Dolphin Report: Boys Cross Country Dominates League Finals

By Zach Cavanagh

For in-game updates, news and more for all of the Dana Hills High School sports programs, follow us on Facebook and Twitter @SouthOCSports.

Boys Cross Country Dominates League Finals

The Dana Hills boys cross country team obliterated the field at the South Coast League Finals on Wednesday, Nov. 6 at Irvine Regional Park.

The Dolphins’ five scoring runners finished first through fifth for a perfect team score of 15, with their two alternates finishing in eighth and ninth. Even more impressively, all seven Dana Hills runners posted personal-record times in the three-mile race.

Sophomore Jai Dawson took the league title at 14:17, with senior Carrick Denker finishing in second at 14:23. It was Denker’s first race since cutting his hand at the county championships.

Gianni Viola was third at 14:41, Brandon Pizano was fourth at 14:43, Joseph Moersch was fifth at 14:52, Ethan Johnson was eighth at 15:02, just ahead of Ryan Broadhead in ninth, also at 15:02.

Dana Hills beat second-place El Toro, 15-58.

The Dana Hills girls finished second to El Toro, 27-63, and senior Marisa Gaitan finished third with a personal record of 17:07. Five Dana Hills girls runners set personal records.

Playoff Results

Dana Hills boys water polo and girls tennis each lost their CIF-SS playoff openers on Wednesday, Nov. 6.

Boys water polo was edged by Los Alamitos, 7-6, in the first round of Division 2. Dana Hills had beaten Los Alamitos in the first round last season, 9-8.

Luke Malecka scored three goals for the Dolphins, and his shot attempt to tie in the game’s final seconds rang off the crossbar. It was the final game for retiring Dana Hills coach Matt Rosa.

Girls tennis lost its Division 1 opener at King of Riverside, 14-4. The Dolphins lost their first 11 matches of the season before rallying in league and winning a third-place tiebreaker match.