The reactions were different from the winners of the first Channel League cross country meet Wednesday at Dos Pueblos High.
Addi Zerrenner won the Channel League cross country meet at Dos Pueblos for the third straight year.
For DP senior Addi Zerrenner, it was a bittersweet moment. She was happy to win the varsity girls race for the third straight year, but also a little sad knowing it was her last cross country meet on the school course.
Varsity boys winner Cole Smith, meanwhile, was ecstatic to finish in first place on the newly dedicated Len Miller course. After running behind Charger standout Bryan Fernandez for the last two? years, Wednesday marked his first victory in a cross country meet.
The victories by Smith and Zerrenner sparked the Chargers to a sweep. The DP boys won with 25 points, beating out Ventura (59). San Marcos took third with 65 points followed by Buena (86) and Santa Barbara (130).
The Dos Pueblos girls took top honors with 23 points, followed by Ventura (49), San Marcos (78), Buena (91) and Santa Barbara (120).
Zerrenner pulled away from a couple of freshman to complete an unbeaten career at DP. Her winning time was 17:56.28.
?I told myself I wasn?t go out hard,? but once I was circling around here I just had to lead it because that was always my favorite part, the first loop around the track,? Zerrenner said. ?It was like the most bittersweet feeling. It was awesome, but knowing it was the last time it was kind of hard.?
Coach Leslie Wiggins Roth was happy to see Zerrenner in the front of the pack.
?She took some time off and we really weren?t sure what to expect today, but obviously she?s the same ?ol Addi,? Roth said. ?You put her in a race and she just goes.?
Santa Barbara?s Ruth Hunter took second in 17:59.43, and DP?s Natalie McClure came in third in 18:14.82. Adilene Aldapa of San Marcos finished fourth (18:16.15) and DP?s Christina Rice, another freshman, was fifth (18:30.17).
?I feel like an old geezer,? Zerrenner laughed when told about the challenge from the freshmen. ?Someone told me, ?You still got it,? and I?m like, ?I?m not that old. I?m 17.? But it?s awesome. I want to see my records go down after I leave here.?
Hunter was a pleasant surprise for the Dons and coach Olivia Perdices.
?We talked yesterday and I told her not to be afraid to run with that first group because that?s where she belonged,? Perdices said. ?She went out with that front group and she did exactly what we wanted her to do, and kids kept dropping off and dropping off. And, with a half mile to go, it was just her and Addi. That?s pretty cool; that?s a freshman kid up there and holding her own against the kid who has been dominating this league for the last three years. She did a great job.?
Hunter was so focused on her first race that she didn?t realize the runner in front of her was Zerrenner, a three-time league champion.
?I didn?t think that was Addi because I thought Addi would be way far ahead of me,? Hunter said. ?I must not be able to see her and that?s some girl who is in second. Then, I heard people cheering for her. ?Oh, that must be Addi. Wow.? I didn?t expect to be that close to her.?
Smith ran 15:10.78 to edge out teammate and running partner Andrew McGuan (15:11.39) in the boys 3-mile race. Ventura?s Garrett Reynolds (15:14.80) and Evan Askar (15:30.85) were third and fourth, and DP?s Christian Wasjutin (15:34.11) and John Greening (15:34.39) placed fifth and sixth, respectively. San Marcos? top finishers were Nicholas Swider in eighth place (15:40.14) and Ryan Sorenson in ninth (15:50.11).? Bradley Apodaca was 18th (16:17.71).
Smith was a happy camper after the race.
?It?s a check off the checklist of what I always want to do,? he said. ?I never won a cross country race in my entire life. In high school, I never won one; we had the infamous Bryan Fernandez on our team and we all know he was such a stud.?
Fernandez won a CIF State title last year and received a scholarship to Oregon.
?It?s great that the seniors, including myself, get to come out and say, ?Ok, we?re not just Bryan Fernandez. We?re Dos Pueblos, we?re a team,? said Smith.
McGuan, another, gave Smith some good competition all the way to the finish.
?He?s been my training partner since sophomore year,? Smith said of McGuan. ?Every workout I do, every mile I put in, Andrew is there with me. So it?s great knowing it?s not just me getting the benefit, it?s Andrew, too.?
