Torrey Pines cross country team defeats Fallbrook

The Torrey Pines cross-country team dominated Fallbrook last Friday at San Dieguito Park. It felt like fall in the park with a light drizzle and plenty of fallen leaves on the course for runners to crunch through.

Freshman Matt Barge had the fastest time of the day on the 2.5-mile course, finishing with 15.56, closely followed by freshman Ben Jafek at 15.58. In the three-mile varsity course, Andrew Ward cruised to victory with a time of 16.48. Sophomore Brooke Tencer had a good lead throughout the JV race, winning in 17.23.

Last year’s section champions, the varsity girls, proved they are just as strong as ever. The girls run in a pack and essentially decide the winner themselves. Friday’s winners were Sofie Watson and Tori Casella with identical times of 17.14. Just one second behind them were Kelsey O’Connell, Ashlyn Dadkhah, Alli Billmeyer and Megan Morgan.

The varsity boys team appears just as tight-knit as the girl’s squad. The boys hammed it up for pictures at the grassy start. Andrew Eckberg and Alex Jafek raced competitively yet playfully against each other at the finish, to place third and fourth respectively.

Matt Carpowich came in second in the varsity boys race in 17.05.