Everything was going according to Dave Monk’s plan for Cooper Stream last Friday at the Sac-Joaquin Section Masters meet. The Vacaville High junior was to put forth the necessary energy to win the 1,600-meter race and then do just enough to be one of the top three finishers in the 3,200.

Stream ran the last lap of the 1,600 in 59.818 seconds to win in 4:08.54. Peter Kendall of Twelve Bridges led after three laps, but he finished second at 4:08.97 after running the last lap in 1:00.471. The top three finishers in each event advance to the state championships, which begin Friday at Buchanan High in Clovis.

Stream had his ticket for the state meet before returning to run the 3,200 . “The objective in the (1,600) was we’re going to go win and go run as fast as we can,” said Monk, the renowned distance coach. “In the 3,200, let’s just manage our effort and do what’s necessary. If a win is on the table without requiring more than what we want to put forth, then you can go for it.”

Stream led after seven laps in the 3,200, but Jesuit’s Matthew Ogilvie and Kimball’s Andres Lomeli passed him early in the last lap. No one was was on Stream’s heels, so he could have been content with third place and qualifying for the state meet in a second event. The plan had worked out perfectly. 

Make that almost perfect. Stream is not fond of giving away a race even when he has achieved his goal. And he is certainly not going to be generous when he believes the front-runners thought they had disposed of him. Stream made his move when he was within earshot of Monk in the bleachers.

“With 300 (meters) to go, I was looking at the competitors and I was like ‘I know I’m better than these guys,’” Stream said. “It was like I want to win and I want to compete. That’s when I really just kicked out.” Monk was not surprised when Stream accelerated, exerting more effort than planned. 

“I think he was kind of stuck between ‘Should I just lock this up and get third or do I go for them,’” Monk said. “When he came by me, I kind of gave him the green light. I said, ‘Go get them and get that win if you want.’ I think they stayed in his radar lock just long enough for Cooper to punch it.”

Two victories left Stream with a difficult decision. He could push his luck and run in both races at the state meet or drop one and put all his eggs in the other. In the state rankings, he is second in the 3,200 with a time of 8:50.62 at the Arcadia Invitational in April and third in the 1,600 at 4:06.03. 

The best times for the top five runners in the 3,200 were set in Arcadia. Maximo Zavaleta of Martin Luther King High is first at 8:43.21. Stream is second and is followed by Mario Montoya (8:51.63) of Redondo Union, Krish Desai (8:53.74) of Mira Costa and Ollly O’Connor (8:54.21) of Viewpoint.

Zavaleta also has the top time in the 1,600 at 4:04.28. Stream clocked his 4:06.3 at the TEN meet March 28 in San Juan Capistrano. That race proved to Monk that Stream can go to “the well where it was like everything he had. He is understanding what it is required to race at the highest level.”

Monk offered his two cents when Stream was trying to make a decision. Monk voted for Stream to stick with the 1,600 and drop the 3,200. Stream disagreed. “He kind of knew what I wanted to do,” Stream said. “I’m going to state to win a title (in the 3,200) and he thinks I’m good enough to do it.”

Stream’s decision did not bother Monk because Stream made a compelling case for the 3,200.  “When an athlete can speak from a place of conviction, if his heart is really speaking to him about that, you don’t want to get in the way,” Monk said. “You want to let him go and chase his dreams.”

Monk has groomed Stream to compete with the elite. “He’s been learning so much and he has been growing so much,” Monk said. “He’s been racing really well and there’s more in the tank. I still think there’s a little bit more out there that we’re hoping we finally can let loose at the state meet.

“And I think that’s what it’s going to take.”