Agoura’s Dameworth Places 4th in National Cross-Country Meet

Bryan Dameworth of Agoura High failed to achieve his goal Saturday at the Kinney national cross-country championships at Morley Field. His performance was a roaring success nonetheless.

Trying to become the first junior in the 10-year history of the meet to win the boys’ title, Dameworth clocked 15 minutes, 15.4 seconds over the 5,000-meter course to place fourth.

“I definitely wanted to win this meet,” Dameworth said. “But you always have doubts that haunt you beforehand. I think I ran a good race. . . . I’m capable of running better, but I’m not disappointed at all.”

Brian Grosso of Western High in Walled Lake, Mich., surged past Jason DiJoseph of Pope Paul VI School in Haddonfield, N.J., with 1,000 meters left to win the title going away.

Grosso, who placed third in the Midwest regional 2 weeks ago, was timed in 15:03.3. DiJoseph, the Northeast regional champion, clocked 15:10.1.

Michael Mykytok of Bound Brook High in New Jersey placed third in 15:12.7.

Paced by DiJoseph and Mykytok, the Northeast region won the team title with 25 points; Dameworth led the West to a runner-up total of 43. The Midwest (92) and South (95) rounded out the scoring.

Mike Williamson of Thousand Oaks, second to Dameworth in the state Division I championships 2 weeks ago, placed 16th in 15:33.3, missing All-American honors by 1.6 seconds. The top 15 finishers in the boys’ and girls’ races were named high school All-Americans.

Agoura sophomore Deena Drossin just missed earning All-American honors for the second consecutive year in the girls’ race. Drossin, who finished 11th in 1987, placed 17th Saturday, clocking 18:16 over the 5,000-meter course.

Celeste Susnis of Kankakee Valley High in Wheatfield, Ind., the Midwest regional champion, won the girls’ title in 17:14.4.

Led by Susnis, the Midwest captured the team title, scoring 27 points, ahead of the West (55), Northeast (58) and South (83).

DiJoseph entered the Kinney meet as the only undefeated runner in the field. His tactics, however, proved risky in a race with so many evenly matched athletes.

After sharing the lead with Teddy Mitchell of Lyman High in Longwood, Fla., at the mile mark (4:30), DiJoseph surged up the only steep hill on the 2-loop course, quickly opening a 30-yard lead on Mykytok and a fading Mitchell.

The move surprised Dameworth, who was in 11th place, 4 seconds behind the leaders at the mile.

“I knew what he was trying to do,” Dameworth said. “But I didn’t think he could hold that pace. I thought he’d come back to us.”

Dameworth was partially correct as the leader did slow, but only Grosso could take advantage of DiJoseph’s spirited attempt to break the race open in the early going.

“I just didn’t feel that comfortable,” said Dameworth, who planned to make a surge at the 2-mile mark but found instead that he was unable to shift into the required gear when the time came. “The crispness wasn’t there. I wasn’t that sharp when I needed to be.”