La Cañada High runners, Spartans girls’ team capture league titles
SAN MARINO — With the temperature close to 90 degrees, the heat might have been uncomfortable for some of the runners in Thursday’s Rio Hondo League finals at Lacy Park in San Marino.
However, for La Cañada High’s top athletes, they hoped to use the high temperature to their advantage, going out hard in races in hopes of wearing out and frustrating their opponents.
The Spartans used the strategy to their advantage, as La Cañada athletes captured individual league championships and the girls’ squad also won the team title.
The La Cañada boys’ team placed third, as both Spartans teams qualified for the CIF Southern Section preliminaries Nov. 15.
Winning a league championship this season was an impressive accomplishment for the girls’ squad, taking into consideration it lost All-Area Girls’ Runner of the Year Anna Frederich, who placed seventh in the state in 2013, to graduation. The squad also has three freshmen.
“With this being my first year, I came in thinking this was going to be a rebuilding year for us,” said Spartans girls’ Coach Jennifer Loya, whose program has won three league titles in four years. “But we have some outstanding freshmen and they have really improved and come through for us this season.”
La Cañada was first with 29 points, followed by San Marino (39) and South Pasadena (54). The Spartans were able to place their top four runners among the top eight finishers.
The premier freshman talent is Katherine Scoville, who won the girls’ race on the three-mile course in 18 minutes 58.37 seconds. Teammate Colleen Mispagel was second in 19:21.81 and was followed by scorers Kallie Rushing (fifth, 20:08.06), Jenny Callan (eighth, 20:33.85) and Eleanor Marki (13th, 21:24.38).
In the race, Scoville and Mispagel went out at a scorching pace, coming across the first mile in 5:45. The pair held a three-second lead after the first mile. Scoville started to pull away from her teammate slightly by the second mile and kept up the effort over the final mile.
“Colleen and I just went out fast because we really wanted to go 1-2,” Scoville said. “We wanted to go out hard, but maybe we should have gone out a little less hard, but it did pay off for us.”
On the boys’ side, San Marino won the league championship with 35 points. South Pasadena was second (48) and the Spartans were third (49).
A fast pace was also set in the boys’ race by Angold, who came across the finish line in 16:17.11. The senior definitely had a strategy in taking it out so fast.
“From the very beginning I wanted to be setting the pace for the race,” said Angold, who finished fourth in league at the 2013 finals. “It was a hot day and it wasn’t going to be easy for anybody to come back on me in this kind of heat. So, I wanted to get that lead so they wouldn’t be able to come back. I guess it worked.”
Angold was followed by teammates Seve Rodriguez (seventh, 17:11.42), Ethan Crane (ninth, 17:28.24), Ryan Van Slooten (12th, 17:42.34) and Josh Frederich (20th; 18:0.96).
“We are just happy to be going to CIF,” said Spartans Coach Nick LaCapria. “That was our goal all season and they were able to accomplish that.”