SEA VIEW LEAGUE MEET : Price Helps Saddleback Race Past Corona del Mar to Take Boys’ Title

The last time Saddleback High School’s Robby Price attempted to run three races in one track meet, he ended up with a stress facture in his foot and a painful lesson. Because of his efforts in a dual meet last year, Price had to spend the rest of his junior track season watching from the stands.

Friday, at the Sea View League championships at Rancho Santiago College, Price tried another triple. This time, though, he came away healthy and with three first-place finishes.

Price won the 3,200, the 800 and the 1,600--with times of 9 minutes 48.3 seconds, 1:59.5 and 4:27.4, respectively--to help lead Saddleback to the boys’ team title.

The Roadrunners, who entered the meet with a 5-0 league record, won their first Sea View League title with 143 1/2 points. Three-time defending league champion Corona del Mar was second with 90 1/2.

“We haven’t won a league title in nine years,” said Saddleback Coach Jim Knapp, who in his 20 years at Saddleback has competed in several leagues. “We’ve just done well across the line--in the field events, the sprints, and our distance runners have been good since September.”

Price led the way from the start Friday. In the 3,200, the race in which Price said he will concentrate on in the Southern Section preliminaries next week, Price led a Saddleback sweep, and ran in the 800 and 1,600 in order to ensure his team the title.

“We needed the points for the team,” said Price, a senior with a 4.8 grade-point average. “I hadn’t planned on running the (800), but I knew we needed it.”

In the girls’ competition, Corona del Mar won the team title with 137 points, edging Newport Harbor, second with 126. Coming into the meet, Corona del Mar, Newport Harbor and University were in a three-way tie for first, but the Sea Kings managed plenty of fine performances from their regular contributors and a few pleasant surprises.

Corona del Mar received only two victories--Jill Young won the 400 (58.4) and the 300 hurdles (44.5)--but had the needed depth.

“We didn’t have any catastrophes, and there were some nice surprises,” Corona del Mar Coach Tom Cheese said. “I figured it would be between us and Newport. I thought we’d win by between five and 20 points.”

In the boys’ sprints, Corona del Mar’s Mark Barnum defended his league titles in the 100- and 400-meter dashes. But after review of the meet videotape, Barnum will have to share the 100-meter title with Saddleback’s Jarrett Murrell, who tied Barnum with a time of 10.7.

Murrell, a sophomore, and Barnum, a senior, also were given the same time in the 200--22.5--but Murrell was declared the winner.

University’s Carolyn Griffin won the 100 (12.5) and 200 (26.2), and teammate Tanja Brix won the 3,200 (11:25.6) and the 1,600 (5:13.6). Tustin’s Marceia Fogg won both the girls’ long jump (16-10) and the triple jump (36-1), as did Estancia’s Mike Aulet (22-0 1/4 and 44-1) in the boys’ competition.

Estancia’s Christie Howard bettered the school record in the high jump by two inches to win at 5 feet 6 inches.