Two section team champs, two individual winners at CCS XC

Saul knew the Crystal Springs course as well as anyone and led a team workout there days before the originally scheduled meet was to take place last Saturday.

As it turned out, Saul's strategy worked just as well at Toro Park, as he took off from the lead pack in the final half-mile and won the boys Division I title with the fastest time of the day regardless of division, a smoldering 15:27.2, 13 seconds ahead of Bellarmine's Colin Peattie, whom he considered his main rival.

"It was a good race up front," Palo Alto coach Michael Davidson said. "Colin and (Owen) MacKenzie ran strong and Henry stayed on their hip. Over the last half-mile Henry was in control and running smoothly."

Despite the difficulty of training indoors the past two weeks, Paly managed to run a smart race up and down the lineup.

"It was a little closer than I hoped," Davidson said. "I'm hopeful the rain comes in a little earlier than expected or the winds kick up so we can get in a good workout before state."

Davidson also praised Donald Taggart, Paly's No. 2 runner who finished ninth in 16:26.1.

"He's been good all season. With Henry out early, he carried us a lot. I was proud of how he competed," Davidson said. "He was ready. He's been a steady force for us. Having him as a strong No. 2 has been helpful for the whole team."

Other scorers for the Vikings were Alex Evans in 20th (16:51.8), Benjamin Huang in 47th (17:21.1) and John Tayeri in 50th (17:27.7).

Menlo-Atherton's Ethan Mimeles was 14th in 16:42.3 to earn a trip to the state meet.

The Bells won the team title and Los Altos finished second but Palo Alto captured third place and a berth in the state meet to be run in Fresno's Woodard Park next Saturday.

The Vikings will have some company as both Menlo School, in girls Division IV, and Castilleja, in girls Division V, each won team titles.

In addition, Castilleja junior Tevah Gevelber won the individual title in 19:07.8, nearly 40 seconds ahead of the field. She also had three teammates finish among the top 11: Abigail Krenz placed third in 19:58.0, Lauren Traum was 10th in 20:53.5 and Angie Wang finished 11th in 20:56.9. Riona Yoshida was 20th in 22:08.0.

Menlo School had all seven of its runners finish among the top 33, led by juniors Charlotte Tomkinson in sixth (19:16.1) and Kyra Pretre in seventh (19:25.9).

Marisa Castagna was 10th for the Knights, who won the school's first CCS girls' cross country title, in 20:45.2, Sophia Gallo ran 21st in 20:49.9 and Stella El-Fishawy was 27th in 21:18.3.

Woodside resident Anna Mokkapati, who competes for The King's Academy, won the race in 18:34.7, earning her a trip to the state meet as an individual.

Sacred Heart Prep placed fourth in Division IV, with Luci Lambert (20:38.8), Keemya Bashiri (20:41.3) and Caitlyn Perkocha (20:43.2) finishing 15-16-18.

Also in Division V girls, Priory's Eszter Horvath ran 14th in 21:27.9 to qualify for the state meet as an individual. Alondra Zamora, who was 18th in 21:57.5, led Eastside Prep.

In boys Division V, Eastside Prep was fifth as a team, followed by Priory in sixth. Both schools will send a runner to the state meet. Eastside's Carlos Anye Nunez placed sixth overall in 17:28.3 and Priory's Jason Sadler was 13th in 17:59.3. Priory's Ronan Byrne was 15th in 18:13.3.

In Division IV boys, Sacred Heart Prep was fourth as a team and will send a pair of runners to Fresno. Max Cluss was fourth overall in 16:25.4 and Calvin Katz placed ninth in 16:38.4. Axel Vernou was 17th in 16:56.5.

Menlo's Kamran Murray was 11th with a time of 16:43.5.

The Woodside girls placed sixth in Division II and Sarah Perry raced fourth overall in 19:19.8 and will compete at the state meet. Virginia Pistilli was 10th in 19:51.0 and Elle Marsyla ran 16th in 20:10.4.

In girls Division I, Palo Alto placed fifth and Menlo-Atherton was sixth. M-A senior Sara Osterberg was 10th overall in 19:34.7, earning a spot in the state meet. Paly's Ella Ball was 11th in 19:37.0. Hailey Hwang was 19th in 19:59.1 for the Vikings.

"They put their heart and soul into the season," Davidson said. "Overall I am proud of what they accomplished."

Gunn's top runner was Maansay Rishi, who ran 20:24.2.

In Division II boys, Woodside was eighth and Gunn was 10th. Casey Orton (16:34.2) was 11th and Nathan Bowman (16:54.1) was 17th for the Wildcats. Justin Chiao went an even 18 minutes to pace the Titans.