2011 ESPN RISE/DYESTATCAL

ALL-STATE GIRLS 800 PREVIEW
Preview and Selections by Mike Kennedy, Special Correspondent
        Juniors Amy Weissenbach and Savannah Camacho squared off twice in 2010. Weissenbach defeated Camacho, 2:08.34 to 2:09.70 in the Southern Section Masters meet. The next week, in a much more competitive race at the state meet, Weissenbach again prevailed, 2:07.52 to 2:07.73. They rank as the No. 3 and 4 returnees in the nation for 2011. Long Beach Poly teammates Arielle Stevenson and Dynasty Gammage, dueled each other three times in the late season, with Gammage prevailing in the Southern Section Division I final and the SS Masters Meet. Stevenson bounced back to finish fourth at State in a personal best 2:10.27 to Gammage’s 2:11.44 for seventh.

         Like a number of elite distances runners approaching the state meet, Alli Billmeyer had to choose one event to concentrate on and she chose the 1,600, where she eventually finished second at state. Before that, she ran two 800 races under 2:10.50, including a personal best of 2:09.94. Like Billmeyer, Jennifer Owen also made a choice, dropping the 800 after finishing third in the SS Division II race in a personal best of 2:12.40—a mark that had qualified her to run in the SS Masters Meet. Hanna Edwards closed out her season on a high note, finishing fourth in the SS Division I race with a personal best of 2:12.47 and qualifying for state via a 2:12.62 showing in the SS Masters Meet before running 2:13.10 to be the fastest non-qualifier in the state prelims.

         Jaye Buchbinder, who defeated Camacho in the SS Division IV final, ran a personal best of 2:11.05 in the qualifying heats at state before finishing eighth in the final. The final first-team spot goes to sophomore Chimere Ezumah, who won the Mt. San Antonio College Relays 800 in 2:12.04, but then dropped the event to concentrate on the 400, where she went go to win the state title.

    Athletes were selected primarily on honors won and performance at the end of the 2010 season. First team is listed in order; second and third teams listed alphabetically. – Senior; * Junior; ** Sophomore; *** Freshman.

FIRST TEAM—LISTED IN ORDER
1. *Amy Weissenbach (Harvard-Westlake, North Hollywood—SS)
3. –Arielle Stevenson (Poly, Long Beach—SS)
4. –Dynasty Gammage (Poly, Long Beach—SS)
5. –Alli Billmeyer (Torrey Pines, San  Diego—SDS)
6. –Jaye Buchbinder (Chadwick School, Palos Verdes Peninsula—SS)  
7. –Jennifer Owen (West Ranch, Valencia—SS)
8. –Hanna Edwards (El Toro, Lake Forest—SS) 
9. **Chimere Ezumah (Serra, Gardena—SS)

SECOND TEAM—LISTED ALPHABETICALLY
-Katie Berge (Acalanes, Lafayette—NCS)
*Ashlyn Dadkhah (Torrey Pines, San Diego—SDS)
-Katie Fry (Exeter—CS)
*Kieran Gallagher (Gunn, Palo Alto—CCS)
**Carina Gillespie (Otay Ranch, Chula Vista—SDS)
**Nijae Jones (Deer Valley, Acalanes—NCS)
-Samantha Ralstin (Oak Ridge, El Dorado Hills—SJS)
*Caitlin Turner (Thousand Oaks—SS)
*Ashley Welker (West Ranch, Valencia—SS)

THIRD TEAM—LISTED ALPHABETICALLY
**Jacquie Adams (Foothill, Santa Ana—SS)
-Erica Capellino (Palos Verdes, Palos Verdes Estates—SS)
**Kandace Compton (El Camino, Sacramento—SJS)
*Kayla Knapp (Los Gatos—CCS)
*Charlotte Kuzminsky (Canyon Crest Academy, San Diego—SDS)
-Megan McClain (Great Oak, Temecula—SS)
*Lyndsey Mull (Redondo Union, Redondo Beach—SS)
**Bailey Sanin (Claremont—SS)
-Christine Zavesky (Granite Bay—SJS)