Runners rise to the top of Santa Clarita sports in 2012

Runners took center stage in the Santa Clarita sports world in 2012. From the Summer Olympics in London to Central Park in Saugus, cross country and track runners were celebrated. Allyson Felix won three gold medals in London. The Saugus girls cross country team won their seventh CIF state championship in a row. Chris Low from College of the Canyons won a state title in track. John Gilbertson from The Master’s College won a national championship in cross country.

But cross country and track and field were not the only sports that athletes from the Santa Clarita Valley excelled. A receiver from Canyon High broke two state football records. A golfer from Valencia High qualified for her third US Women’s Open. The fire captain at Station 76 in Valencia won an IHRA drag racing event.

Here is a look at the top sports stories of the year:

UCLA football is hot, USC not, and other rivalries

The UCLA football team is 3-0 and ranked No. 19 in the nation by the Associated Press. Valencia High graduate Steven Manfro is turning out to be a big piece of Bruins puzzle.
Manfro scored the first touchdown of his career, on a 49-yard catch, in UCLA’s upset win over then No. 16 Nebraska, 36-30, at the Rose Bowl.
He scored again in UCLA’s 37-6 win over Houston. He has two touchdowns in three games and is becoming quarterback Brett Hundley’s favorite target.
Manfro is UCLA’s leader in receiving through the first three games of the season. He has 14 catches for 164 yards. He was also averaging nearly nine yards per carry in the first three games. In all fairness, he carried the ball only three times for 26 yards, but scored on a 14-yard run in garbage time against Houston. Manfro added five punt returns for 55 yards for good measure.

The Wolitarsky Watch

Canyon’s Drew Wolitarsky caught eight passes for 89 yards in his team’s 56-49 loss to Quartz Hill on Saturday night.

He is in pursuit of Steve Smith’s state records for receptions and receiving yards. Smith, a receiver with the St. Louis Rams who played high school football at Woodland Hills Taft, caught 271 passes for 4,545 yards in high school.

Wolitarsky has 226 catches for 4,333 yards in his high school career. He has 34 receptions for 460 yards in four games in his senior season.

He needs 46 catches and 213 yards to break Smith’s state records. He is averaging 8.5 catches and 115.0 yards per game.

Photo: Canyon's Drew Wolitarsky caught eight passes for 89 yards and two touchdowns against Quartz Hill on Friday night. (Credit: Tim Haddock)

The Wolitarsky Watch

Canyon’s Drew Wolitarsky caught 11 passes for 184 yards  and a touchdown against Knight on Friday night. He is in pursuit of the state records for receptions and receiving yards set by Steve Smith.

Wolitarsky has 218 catches and 4,244 yards in his career at Canyon. Smith, who played high school football at Woodland Hills Taft and is a receiver with the St. Louis Rams, holds the state records with 271 catches and 4,545 yards.

Wolitarsky has 26 catches for 371 yards in three games this season. Canyon is off to a 3-0 start after beating Knight, 56-27.

Wolitarsky needs 54 catches and 302 yards to break Smith’s records. The Canyon senior is averaging 8.6 catches and 123.6 receiving yards per game.

Photo: Canyon's Drew Wolitarsky is in pursuit of Steve Smith's two receiving records. (Credit: Tim Haddock)

Delays at Dodger Stadium and the trade with the Red Sox

Sung to the tune of “Take Me Out To the Ball Game” with apologies to Jack Norworth:

Take me out to the ball game
Except on Vin Scully bobblehead night
Cuz if you run late
(Let’s face it, if you live in LA, who doesn’t run late?)
They’ll make you wait
Outside the gate for an hour
If your son scoots, scoots, scoots away from you
Security will make you stay
For it’s one, two, three innings you’ll miss
At the old ball game.

Suffice it to say, not a good time was had by all at Vin Scully bobblehead night at Dodger Stadium. Not only did the Dodgers lose to the Arizona Diamondbacks, 2-0, but it took nearly an hour to get into the stadium while Vin Scully bobbleheads were passed out at the gates.

Photo: Fans waited for about an hour to get into Dodger Stadium on Vin Scully bobblehead night. (Credit: Tim Haddock)

The Wolitarsky Watch

Canyon’s Drew Wolitarsky caught 10 passes for 129 yards in his team’s 56-48 win over Clovis West on Saturday night.

He has 15 catches for 187 yards this season as he closes in on Steve Smith’s state records for receptions and receiving yards.

Wolitarsky needs 65 more catches and 486 receiving yards to break Smith’s records of 271 catches and 4,545 receiving yards set while he was playing at Woodland Hills Taft in high school. Smith is now a receiver with the St. Louis Rams in the NFL.

Wolitarsky broke the Canyon school record for receiving yards in the game against Clovis West. He has 4,060 yards receiving in his career at Canyon. He has 207 career receptions at Canyon, also a school record.

Photo: Canyon High receiver Drew Wolitarsky is chasing Steve Smith for the state record in receptions and receiving yards. (Credit: Tim Haddock)

The Wolitarsky Watch

Canyon High receiver Drew Wolitarsky is closing in on the state record for receptions and receiving yards.
Steve Smith, a receiver with the St. Louis Rams in the NFL, set the state records for receptions and receiving yards when he was at Woodland Hills Taft. He caught 271 passes for 4,545 yards.
Wolitarsky has 197 catches for 3,931 yards in his career at Canyon. He caught five passes for 58 yards in Canyon's 49-12 win over Morningside on Thursday night.
Wolitarsky needs 74 catches and 614 receiving yards to catch Smith. It's not a lock that he will catch Smith. Wolitarsky caught 75 passes for 1,628 yards in his junior season. He had a career-best 77 catches as a sophomore.

Photo: Canyon High receiver Drew Wolitarsky is chasing Steve Smith for the state record in receptions and receiving yards. (Credit: Tim Haddock)