Tight races on way to NCS meet

<p>It was all about finishing in the top seven and qualifying for next weekend's big North Coast Section track meet, but once the competitive juices started flowing at Saturday's Redwood Empire Meet at Rancho Cotate, the races got tight and created some excitement.</p><p>Casa Grande sophomore Jacque Taylor and Maria Carrillo sophomore Lauren Curtin turned the 1,600-meter run into a close race. Taylor won it in 4:53.78 and Curtin was second in 4:55.11.</p><p>Healdsburg senior Sarah Sumpter won the 3,200 in 11:21.13, and Taylor was second in 11:24.74.</p><p>It was a big day for the Lockert twins, juniors from Petaluma High. Sterling Lockert won the boys' 1,600 in 4:16.61 and the 3,200 in 9:36.10, while Devin Lockert won the 800 in 1:57.39.</p><p>In another close race, Ukiah's Lauren Wallace edged Del Norte's Bailee McCulloch 25.93 to 25.96 to win the girls' 200.</p><p>In the 100, Del Norte's Kelsy Hintz won in 12.80 and Petaluma's Emily Hunt was second in 12.85.</p><p>Santa Rosa's Suzanne Howard was a double winner, easily winning the 100 hurdles in 14.93 and the 300 hurdles in 47.79.</p><p>Montgomery's Corinne Rich was a double winner in the shot put (39-9) and discus (117-9).</p><p>Maria Carrillo, which won the 4x100 and was second in the 4x400, wound up winning the girls' team title, although Del Norte left the meet thinking it had won.</p><p>A computer error on a lane assignment in a race caused the girls' team score to be changed. Maria Carrillo had 59 points and Del Norte 57.</p><p>Healdsburg, led by sprinter Dante Fountain and hurdler Eric Arneson, and getting wins in both relays, won the boys' team title with 79.5 points. Petaluma was second with 75 points.</p><p>Fountain won the 100 in 11.10 and Healdsburg's Jared Garcia was second in 11.18. Fountain won the 200 in 22.33.</p><p>Arneson won the 110 hurdles in 15.25 and Santa Rosa's Chris McCloskey won the 300 hurdles in 39.64.</p><p>Other boys winners from the Empire included Piner's Phanat Amphai, who won the long jump in 21-3¼ and the triple jump in 42-6; Rancho Cotate's Matt Egelhoff, who won the high jump in 6-6; Santa Rosa's Troy Baker, who won the shot in 50-4½, and Cardinal Newman's Austin Davis, who won the discus in 151-3.</p><p>Next week's NCS Meet of Champions will be held at Cal's Edwards Stadium, with trials on Friday afternoon and finals Saturday morning.See more photos from the Redwood Empire Track and Field Championships by Press Democrat photographer Crista Jeremiason at pdpreps.com.</p>