FRESNO >> Andre Williams III of Kelseyville is one of 213 runners entered in the Division V boys race today during the CIF State Cross Country Championships at Woodward Park in Fresno. His race is scheduled to start at 9 a.m.
Williams is the first Lake County to appear at the state meet since Lower Lake’s Mike Perez and Middletown’s Julia Malvino competed in 2005. Perez placed fourth in Division IV, the highest finish ever by a Lake County runner.
Williams qualified for the state meet a week ago by securing one of five available at-large berths in the North Coast Section Championships at Hayward High School. He finished eighth overall in the Division V field in 15 minutes, 44.8 seconds, a personal-best time on the 3.1-mile Hayward course. The winner of that race, Cooper Teare of St. Joseph Notre Dame High School of Alameda, is the favorite to bring home the state title today. Teare won in 14 minutes, 47.2 seconds, well ahead of runner-up Brian Schulz of El Molino High School (Forestville) in 15:15.8. Schulz is also among today’s state favorites. Teare also will be looking to smash the Division V meet record of Marin Academy’s Trevor Reinhart, who completed the 5-kilometer Woodward Park course in 14:59 in 2014.
The top 10 runners in each division receive medals.
Prior to placing eighth at the NCS Championships last weekend, Williams won the Coastal Mountain Conference Championships earlier this month at Cache Creek Winery in Clearlake Oaks.
Only a sophomore, Williams is the youngest Lake County runner ever to reach the state finals. He burst upon the Lake County running scene as a freshman, winning a handful of dual meets for the Knights and leading them to a North Central League I team championship. He placed 23rd in the NCS Championships that followed while competing in Division IV.
A total of 10 races will be held today in Fresno, one in each boys and girls division (I-V). Rain is in the forecast. According to the Weather Channel, the chance of precipitation is 100 percent.
