Sports activity was sparse to non-existent this past week in Riverbank, as high school athletes competed on the road in all their games.
Cross Country
Riverbank High School cross country coach Monte Wood reported that his runners have been busy on the road in recent weeks, as well.
He said Friday, Sept. 14 saw the squad racing at the prestigious Woodbridge Invitational at Sliver Lakes Sports Complex in Norco, California.
“The course is a flat, fast race and highly competitive, with over 200 runners in each heat,” Wood noted.
The Lady Bruin JV girls placed fifth out of 47 teams in the novice division.
“Most of the girls were running their first three-mile race ever and they handled it well. The conditions were not ideal as it was hotter than it is has been the last two years, but the girls gutted it out,” Wood explained.
The frosh/soph boys squad finished sixth overall in their race, and four boys earned medals in the race.
“The team was paced by Adan Salgado, who ran his first three-mile race ever in 18:20. This was his first race of the year after dealing with knee pain for over a month. He was followed by Jesus Sepulveda, Isaiah Bargas, Anthony Leon, and Fredy Arana.”
In the varsity girls race, Diane Murillo ran a personal record of 21:03 for three miles.
“In the varsity boys race, Ramon Rosas won a medal pacing the varsity boys team,” Wood reported, “and Zubaidullah ran a great race in 18:20. He is a senior newcomer to the team and is great addition.”
On Wednesday Sept. 26, the team competed in the second of three TVL races in Modesto.
“We were looking for some improvements from the first race and we were not disappointed. Only four runners did not post better times than their earlier first race,” said Wood. “And three runners improved by over two minutes in their respective races.”
The JV girls won their race, with Aimee Rosales pacing the team with a third place overall finish. Jocelyn Ayala and Ainsley Wood finished fifth and sixth overall and shaved 50 seconds off their time. Marissa Cruz and Julia Kovneva rounded out the top five. Kovneva ran in her first race of the year and did very well, said the coach.
The JV boys team finished second overall without their top runner Anthony Leon. Fredy Arana was the number one runner and set a new personal record on the course. He was followed by Alex Rangel and Alec Rios. Nick Mangiapane and Damian Bolanos both set personal records as well and finished as the top five scorers.
The varsity boys finished in fourth place overall, but they closed the gap tremendously from the first race to the second race, Wood said.
“If they can show that kind of improvement in just four weeks, they can challenge the other teams for the top three positions,” the coach pointed out. “Ramon Rosas ran better, finishing in 18:11. He has been dealing with Achilles issues but has been able to consistently train recently. He is the defending TVL champion. Jesus Sepulveda ran a great race and finished in 12th place overall. Adan Salgado, Isaiah Bargas, and senior Julian Lopez rounded out the top five scorers.”
Giorgio Retana was a close sixth on the team.
“The great thing about the varsity team is that they are so young,” Wood noted.
Of the top seven right now, he said, six will be back next year and the JV team has some promising runners for next year as well.
The next race on the schedule will be on Saturday, Oct. 6 at Half Moon Bay High School.
Bruin Football
Riverbank High lost 42-0 to the host Huskies in Hughson in recent Trans-Valley League action. Hughson scored 28 points in the first quarter, then 14 in the second.
The Bruins return home this week, to host the Cougars of Escalon on Friday, Oct. 5, at Angelo Novi Stadium on the RHS campus. There is only a varsity contest, as Riverbank has folded its JV team and incorporated the JV players into the varsity squad. Game time is set for 7 p.m.
Lady Bruin Volleyball
Girls volleyball had a bye on Monday last week, but won on the road at Modesto Christian High School on Wednesday, Sept. 26, posting scores of 27-25, 18-25, 25-21, 9-25. They won the fifth and deciding set, 16-14 to put a TVL win on the books.
Volleyball matches at the varsity level are best of five contests, with the tie-breaker set played to 15 points, but teams must win by two.
This week, girls volleyball was to host two matches, Monday, Oct. 1, against Ripon High and Wednesday, Oct. 3, against Hughson.
