Sutton Loses Her First Race of the Season but Still Qualifies for Kinney Nationals

For the first time this season, Melissa Sutton failed to win a race Saturday. Still, the Newbury Park High senior qualified for next week’s national meet by placing second in Saturday’s Kinney Western Regional cross-country meet at Woodward Park in Fresno.

Sutton ran the three-mile course in 17:23, two seconds behind winner Katy McCandless of Palo Alto. Both advance to Saturday’s national meet at Balboa Park in San Diego.

Christy Farrell of Thousand Oaks was 12th at 18:12, Jena Haggenmiller also of Thousand Oaks was 18th at 18:20, and Heather Scobie of Saugus was 21st at 18:22.

In the boys race, Agoura freshman Bryan Dameworth was eighth at 15:18 and qualified for nationals.

Marc Davis of San Diego set a course record in winning the boys race. His time of 14:38.2 eclipsed by eight-tenths of a second the record set by Eric Reynolds of Camarillo in 1982.

In Woodland Hills, meanwhile, the City cross-country preliminaries scheduled for Saturday at Pierce College were postponed because of rain. City officials will meet Monday to reschedule.