Sports Wrap Sports Wrap (December 02, 2005)

Lancer cross country boys take 4th in state

The St. Francis boys cross country team enjoyed another stellar performance and, once again, Ben Sitler was at the center of the action.

Behind the 2nd-place individual finish of its Princeton-bound senior, the Lancers placed 4th among 23 teams in the CIF Division III State Championships at Woodward Park in Fresno on Nov. 26.

Sitler, the Central Coast Section champion, finished the 3.1-mile course in 15:29 and trailed only Michael Coe of Cabrillo (Southern Section), who won the race in 15:04.

Sam and Philip Pompei finished 43rd and 44th, respectively, in 16:32, while Eric Johnson (60th), Kyle Stewart (70th), Michael Calcagno (100th), and Alex Blease (101st) rounded out the field for St. Francis.

Thanks to one of their WCAL rivals, the Lancers narrowly missed out on a medal. St. Ignatius (161 points) topped St. Francis (167) for 3rd-place honors.

Calcagno completed a whirlwind day by handling his placekicking duties for the Lancers' football team. The junior booted a 25-yard field goal in St. Francis' 16-10 loss to Palma in the CCS Open Division semifinals at San Jose City College.

Sports Shorts

Los Altos' Alec Nickolls, running in the boys CIF Division II State Cross Country Championships, placed 104th. The junior ran Fresno's Woodward Park course in 17:11. ... Tania Morimoto, a Mountain View sophomore, finished the girls D-II race in 20:29, good for 118th place. ... The St. Francis girls finished 21st among 23 teams in the D-III race. Alyssa Arvin (113th), Ashmi Pathela (114th), Michelle Roemer (121st), Dakota Taylor (128th), Shelby Golan (145th) and Alexis Perez (155th) placed for the Lancers. ... St. Francis' volleyball team fell to host Campolindo (North Coast Section) in the NorCal semifinals of the CIF State Volleyball Championships on Nov. 26. The Lancers (25-9), the CCS D-III runners-up, saw their season end with the 25-14. 25-15, 25-18 defeat.
-- Scott Campbell

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