State Cross-Country Championships : Dana Hills Boys, Corona del Mar Boys and Newport Harbor Girls Run to Victories

How many ways did Orange County cross-country teams win big Saturday at the State Cross-Country Championships at Woodward Park?

As many ways as were possible. County teams took home titles in each of the three divisions they entered.

The winners:

* The Dana Hills boys’ team, the surprise of the state this season, won the Division I (large schools) championship just one week after upsetting the field to take its second consecutive Southern Section title.

* The Corona del Mar boys’ team, which had never won a title bigger than a county championship, finally put it all together to win the Division II (medium schools) title.

* The Newport Harbor girls’ team, top-ranked in the state all season, met everyone’s high expectations and won its second consecutive Division II title.

Individually, Santa Ana Valley’s Jimmy Rodriguez and Edison’s Shelley Taylor came away as the county’s leaders.

Rodriguez recorded the fastest time for Orange County boys and the third-fastest time overall with a 15-minute 5-second clocking on the rolling 5,000-meter course. Rodriguez placed third in Division I.

Taylor, a freshman with less than 6 months running experience, finished eighth in Division I in 18:37, the fastest time among county girls.

For Dana Hills, the victory was one to savor. Last year, the Dolphins finished a distant second to a very talented squad from El Monte Arroyo. Saturday, Dana Hills, ranked only fifth, staved off challenges to win with 91 points, besting second-place Rowland (124 points), third-place San Diego Poway (128) and top-ranked Camarillo (141), which finished a disappointing fourth.

“This was a dream for us. This is like winning a Super Bowl for a cross-country team,” Dana Hills Coach Tim Butler said. “This is what the kids have been thinking about ever since we left here last year. We weren’t taking runner-up again for anything.”

Mike Tansley led Dana Hills, placing fifth overall in 15:21. He was followed by Steve Niednagel (16th, 15:42); Andrew Tansley (17th, 15:42); Daniel Niednagel (25th, 15:54) and sophomore Brendon Sullivan (89th, 16:42).

The race for the Division I individual championship came down to four runners--Rodriguez, Agoura’s Bryan Dameworth, Thousand Oaks’ Mike Williamson and San Pasqual’s Francis O’Neill--with less than 400 yards to go. Dameworth, the defending state champion, stayed back until the final 100 meters, where he outkicked the leaders to win in 15:03, the fastest time of the day and a 9-second improvement from last year.

Rodriguez, who passed the mile mark in 30th place--about 6 seconds behind the leaders--caught the lead pack with about a mile to go.

“With 600 meters to go, I said, ‘I’ve got a chance to win this race,’ ” Rodriguez said. “Maybe I shouldn’t have been thinking ahead. Still, I’m very happy. I know I did my best.”

The Corona del Mar boys responded to their victory with a sense of relief. The Sea Kings had spent much of the last 2 years gracing the top of the state and Southern Section polls only to finish the final meets as also-rans. But Saturday, they outran Sacramento Jesuit by an 8-point margin, 72-80. Walnut was third with 99 points.

“Do I feel good? I feel real good,” said Bill Sumner, Corona del Mar’s fifth-year coach.

Eddie Lavelle, who outkicked three finishers to place third in 15:24, led Corona del Mar, the state’s top-ranked team. Behind Lavelle, Greg Shryock held on for 15th place (15:59); Chris Cannon, with his season’s best race, was 25th (16:13); Paul Scott was 28th (16:15) and Hunter Pierce was 48th (16:37).

Laguna Hills, which lost one of its top runners, Tony Gibney, to a knee injury last week, placed 10th with all its top five runners recording personal bests. Steve Frisone, who led the race until the 2-mile mark, was the Hawks’ top finisher, placing sixth in 15:39. Whittier Christian’s Tony Bergman was 19th in 16:02.

For Newport Harbor, a second consecutive state title came fairly easily as the Sailors won the Division II title with 75 points, outdistancing runner-up Yucaipa by 37 points. Foothill, led by freshman Laura Amrofell (11th, 19:13), was sixth with 191.

Stacy Pando (ninth in 19:03), led the Sailors, followed by Lena Dahbour (19th, 19:36); Eva Matson (27th, 19:46); Kim Robinson (33rd, 19:51) and Sandra Ruffini (40th, 20:04).

“They saved their best race of the year for last,” Newport Harbor Coach Bob Van Sickle said.

Edison’s Taylor, running in the Division I girls’ race, concluded a very successful freshman season. By placing eighth, Taylor held off her county rival, freshman Tanja Brix of University, who finished 10th in 18:37.

“I felt really good, and I wanted it really bad,” Taylor said. “I’ve been going over this state meet in my head over and over and over, and it turned out just like I imagined it would be.”