Locals run to six first-place finishes

Nine youth cross country athletes representing the city of Laguna

Beach turned in spectacular performances at the Southern California

Municipal Athletic Foundation’s Orange County Cross Country

Championships.

The local youth recorded a record-setting six first-place finished

at Thornton Park in Santa Ana.

The six local runners who claimed first place were:

1.5 kilometer run

Girls’ Division 96: Sarina Strickland, 7:51.

Boys’ Division 96: Rory Saunders, 7:13.

2.0 kilometer run

Girls’ Division 94: Emily Carlson, 11:05

Boys’ Division 94: William Joseph Rousseau IV, 8:44.

3.0 kilometer run

Girls’ Division 91: Gerry Artman, 14:34.

Boys’ Division 92: Mitchel Carlson, 15:04.

Local runners to finish in second-place included Tyler Cheves

(Boys’ Division 98, 5:26, 1.0 run) and Natasha Strickland (Girls’

Division 93, 9:14, 2.0 run).

Adam Redding took fourth-place in the Boys’ Division 94 2.0 run

with a time of 9:40.

The Laguna contingent, coached by Fred Pichay, advanced to compete

at the Southern California Cross Country Championships in Banning on

Dec. 4.