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CROSS COUNTRY: Lowery leads three all-league Spartans in final WAC meet
Bulletin sports 2020-21
Lathrop's Nathan Puck at the start of the Western Athletic Conference Cross County Championships at River Bluff Regional Park in Ceres. Puck finished 13th overall Tuesday in 19 minutes, 9 seconds. - photo by DAVE CAMPBELL

CERES — It took a three-time Western Athletic Conference cross country champion to defeat Lathrop’s Taimaine Lowery. 

Bulletin sports 2020-21
Lathrop's Taimane Lowery won her heat and finished second overall Tuesday in 21 minutes, 32.84 seconds in the Western Athletic Conference Cross County Championships at River Bluff Regional Park in Ceres. - photo by DAVE CAMPBELL
In the WAC championships Tuesday on a 3-mile course at River Bluff Regional Park, Los Banos’ Aryanna Sandoval won her heat in 21 minutes, 25.57 seconds. Due to COVID-19, the 10-team field was broken into two heats and Lowery won hers going away in 21:32.84, good enough for second place and an all-league patch. 

“I feel like I have progressed so much,” Lowery said. “It’s nice to be in the lead and take charge.

“My hard work has really paid off.”

Also finishing in the top-10 overall for the Spartans and earning all-league patches were Veronica Rodriguez (fourth, 22:15.89) and Lorelai Kremerskotter (sixth, 22:55.68).

“This felt awesome,” Rodriguez said. “I tried my best to get her (Lowery). It’s a good feeling to push yourself and try your best. Sometimes you may be down and you push through.”

Lathrop finished second to the Tigers, 30-38.

“That’s way better than I thought was going to happen,” Spartans coach Ann Elam said of three girls finishing in the top 10. “I’m so happy we got that. I knew Tai (Lowery) was up there for sure but then to get the other two was awesome. I’m elated.”

Lowery won her heat going away and was not pushed the entire race.

“It’s unfortunate that we had to run in heats,” Elam said. “But I’m very thankful that at least we got to have a championship because we weren’t even sure we were going to get to that point. 

“I’m just glad we were able to race.”

Bulletin sports 2020-21
Lathrop's Jose Soto trails a Central Valley runner and leads one from Patterson on Tuesday in the Western Athletic Conference Cross County Championships at River Bluff Regional Park in Ceres. Soto finished 14th overall in 19 minutes, 26 seconds. - photo by DAVE CAMPBELL
The Lathrop boys finished fourth and were buoyed by a 13-14-15 finish with Nathan Puck (19:09), Jose Soto (19:26) and Aron Comacho (19:28).

“The hills were terrible,” Puck said. “And the course was very rocky.

“This was quite a ways from my PR (personal record), but I think I did pretty good”

The future looks good for the Spartans with Lowery being a sophomore and Puck a freshman.

“Nathan (Puck) is just a freshman,” Elam said. “He has run in long races growing up — he has run a half-marathon.

“With him accomplishing what he has as a freshman I am very happy and am excited to see what he can do for us in the next three years.”