Cross-Country Meets to Be Rerun

The disputed boys’ cross-country meets between Mission Viejo and Dana Hills and between Trabuco Hills and San Clemente will be rerun on orders of the South Coast League principals.

“We have told the athletic directors at each school to rerun the races,” said San Clemente principal Jim Walshe, the league president, Thursday. “The coaches could not agree [on the meets’ outcomes] and there were no impartial officials there to call the shots.”

Both meets are expected to be run Monday, Nov. 4, school officials said. The league finals are Nov. 8.

Mission Viejo Athletic Director Steve Carnes said the controversies were brought up last week at a league athletic directors’ meeting.

Dana Hills Coach Tim Butler said Mission Viejo Coach Gene Gurule congratulated him on his victory after their boys’ meet Oct. 2.

Later that day, Gurule said he looked over the score sheet and determined the points awarded one of two Dana Hills runners disqualified for separate alleged infractions had been included in the Dolphins’ total. Gurule, acting as the meet manager because Mission Viejo was the host school, subtracted the points and awarded his team a 28-29 victory.

Butler, when told of Gurule’s ruling, was shocked.

“You can’t do that,” Butler said. “You can’t go by a kid’s hearsay. There were no marshals on the course to verify [what] happened.”

Said Gurule: “We were the meet managers and have up to 48 hours after the meet to report violations.”

A similar controversy took place Oct. 16 at the Trabuco Hills-San Clemente boys’ meet.

A San Clemente runner allegedly cut the course, but with no officials monitoring the course, each coach came away with a different version of what happened, according to parent and student reports.

San Clemente, the host school, was awarded a disputed 27-30 victory.

Rather than argue about the disqualifications, the league principals ordered the controversies be “settled on the course,” Carnes said.