GIRLS’ CROSS-COUNTRY PREVIEW : Return to Division I Sets Stage for Agoura-Palos Verdes Battle

The Agoura High girls are back in Division I, right where they want to be.

After a brief step down to Division II, the Chargers will run in big-time cross-country again this fall.

A recent playoff realignment for the state and Southern Section championships bumped the Chargers down to Division II after they had demonstrated their ability to compete at a higher level by finishing second in the state Division I meet the past three years.

But Agoura did not suffer the demotion long enough to run in a single Division II meet.

Coach Bill Duley petitioned the Southern Section office Sept. 12 and the school was granted placement in Division I.

There is a catch, however.

Palos Verdes also has made the jump to Division I. The Sea Kings have been the proverbial thorn in Agoura’s side since 1987.

Three times Palos Verdes has won the state Division I title, and three times Agoura has finished second.

And if form continues to prevail, Agoura (1,900 students) and Palos Verdes (1,333) will meet for the state championship Nov. 24 in Fresno. Agoura is ranked No. 1 and Palos Verdes No. 2 in the Division I poll.

“It would have been good if we won (state) Division II, but we wouldn’t have felt like we accomplished anything,” said Tiffany York, Agoura’s No. 2 runner.

Last year Palos Verdes petitioned to compete at the Division I level at the state meet despite having fewer than 1,600 students, the minimum required for Division I status under the old system.

“I welcome (petitioning) because you’re not really a champion unless you run against the best schools,” Duley said.

The decision to request placement in Division I was a team effort.

“Everyone on the team wanted to move up,” said Deena Drossin, Agoura’s No. 1 runner. “If one person didn’t want to we wouldn’t have gone up.”

At the Woodbridge Invitational last Saturday, the Chargers handed Palos Verdes its first loss in three years, 61-62, but Duley is not resting on his laurels just yet.

“I don’t think beating them by one point is an indicator,” he said.

Neither do his runners. The Chargers intend to make up for three years of torment by Palos Verdes.

“All the girls are working a little bit harder now because we want to prove ourselves again,” said Drossin, who added that winning the team title has taken priority over individual honors. “I would get more satisfaction seeing the whole team do well.”

Drossin won the state Division I title in 1987 and 1989, and York, who has shadowed Drossin for three years, is a No. 2 runner with No. 1-runner credentials. In 1989, York finished fifth in the 2-A final and 12th in the state meet.

Agoura graduated its No. 4 runner in Cheyenne Zontelli but with improvement of the current third, fourth and fifth runners, this year’s Charger squad could be the best ever, according to Duley.

“Laura Hayward, Skye Colclough and Kristy Camp have improved so much that they’ve moved up to where Cheyenne was,” Duley said.

Sophomore Tiffany Burd and freshman Melissa Fox are likely candidates for the sixth and seventh positions.

Other teams to watch:

* Buena: The Bulldogs scored a perfect 15 points in the Channel League final last year and four of their top five runners return. Buena has won the past seven league championships.

Senior Fanya Bryant has recovered from a stress fracture that ended her junior track campaign and will lead the Bulldogs, the 4-A runner-up a year ago.

Junior Megan Ellis, senior Karen Hinkle and sophomore Jessica Gibbs make up Buena’s four-runner nucleus.

* Channel Islands: The Raiders’ two-year dominance of the Marmonte League will be strongly contested this fall, especially since their Nos. 2 and 5 runners will not compete.

Blanca Ahumada left the team for personal reasons and Judy Hollers chose not to run, first-year Coach Ken Martinez said.

However, Channel Islands has a strong nucleus in senior Yung Chong and juniors Valerie Aceves and Veronica Barajas. The three were the Nos. 1, 3 and 4 runners on last year’s team, which placed fourth in the 4-A final.

* Nordhoff: Last year marked the first time in the ‘80s that the Rangers qualified for the Southern Section final, but expectations are higher this fall with six returning letter winners.

Dascha Spellman finished eighth in the state Division II meet last year in leading Nordhoff to a fourth-place effort. With Alice Atkinson headed to Humboldt State, Jennifer Kimpton moves to the No. 2 position.

The Rangers are also strong in the Nos. 3 and 4 positions. Sophomores Sarah Kunde and Karen Debord have performed well in early meets.

* Quartz Hill: Only one runner graduated from last year’s team, which won its second consecutive Golden League championship, but two sophomores also will not return. Heather Lewis opted to play volleyball and Christen Gardner moved.

Eighth-year Coach Kelly Wells-Marsh, however, has a solid trio in seniors Helen Holbrook and Arlene Ward and junior Teresa Santana.

* Westlake: Individually, Westlake senior Jeannie Rothman will contend with Agoura’s Drossin, the defending state champion, but the anticipated postseason races between Rothman and Drossin might have to wait until the Kinney West regional meet because Westlake and Agoura compete in different Southern Section and state championship brackets.

The Warriors, last year’s Marmonte League runner-up, welcome back No. 3 runner Kerry McCloskey, a sophomore, and senior Diana Soltero. Additions to the roster include junior Jessica Graham, a middle-distance specialist in track, and junior Karen Yeroki, a Swedish exchange student.

INDIVIDUALS TO WATCH Maribella Aparicio, Fillmore: Aparicio, a sophomore, won the Southern Section 1-A Division title last year and finished seventh in the state Division II championships. She led the Flashes, now a Frontier League member, to the Tri-Valley League title in 1989.

Stacy Auer, Thousand Oaks: Auer, one of the stronger distance runners in the area, missed qualifying for the 1989 Southern Section preliminaries as a freshman because she placed fourth in the highly competitive Marmonte League. Auer opened her sophomore season with a 13-second win over Aparicio in the Seaside Invitational.

Robin Heidt, Canyon: The Golden League champion last year as a sophomore missed qualifying for the 4-A final by one place. Heidt will lead a strong Canyon team in its quest to end Quartz Hill’s two-year league dominance.

Katie Meyer, Camarillo: Meyer was 10th in the 4-A final as a junior and ran 11 minutes 33.05 seconds in the 3,200 in track last spring. She won the Marmonte League title as a sophomore and was third last year but will have to contend with Drossin, Rothman, Auer and York to advance to the Southern Section preliminaries Nov. 10.

Nikki Shaw, Fillmore: Shaw, one of the top returning 800- and 1,600-meter runners in the state, missed the season opener because of a strained right knee but is expected to compete beginning this week.