Wolfpack runs national leader in girls 4x1,600, adds sweep of 4x800 titles for first time in program history

By Landon Negri for DyeStat

Throughout Great Oak High’s dominance the past decade in distance running, the Wolfpack have had their share of challengers, not only in California, but from across the country.

For example, in cross country, the Davis Senior CA girls got within two points of the Wolfpack when they won the fourth of six consecutive Division 1 state titles in 2015. The Dana Hills CA boys have also provided their share of challenges. And in the fall, the Roosevelt CA boys and Buchanan CA girls provided formidable runs to Great Oak’s sweep of the state cross country state titles.

More often than not, one theme still remains – Great Oak keeps rising to the occasion to embrace those challenges.

That trend continued Friday at the 51st Arcadia Invitational, when the Wolfpack convincingly won three of the four distance relay events. The girls produced the top times in the nation in both the 4x800 and 4x1,600 – the latter coming from an entirely new lineup from a year ago.

“That’s just a testament to the new blood we have pulsing through our team right now,” Great Oak coach Doug Soles said.

The 4x1,600 win was most impressive, partially due to the strength of the field, and partially due to winning margin.

Great Oak toed the starting line with teams like Buchanan, Claremont – the California Division 2 state champ in cross country – perennial power Saugus, nearby rival Vista Murrieta and Pine Crest FL, but still secured its fourth win in the past five years.

The Wolfpack made it look easy, winning in 20:09.46 – a new national-leading time and 17 seconds off the 4x1,600 national record (19:52.88) set by their program two years ago – giving Great Oak four of the top seven times in meet history. Runner-up Pine Crest, which featured Amanda Schwartz, Emily Faulhaber and sisters Tsion Yared and Mahdere Yared, finished in a Florida state record 20:24.73.

Senior Sandra Pflughoft led off for Great Oak in 5:06.6, followed by sophomore Arianna Griffiths in 5:01.9, junior Fatima Cortes in 4:56.0 – she gave the Wolfpack the lead during her leg after Mariah Castillo established a sizeable early lead for Saugus – and Tori Gaitan brought home the victory in 5:04.4.

“Our goal has always been to break the national record,” Cortes said. “So we’re just trying to race against the clock and pass as many people as we can – whether they’re actually in first or not. It helps to push ourselves.”

It was nearly the same group that won the 4x800. Ericka Burgess ran the lead leg in 2:19.1, followed by Griffiths (2:17.3), Cortes (2:14.0) and Gaitan (2:14.5), who is admittedly more of a longer-distance runner.

Cortes gave the Wolfpack the lead in the second lap of her leg. She handed the baton to Gaitan, who had to hold off Santa Cruz CA senior Mari Friedman for the win in 9:05.34, the second 4x800 title at Arcadia for Great Oak in the past three years.

“I’m normally a 3,200 person, you know,” Gaitan said. “I was kind of just doing it for my team and wanting to give it everything I can.”

Griffiths, Soles said, has been a huge difference-maker. She has allowed him to use Cortes and Gaitan in the Nos. 3-4 spots in the relays, rather than bookending them at leadoff and anchor.

“With the emergence of Arianna Griffiths at Stanford running 4:55,” Soles said, “I felt like it gave us some flexibility to stay in the hunt through the first two legs before handing it to Fatima and Tori.”

In the boys 4x800, senior Carlos Carvajal pushed the Wolfpack to its first Arcadia win in the event in 7:53.29 with a 1:57.8 anchor leg. Great Oak edged second-place Roosevelt (7:53.90), taking the state lead in the event from the Mustangs, who also ran a season-best. Gavin Korby, Chris Verdugo and Jacob Korgan also contributed to the victory for the Wolfpack.

“My mental strength this year has been a lot stronger,” Carvajal said. “I know, physically, I can keep up with all those guys. So the last 200, I did it for these guys right here. They got me in the right position. I was up there and I was ready to compete – that last 200, I just had to put it all out there.”