Murray, Shulze set the pace at Coastal Canyon League cross country championships
Ventura County Star
There are long striders and then there are long kickers. Cross country ace Keith Murray of Moorpark High has a lengthy kick that can chew up courses and finish out races.
"I don't want to start out too fast and be in front right away," says the Musketeers junior. "I like to be a little farther back and then use my longer kick. I think I can make up ground gradually because I don't have to rely on a short kick at the end."
Works like a charm.
Murray won his first individual Coastal Canyon League championship, holding off Agoura's Ryan Koepnick and Simi Valley's Joshua Moncada in the process, by covering the Mission Oaks Park course in 15 minutes, 55.2 seconds Thursday afternoon.
Koepnick was second in 16:00.7 and Moncada was third in 16:06.7.
It marked continued progress for Murray, who ended up sixth in the league championships as a sophomore. This season, he placed second in the first league meet, then notched back-to-back first-place finishes.
"It feels pretty good," said Murray. "I'd like to keep it going in CIF-SS and hopefully make it to state. If I can finish in the top 10-15 at CIF, I'll be happy."
The girls race also produced a first-time individual championship by a star runner.
Sarah Shulze of Oak Park blitzed the course in 17:56.9, finishing over 20 seconds ahead of second-place Jill Walker of Simi Valley.
"I felt strong throughout the race," said the Eagles senior, who also excels in track and field. "I'm usually better on flat courses, but this one is just right. It's a little hilly and I felt good running on it today."
She set the pace from the beginning, and never was threatened.
"I like to run from front," she said. "I want to be hard to catch."
In the girls team competition, Moorpark placed three runners in the top eight and five in the top 15 to finish as league champion.
The Musketeers' Nevaeh Walla was third in 19:14.5 and teammate Kelly Wade was fifth in 19:35.2.
Moorpark, Simi Valley and Camarillo go 1-2-3 and all earn automatic berths into the CIF-SS postseason competition next week. At-large berths are also available.
In the boys race, Simi Valley had four runners in the top 10 and five in the top 15 to finish as league champion. Camarillo and Agoura finish second and third, respectively, and earn automatic team spots in postseason.
Simi Valley's Walker, just a sophomore, is the latest phenom for a girls program that has produced some of the county's top runners. She was satisfied and motivated after placing second in the finals at 18:19.9.
"I wanted to be closer to Sarah, but I'm still happy," she said. "I saw her fast start and I knew I still had to pace myself and run my race. I'll be back next year."
She's aware of the Pioneers' cross country tradition.
"It motivates me to try to do my best every race," she said. "There have been some great runners in this program. I hope I can make my mark."
In the boys race, Agoura junior Koepnick was used to running on his home course in the league finals. Every Charger is.
Until this season, Agoura has been a member of the Marmonte League and always hosted the league championship.
"I'd rather be running on my home course, but this is a pretty good course, too," he said. "There's good competition in this league, and this was a fun race. I like to run in the third, fourth and fifth spots and then make my move in the final mile.
"It worked out for me today."
Rounding out the top 10 in the boys race are: 4. Mark Pizza of Camarillo (16:12.4); 5. Sebastian Sawyer of Oak Park (16:12.7); 6. Seth Meline of Camarillo (16:15.8); 7. Ian Gerth of Simi Valley (16:20.3); 8. Nicholas Williams of Simi Valley (16:24.6); 9. Bryan Gasser of Agoura (16.26.8); 10. Alejandro Diaz of Simi Valley (16:26.9).
The top 10 among the girls also featured: 4. Gianna Gonzales of Simi Valley (19.28.1); 5. Wade; 6. Isabelle Tamaddon of Oak Park (16:39.5); 7. Georgia McCorkle of Agoura (19:51.1); 8. Bridget Edwards of Moorpark (20:14.9); 9. Makenna Smollen of Simi Valley (20:27.3); 10. Annie West of Camarillo (20:30.3).