ANGELS CAMP, CA (MPG) - Liberty Ranch sent 15 runners to the Frog Town Invitational and came home with one team trophy, one breakout performance and a clear pattern. The Hawks were not short on talent at the front of any race, only on the fourth and fifth runners who decide team scores.

The freshman boys were the story. In the two-mile small-school race they scored 60 points for second place, behind St Mary's at twenty but clear of Union Mine at seventy and Hughson at seventy-two. Rocco Caramazza led in 13:57, tenth overall at 6:58 per mile, with Samuel Underwood just nine seconds back in 14:06: the tightest pairing on the roster all day. Zack Pierce made it a credible three in 15:03. Then came the gap: three and a half minutes back to Gavin Arroyo at 18:38, with Abel Foster closing in 21:01, leaving a first-to-fifth spread of 7:04. Trimming ninety seconds from each of the last two scorers would have pushed the team total into the low fifties.

The varsity boys placed fifteenth of sixteen with 329 points, though junior Jordan Gonzalez ran 19:16: 6:25 per mile, the fastest pace any Hawk posted at the meet, beating 130 of 162 runners. Santiago Pargas followed in 20:48 and Matthew Lara in 21:59, a workable top three within 2:43 of each other. Behind them the spread stretched to 9:46. All five varsity runners are juniors and return next season.

The sophomores entered only three runners in a race requiring five, so they could not score, despite Adrian Meza at 15:04 and Gunnar Rohner at 15:22. Emmanuel Carpio ran in 18:03.

On the girls’ side, junior Isabella Westlynn starred, finishing eleventh of 102 in the junior varsity two-mile in 16:40: the best field percentile any Hawk recorded. 

Gaohlee Her finished in 21:48. Liberty Ranch entered no girls in the varsity race.

Four Hawks finished inside the top 21% of their fields. In both races where the team actually scored, the result came down to runners four and five.