a 6, 8, 9, 10, and 11 finish, but defending champs Covina and improving San Dimas were close enough to expect to challenge this time, and a full-strength Baldwin Park can expect to move up. Ana Barcelo (Nogales) was the class of the field and should win again. The Covina boys were easy winners, sweeping the first three spots. Second placed Nogales and the young Baldwin Park team will have to really find something to challenge the Colts.
Arroyo (boys) and Rosemead (girls) had a bit of a rough time at Clovis this past weekend, but should regain their swagger in the second Mission Valley League meet. The Lady Panthers were almost perfect with just 16 points in the first MVL meet, with Arroyo short handed. They were nearly 4 minutes better than the Knights at Clovis, so they should hold onto first. South El Monte was second in the first meet and should hold that spot again. The Arroyo boys are still missing team leader Sam Garcia, but recent form should have them holding the top spot over Rosemead. Gabrielino was third the first time around, and they’ll be vulnerable to South El Monte if the Eagles are at full strength.
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