18 Sports State indoor track championships make local athletes champs


Paul Bandong Staff Writer


FRESNO – Two nation-leading


marks and eight meet records were set at the California State Indoor Track Championships held on Jan. 22 and 23 at the SaveMart Center at Fresno State University. Several local athletes from Paloma Valley, Vista Murrieta, and Great Oak qualified for and competed there, and many came home with the accolades of champions. The prestigious meet – also


known as the Fifth Annual “Run for the Dream” High School In- vitational – was held at an indoor venue that features one of the smallest indoor tracks in the na- tion, a tightly-banked 145-meter tartan oval, a stark contrast to the conventional outdoor tracks at 400 meters. Top talent from all over the state – including powerhouse schools like Buchanan and Long Beach Poly – came to compete for top honors. Nine qualifying regional meets


were held throughout the state on Jan. 7 and 14. Great Oak High School hosted the Inland Empire Regional on Jan. 7. The top three placers in each running event and each relay event, and the top two placers in all field events, were invited to the State meet. Run- ning events included: the 55m dash, the 55m high hurdles, the 550 meter run, the 800 meter run, the mile, and the two-mile runs. Field events included pole vault, high jump, triple jump, shot put, and weight throw. Relays included the 4x145, 4x200, 4x400, and the 4x800 meter. Kiara McIntosh from Paloma Valley was seeded second in the


The Valley News • www.myvalleynews.com • February 3, 2012


GOHS senior Brandon Messerly sets a personal best time of 4:24:20 and wins the state title in the mile at the Indoor Track Championships.


girls 800 meter with her qualify- ing time of 2:21.7. She took home a third place medal with a time of 2:22. Chris Hyden, a senior at Paloma Valley, ran a 1:18 in the boys 600m to finish 20th


out


of 84. Jasmyn Graham, an Arizona transplant and Perris High transfer, is a freshman at Vista Murrieta and is a multi-time USATF junior national champion in the hurdles at 100m and 200m. She holds the national record for the 200m hurdles (26.55) for the age 13-14 division. Graham was the top- seeded girls’ hurdler at 55 meters with a time of 8.41 seconds. She had the fastest qualifying time in prelims at 8.09 seconds to set up the showdown with veteran mega- star Sasha Wallace of Holy Names


(Oakland) who qualified at 8.16. Wallace won 7.94 to Graham’s 8.01, for the #2 and #4 fastest times in the nation. Graham was also seeded fourth in the long jump at 17’7”. Great Oak High School sent a


huge contingent of almost forty athletes and over one hundred fam- ily and friends. The Wolfpack made a good showing. Senior Brandon Messerly beat nine runners who had faster outdoor times last year to set his lifetime best of 4:24.20 in the mile and won the state title; Michael Hewitt and Brandon Emory also qualified. Junior Nick Ponzio muscled the shot put 52’3” to take home a 4th


Senior Khala Taylor took 4th


place medal. in the


girls 55m with a personal best time of 7.19 seconds, only .07 seconds


GOHS Girls 4x400 meter relay team beat Long Beach Poly by 3 seconds to win the State Indoor Championship title. L-R: Marteisha Caines, Khala Taylor, Ronke Odubela, and Jade Miller.


behind winner Traci Hicks of Poly. Senior Duane Solomon made the finals in the boys 55m high hurdles with the third-fastest time at 7.68 seconds. Alexis Messerly and Maiya Larsen finished 3rd


and 7th


in the girls’ mile. Despite being seeded second


behind powerhouse Long Beach Poly, the Great Oak girls (Jade Miller, Ronke Odubela, Martei- sha Caines, Khala Taylor) ended up the best in the state at the 4x 400m, beating Poly by more than three seconds with a 4:06.61 time. Khala Taylor’s anchor leg brought the crowd to its feet as she made up a five meter deficit and turned it into a twenty meter win. Great Oak girls were second to Poly in the 4x145m relay, 1:13.78 to


TVSA GU14 Hawks become shootout champions TEMECULA – The TVSA Hawks


Girls U14 Red Team took another Tournament Championship! Play- ing in the local Hawks Shootout Tournament they were undefeated in four games. Starting with a 3-0 victory over Temecula United, and


Courtesy photos


1:15.82. The boys 4x145 m relay team ended up missing the State title in a photo finish, losing to Colony Ontario by one one-hun- dredth of a second (.01), 68.13 to 68.14 seconds! Pole vaulters Cory Pittman (seeded fourth at 13’6”) and Denny Duvall qualified, as did Eddie Carillo (seeded fifth at 9:55) in the two-mile. “Great Oak represented very


well,” said assistant coach Ray Luna, “but the belle of the ball was Khala Taylor, who competed in three events and brought home three medals – a first, a second, and a fourth.” If the indoor season is any indi-


cation, the upcoming track season should be a hot one!


then beating Poway GU14 Green 5-1, their next victory over FC Blades 3-1 insured they would play in the championship game against a tough United FC team that fell to them 5-4.


L-R First row: Allison Powell, Alessandra Dominguez, Alissa Ungrady, and Mackenzie Campbell. Second row: Alex Ungrady, Makenzie McNail, Lily Sinclair, Samrawit Cain, Cailin Koupla, Isabella Ortiz, and Keylee Westmoreland. Third row: Coach Nik Laytart, Elizabeth Reece, Tart Prentice, Carlee McManus, Bridgette Whitney, Anna Sampson, Cassidy Ricks, and Samantha Gonzalez. Not pictured Bethany Carpo and Jordyn Stott.


Courtesy photo Temecula Valley Soccer Academy HAWKS More info & release forms at: www.tvsahawks.com


Contact: Kelley Collins, Director of League Management Email: tryouts@tvsahawks.com





2012 Competitive Teams BOYS & GIRLS AGES U7 - U14 • Attending both dates is requested


TVSA Hawks U7-U11 GIRLS: Feb. 13th & Feb. 15th BOYS: Feb. 14th & Feb. 16th Check-in: 4:00 PM Tryouts: 5:00 - 6:30 PM


TVSA Hawks U12-U14 GIRLS: Feb. 13th & Feb. 15th BOYS: Feb. 14th & Feb. 16th Check-in: 6:30 PM Tryouts: 7:00 - 8:30 PM


TRYOUT LOCATION Patricia H. Birdsall Sports Park 32380 Deer Hollow Way Temecula, CA 92590


NOTE: All participants must bring shin guards and have a parent or guardian complete a consent form.


Contact: David Halliday, Director of Coaching Email: boysdoc@tvsahawks.com


Want to be part of the Hawks very popular Junior Hawks program? Calling all 5, 6 and 7 year old Boys and Girls who want to learn the proper techniques in a fun environment with a qualifi ed professional coach. For information please contact Kelley Collins at kllycol@roadrunner.com


Tryouts


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