YOUR AD HERE »

Cosmi, Ramos lead Vikings in home meet

Steve Yingling, Tribune sports editor
Jim GrantChris Cosmi crosses the finish line seventh in South Tahoe High's Northern Nevada 4A home meet Wednesday at the Field of Dreams. The Viking boys finished second to Galena but defeated Carson
ALL |

A new course and the challenge of facing two of the top cross country teams in Northern Nevada tested South Tahoe High runners in their first home meet of the season Wednesday.

The Viking boys finished second to Galena, while the girls were outdistanced by the Senators and Grizzlies.

Instead of running out past “Pet Cemetery,” the runners followed a 2.75-mile long course that took them by the water tanks. But, more importantly, the trail run gave participants a chance to break up the mundane courses they normally encounter.



“It’s nice to have a course where you’re running out in the trees and on bark chips, grass and dirt trails instead of running in the sand in the desert,” said STHS coach Dominique Westlake. “And it’s nice to be at home and have your parents and classmates there to cheer you on.”

Despite missing four regulars, the Vikings edged Carson 52-57 for second place behind winner Galena’s 16 points.



Galena’s Stephen Pottey won the boys’ race in 15:44.

Chris Cosmi led the Vikings by placing eighth in 17 minutes, 14 seconds. Teammates Sean Pawling and Bryan Kurek were right on Cosmi’s heels, placing ninth and 10th in 17:36 and 17:44, respectively.

“I’ve seen a huge difference between this year’s and last year’s team as far as work ethic,” Westlake said. “Motivation comes from not qualifying for state as a team last year.”

Amber Ramos was the first STHS girl across the finish line, taking seventh in 20:41. She was followed by Anna Lambdin, 13th, 22:07; Megan Hillyard, 14th, 22:13; Vanessa Porfiri, 15th, 22:14; Aricela Ramos, 17th, 22:36; Amanda Hammond, 18th, 22:40; and Karen Dalmacio, 19th, 22:59.

Team scores were Galena 27, Carson 33 and STHS 66.

“They were disappointed because they wanted to finish closer score-wise, because traditionally we’ve been right there with Galena and Carson. But those teams are just really strong this year,” said STHS coach Doug Watenpool.

Westlake and Watenpool will take their top seven runners to the Stanford Invitational on Saturday. The girls’ race starts at 12:15 p.m. and the boys run at 12:45 p.m.


Support Local Journalism

Support Local Journalism

Readers around the Lake Tahoe Basin and beyond make the Tahoe Tribune's work possible. Your financial contribution supports our efforts to deliver quality, locally relevant journalism.

Now more than ever, your support is critical to help us keep our community informed about the evolving coronavirus pandemic and the impact it is having locally. Every contribution, however large or small, will make a difference.

Your donation will help us continue to cover COVID-19 and our other vital local news.