MIDDLETOWN — Audel Torres of Lower Lake, Francisco Orneleas of Roseland Prep and Ian Bright of Middletown took turns in the lead before Torres pulled away for the win Wednesday afternoon during a Coastal Mountain Conference cross country meet at Adams Springs Golf Course on Cobb Mountain.
It was the first race run on Middletown”s new home course and Torres covered the 2.22 miles in 12 minutes, 32 seconds. Orneleas came in second at 12:42 and Bright was third at 12:49.
“Torres took off at the start,” Middletown coach Eric Olson said. At the 1-mile mark Ian was in the lead and then Orneleas moved in front. They were all up there at one point.”
Torres took control of the race at the 1.5-mile mark and begin to pull away, according to Olson.
Middletown”s top two runners ? Bright and Gerardo Vargas (13:03, fourth place) ? are both freshman, which bodes well for the Mustangs” future.
“He ran great,” Olson said of Bright.
Middletown”s Sam Lomakin came in seventh in 13:44 and teammates Adrian Macedo (14:42) and David King (14:45), placed ninth and 10th, respectively.
Middletown defeated Lower Lake in head-to-head scoring 20-39.
Girls
Madison Provost of Rincon Valley Christian won the girls” race in 14:47, beating out Middletown”s Amber Ramponi by about 30 seconds, according to Olson. Times were not available for other runners because of a timing malfunction.
“There was a pretty good spread between Madison and Amber, and Amber and the third-place runner (Allyson Bricker of Rincon Valley),” Olson said. “It got pretty interesting after that.”
Tori Roderick of Middletown finished sixth and teammate Bri Nelson was seventh.
Middletown runners also placed 10th through 15th (Amanda Martin, Marie Crim, Rose Lynch, Kristina Herrmann, Ashley Thompson and Alana McSween).
Middletown beat Lower Lake, which had an incomplete team (fewer than five runners), in team scoring.
JV boys
Middletown had the only complete team in the JV boys” division and was led by race winner Jake Tangerman in 14:20. Madax McDowell (14:45) and Tanner Kelly (14:48) of Middletown finished second and third, respectively.
“That”s probably one of the best races I”ve ever seen him run,” Olson said of Kelly.
The Mustangs also had the fifth- and sixth-place runners in Cassidy Parker and Joe Olson (no times available).
“We”ve been having a good season,” Olson said of his varsity boys”, girls” and JV boys” squads.
While the weather was warm — 87 degrees at race time — Olson said it was nearly 10 degrees hotter at the Mustangs” old course at Dry Creek Park.
“We enjoy running up here,” he said of the new Adams Springs course. “It”s beautiful and they (Adams Springs staff) are wonderful hosts.”
Middletown hosts another meet at Adams Springs on Oct. 26.
Editor”s note: The Lake County Record-Bee sent a staff photographer to cover the meet, unfortunately no one at Middletown High School informed the newspaper that the Mustangs were running at a new course on Cobb Mountain.
