Dos Pueblos cross country competed in the Morro Bay Invitational on Saturday, with the girls placing sixth out of 27 teams and the boys team finishing fourth out of the 28-team field.
The typical 3-mile distance was shortened due to course conditions, making it a 2.6-mile race.
The Charger boys were led by sophomore Cullen Gully’s 14th-place finish at 15:03, and he was followed by Dominic Corral (24th, 15:15.2), Oliver Saleh (28th, 15:22), Andy Brennan (30th, 15:26.8) and Finn Wright (38th, 15:42.2).
“Cullen, Oliver, Dominic and Andy pushed their way to the front and battled it out from there,” Dos Pueblos coach David Jackson said. “The 22-second spread from 1-4 is encouraging. They train together like that and race the same way. On any given day, each one could lead that pack across the line.”
The girls, meanwhile, saw sophomore Vienza Machuca take 38th place after finishing in 18:54.4 while Eloise Shea (39th, 18:55.2), Sophie Saleh (42nd, 18:59.5), Cate Bishop (45th, 19:11.2) and Quinn Gleason (61st, 19:52.2) followed.
“Our girls ran a tremendous pack strategy and moved up through the field as they came off the beach,” Jackson said. “With Vienza and Eloise so close together, it seems that the Chargers are primed to stick together as competition heats up next week at Lake Casitas.”
San Luis Obispo High came out on top in terms of team scores on both the girls and boys sides.
Individually, Highland’s Mia Torrecillas crossed the finish line first for the girls with a time of 16:02.4. For the boys, Joshua Bell of Templeton’s mark of 13:22.2 was good for first.
