Aztecs dominate DSL

VICTORVILLE • Jzsanette Lindstrom finished off her last Desert Sky League finals the same way she did her first one.

The Granite Hills senior won the girls individual championship on Wednesday, leading the Cougars girls to their first league title in school history.

“I wanted my league title back,” said Lindstrom, who finished the Victor Valley College course in a time of 18 minutes, 41 seconds to claim her first title since her freshman season. “So I’m really happy.”

The Cougars ended Silverado’s two-year rein as league champion, beating the Hawks 29-46. Granite Hills had six of the top 10 finishers, and Lindstrom was the only senior in the Cougars’ top five.

Even more impressive was the performance put on by the Barstow boys. The Aztecs — all seniors — swept the first five spots to score a perfect 15 points. Isaac Chavez led the way with a time of 15:19, the fastest Barstow time ever on the course.

As a whole, Barstow had seven of the top eight finishers, with the sixth spot going to Burroughs’ Caleb Rosales. The Aztecs have won every DSL finals dating back to 2000.

Chavez improved from his third-place finish two years ago and his second place last year. But he turned the focus to the team’s performance.

“It feels good seeing our team go one-through-five,” Chavez said.

Andrew Romano (15:29) came in second and challenged Chavez for much of the race. He was followed by teammates Ian Barba, Joshua Gomez and Jeremy Trujillo to complete the sweep. Galen Miller and A.J. Kanczel finished seventh and eighth, respectively.

“What I’m most excited about this was Trujillo, Galen and Kanczel,” Barstow coach Jim Duarte said. “That was the most impressive to me today.

We have a couple of strong teams in this league — Granite Hills and Burroughs — and they were able to match up well against those kids.”

The Cougars finished second in the boys race, led by Cody Jordan’s ninth-place finish, and Burroughs came in third. Granite’s top five took spots nine through 13.

In between her two DSL titles, Lindstrom went through bouts with shin splints and knee problems, but now she says she is fully healthy and it has shown this season.

Early in the race, she was challenged by Silverado’s Sara Taylor (who took second) and Burroughs’ Jennifer Speer and Jenny Durtschi. But once they reached the hills, Lindstrom took off.

“I took the hills really hard,” Lindstrom said. “I’ve been training a lot on hills for a long time, so I know how to run the hills. And I knew how to get up there.”

Coach Jim McManus said a change in training program from a volume workout to one that concentrated more on intensity has helped the Cougars.

After the Cougars girls made history by winning their first league title, they look for another first at the CIF-Southern Section preliminaries — advancing.

In order to do that on Nov. 15, Granite Hills will have to finish in the top four in one of four Division II heats.

“It’s the first time taking the league and right now I see being on the cusp of being able to make it to (CIF) finals,” McManus said. “It will just depend on how well they prepare for the next week and a half for prelims.”

Burroughs was the third girls team to advance to the CIF prelims.

BOYS
Team Results
1. Barstow 15; 2. Granite Hills 55; 3. Burroughs 74; 4. Silverado 117; 5. Victor Valley 140.
Individual Top 15 (Top 9 earn All-DSL honors)
1. Isaac Chavez, Ba., 15:19; 2. Andrew Romano, Ba., 15:29; 3. Ian Barba, Ba., 15:38; 4. Joshua Gomez, Ba., 15:50; 5. Jeremy Trujillo, Ba., 16:01; 6. Caleb Rosales, Bu., 16:19; 7. Galen Miller, Ba., 16:24; 8. A.J. Kanczel, Ba., 16:29; 9. Cody Jordan, G, 16:31; 10. Robert Sager, G, 16:43; 11. Chris Rivera, G, 16:45; 12. Ismael Griego, G, 17:07; 13. Jacob Lindstrom, G, 17:10; 14. Reggie Rubio, S, 17:21; 15. Sean Malone, Bu., 17:27.
Coach of the Year — Jim Duarte, Barstow
Sportsmanship Award — Barstow
GIRLS
Team Results
1. Granite Hills 29; 2. Silverado 46; 3. Burroughs 67; 4. Barstow 104.
Individual Top 15 (Top 9 earn ALL-DSL honors)
1. Jzsanette Lindstrom, G, 18:41; 2. Sara Taylor, S, 19:14; 3. Jennifer Speer, Bu., 19:17; 4. Jenny Durtschi, Bu., 19:22; 5. Morgan Lacey, G, 19:54; 6. Ashley Baker, G, 20:19; 7. Jennifer Gutierrez, S, 20:28; 8. Wendy Roberts, G, 20:32; 9. Grace McManus, G, 20:46; 10. Catherine Davis, G, 21:25; 11. Victoria Jimenez, S, 21:40; 12. Joanna Cervantes, S, 21:50; 13. Danielle Ashton, G, 21:52; 14. Melissa Hadloc, S, 22:26; 15. Jackie Anderson, S, 22:30.
Coach of the Year — Jim McManus, Granite Hills
Sportsmanship Award — Burroughs and Silverado

C.J. Daft can be reached via e-mail at christiand@vvdailypress.com or at 951-6275.