Fantastic finish for first-year Mustangs

By Phillip Brents

Posted Dec. 21, 2003

The entire San Diego Section – as well as those teams competing at the state championship meet in Fresno -- discovered the power of the freshmen and sophomore runners from Otay Ranch High School during the 2003 cross country season.

The Mustangs earned an historic trip to Woodward Park in the Central Valley in just their first season of existence on the heels, so to speak, of some amazing performances.

Otay Ranch finished second in the boys Division IV San Diego Section championships Nov. 22 at Morley Field to qualify as one of the two teams in the division to advance to the state finals the following week. The Mustangs finished 15 points behind division champion La Jolla Country Day a week after sewing up the South Bay League championship title with an outstanding performance at the Metro Conference championship meet.

Sophomore Ernesto Valdez led the Mustangs throughout post-season competition, starting with a runner-up finish for honors as the South Bay League’s Runner of the Year. Valdez finished second in league competition to four-time league champion Troy Swier of Mar Vista, an amazing runner in his own right who would cap his high school cross country career with a third-place finish in the state finals.

Valdez continued his postseason tour of excellence by leading Otay Ranch at the section championships. He finished sixth out of 85 runners in the division. At the state finals the following week, he placed third among section runners and finished among the top 10 sophomores in the state in the division with his time of 17:31 on the 5K course to officially place 82^nd out of 191 finishers.

Teammate Matt Danielson, who finished 12^th in the division at the section finals, followed Valdez across the finish line at the state meet with a time of 17:38 in 91^st place. He was fourth among section runners.

Ricky Pimentel (148^th, 18:26) finished 11^th among section runners in Fresno while teammate Ryan Matias (151^st, 18:28) was 12^th among section qualifiers. Rounding out the seven Mustangs on the course were Ivan Dallet (181st, 19:58), Matt Westcott (182^nd, 19:58) and Andre Negron (184^th, 20:13)

Otay Ranch finished 21^st out of 24 teams in the division with 512 points. La Jolla Country Day, braced by three seniors and three juniors, placed 20^th with 471 points.

Both Valdez and Danielson finished ahead of the Torreys’ top placer, junior Brian Sedwitz (101^st, 17:43).

"Despite placing 21st of 24 teams, we ran very well," Otay Ranch head coach Ian Cumming said. "Everyone ran very close to their best races of the season which says a lot about the team’s ability to perform well in pressure situations. They are a very special group of young men as are our ladies also."

Cumming said that four of the team’s seven runners completed their best races of the season at the state championships while the other three "were about even with their other best race as
well as one can guesstimate using comparisons to previous years and other runners."

Unfortunately, Jesse Matias, the team’s fifth man, came down with the flu late in the season and did not accompany the team to the state finals. His presence could have made the Mustangs’ finish even more memorable. "As well as our fifth and sixth guys ran, he probably would still have run about one minute faster. That might (have moved) us up one to two spots teamwise at the most, but it would have been rewarding for him," Cumming said.

The Otay Ranch coach lauded his runners’ performances throughout the season.

"I am really happy with the way the team ran at the state meet and throughout the season. Every time we faced a so-called "big meet," they responded well to the pressure. They respond well to challenges. The girls may have felt a little overshadowed by the boys, but in reality to finish second to a strong team like Hilltop and ahead of the other four varsity teams in our league is a very good accomplishment for a group of positive and hard-working ninth and 10th graders.  I enjoyed having the privilege and opportunity to coach both the boys and girls. I have to thank Mr. Jose Brosz, our school principal, and Gene Alim, our athletic director, for having the faith to hire me and allowing me to work with this great group of kids."

There appears to be no stopping this spunky and high-spirited group, as the spring sports track and field season is just around the corner. Cumming said his expectations are high for this new challenge as well.

"Obviously having done well in cross country helps your track team, but there are 16 events in our track and field meets. This means we will need many people to help us be successful in the win column. I am starting to get the feeling that we will be strong in many areas and we will work
to get many student-athletes involved in the team so that we can have the depth and camaraderie necessary to have a successful team," he said.

Cumming went on to caution what may lie ahead, however. "There are some teams in our league with a very rich history of success in track and field. We will work hard to compete with them," he said.

The student body appears to be answering the call if initial numbers are any indicator. The Mustangs drew 58 student-athletes to the initial track and field meeting preseason meeting and Cumming indicated he has since received interest from an additional 10 students.

"I think we will compete well and have several standout athletes. While I think we will win our share of meets, our success will be determined by how close our athletes can get to their potential abilities," Cumming said. "Therefore, the coaching staff will have to do a good job of teaching and helping to motivate the talented and hard working student-athletes we will have."