Casa runners make history

The Casa Grande High School boys cross country team ran its way into history and knocked off an arch rival in the process in last weekend’s North Coast Section championships at Hayward High School.

The Gaucho boys became the first boys team from Casa ever to win a North Coast Section championship when it beat nemesis Maria Carrillo. The Pumas, who had edged Casa Grande for the North Bay League championship via a sixth-man tie breaker, were third, finishing behind the winning Gauchos (97) and Dublin (117) with 126 team points.

Both Casa Grande and Maria Carrillo advance to the CIF state meet to be held next Saturday in Fresno.

The Casa Grande boys will be joined at the state meet by junior Adria Barich, who ran fifth in 18:43. As a team, the Casa Grande girls were third with 152 points behind winner Redwood (36) and Maria Carrillo (106). Last year, third would have put the Gauchos into the state meet. This year, only the top two teams qualified.

The Casa Grande boys were led by junior Matt Salazar who ran an outstanding race over a treacherous and slippery three-mile course, finishing second to Redwood’s Andy Ehrenberg. The winner was timed in 15:32, while Salazar ran 15:35.

Salazar was followed for the Gauchos by Nicholas Rauch, fifth in 15:56; Zachary Nussdorfer, 13th in 16:24; Adam Harwood, 35th in 16:57; Chad Nathanson, 42nd in 17:04; Max Bechtel, 57th in 17:26 and Zachery Esponda, 72nd in 17:48.

For the Casa girls, running behind Barich were Emma Moon, 21st in 20:08; Ileana Moon, 23rd in 20:10; Saskia VanOmmeren-Egbert, 39th in 20:35; Andrea Gonzalez, 65th in 21:32; Siena Wigert, 71st in 21:51; and Hailey Falk, 81st in 22:21.

The race was particularly important to Gonzalez, who made an amazing comeback from apendicitis surgery just weeks earlier.

“The girls ran well and it was a good end to the season,” said Gaucho coach Carl Triola.

Other Empire runners headed to state are Brian Schulz and Brady Lane from El Molino, Delaney White and Daniel Pride from Santa Rosa; Dante Capone from Analy, Steve Adams from Cardinal Newman, Ana Drake-Trip from Healdsburg, Caleb Richards from Sonoma Academy and Madison Parratt from Petaluma.