Carillo picks up win, confidence for Golden Valley

Remember Danny Carillo?

If not, he's a freshman runner at Golden Valley who was involved in one of the closest finishes of the year at the first Foothill League meet Sept. 25, taking 23rd in 17:23.9, just behind Valencia's Austin Veiga (17:23.6).

It was that narrow margin between the two runners that decided second place on the Castaic Lake course, as Valencia defeated Golden Valley 27-28 in the double-dual meet scoring format.

Obviously Carillo was plenty motivated when he competed Saturday at the Staub/Barnes Invitational, the first time he had raced since that result at the league meet.

With coaches Chris and Rob Evans electing to split up their varsity lineup into different grade-level races, Carillo triumphed in the Div. I freshman race in 17:27.82. Although he was the Grizzlies' sixth-fastest runner on the day -- with junior Seth Totten (15:49.69) leading the way with a fifth-place effort in the Div. I varsity race -- it was an important confidence boost for a young runner and an improving program.

Veiga, a senior, didn't compete Saturday for Valencia, as several area teams had athletes missing due to SATs, confirmation or club soccer tournaments.

The second Foothill League meet is Oct. 16 at Central Park.