Jantzen Oshier wins 1,600 meters in Southern Section Division 1 final

They matched each other stride for stride down the final straightaway of the 1,600-meter run.

Junior Ammar Moussa, the Gatorade state cross-country runner of the year from Arcadia High, and junior Jantzen Oshier from Mission Viejo Trabuco Hills engaged in an epic stretch duel Saturday in the Southern Section Division 1 final at Cerritos College.

“It was scary,” Oshier said. “Ammar is really an incredible runner.”

And yet, it was the unsung Oshier outkicking Moussa to win in 4 minutes 12.05 seconds. A year ago, Oshier didn’t even make it out of the prelims. Before that, he gave up running from age 8 to 15.

“I wasn’t having fun,” he said.

Then he returned.

“I figured out why I run,” he said. “I love the atmosphere, a group of people wanting to do this. It really shows commitment.”

And so running 60 miles a week has started to pay off for Oshier, who led the qualifiers for Friday’s Masters Meet.

“Oh my God, I love it now,” he said.

There were notable individual performances. Agoura’s Jonathan Cabral ran 13.58 to win the Division 3 high hurdles, the second-fastest time in the nation.

“I was really good technique wise,” Cabral said. “I didn’t hit any hurdles. It was the cleanest race I’ve run in a couple of years.”

Cabral came back to win the 300 hurdles in 37.59.

Jordan Jamison of Oxnard Rio Mesa won the Division 2 100 in 10.45, the second-fastest time in the state this season. He ran 21.11 to win the 200 and also ran on the Spartans’ 400-meter relay team that recorded the fastest time of 41.18.

In the 400, Josh Mance of Chino Don Lugo and Robert Woods of Gardena Serra each set divisional records in preparation for a looming showdown. Mance won the Division 2 race in 46.32. Woods won Division 4 in 46.99.

“I got to keep working now,” Woods said after watching Mance’s record time. Woods also won the 200 in 21.18.

In the 800, defending state champion Sean Krinik of Placentia Valencia won Division 2 in the record time of 1:49.77, second-fastest in the nation.

In the girls’ 200, Jessica Davis of Palmdale Highland ran a national-best 23.42 to win Division 1. She also won the 100 in 11.82.

In the girls’ 800, seven runners broke 2:15 in the Division 1 race, led by Tiffany LaMar of Paramount, who won in 2:10.14.

Brea Buchanan from Chino Hills Ayla won the girls’ 100 hurdles in 13.82 in Division 2, upsetting Stanford-bound Kori Carter of Claremont. Carter came back to win the 300 hurdles in 41.30, equaling the fastest time in the nation.

eric.sondheimer@latimes.com