Courtney Allen took first in the girls’ 1,600-meter event in a
personal-record time of 4:59.08, while the boys’ 4×400 team of
Justin Williams, Jason Roascio, Nik Soza and Ryan Shorey earned top
honors when they clocked a school-record time of 3:21.74 at
Friday’s finals
GILROY
Despite a rather strong track history, San Benito High hasn’t had a section champion in quite a while.
“I’ve never had a section champ before,” coach Iran White said Friday at the Central Coast Section Championships at Garcia-Elder Sports Complex in Gilroy.
It’s been 10 years for the boys and six years for the girls, to be exact.
Well, at least it had been.
Courtney Allen took first in the girls’ 1,600-meter event with a late push on the straight-away to set a personal-record time of 4:59.08, while the boys’ 4×400 team of Justin Williams, Jason Roascio, Nik Soza and Ryan Shorey earned top honors when they blasted past Bellarmine and clocked a school-record time of 3:21.74 at Friday’s finals.
Both advance to this Friday’s state trials at Buchanan High School in Clovis and both end a section-title drought at SBHS – the last CCS championship came in 2003 when Naomi Ruiz won the girls discus event with a toss of 132-2.
“It feels great to be on top,” said Soza, the lone member of the 4×400 relay team who didn’t compete in another event on Friday.
Teammates Williams, Roascio and Shorey, as well as Mitchell Cook, competed in the 4×100 relay and earned a sixth-place medal in 43.35.
Waiting around all evening for about four hours, though, Soza instead snuck in a cat nap prior to the race and recorded a 50.87 split during the third leg of the 4×400 relay.
“Last year, we barely finished in third,” Soza said. “This year, we had everyone beat. There were no mistakes.”
Miscues marred last year’s CCS finals, which ended on a sour note for the Balers. After the 4×400 relay recorded a 3:23.97 to finish third and subsequently qualify toward state, the foursome was later disqualified after committing two infractions – both of which involved runners accidentally leaving their assigned lanes for more than three steps.
“This was a best-case scenario with what happened last year,” White said. “They wanted to vindicate that.”
“It’s redemption,” said Shorey, who also ran in the 400 meters but finished with a seventh-place time of 49.90.
“It’s our second chance.”
Coming together for the first time at the Tri-County Athletic League Championships just three meets ago – each of the four relay members have battled injuries this season – the 4×400 foursome has broken the school record three meets in a row now, with its latest 3:21.74 seeding them 19th out of 30 teams at state.
“We’re hoping to make it four, and I don’t see why it can’t be four,” said Shorey, who recorded a 49.26 on the final leg.
“We know we can break 3:20.”
White actually dreamt of San Benito breaking 3:17, a time that would place them in the top 10 in the state of California.
“We just keep on peaking for some reason,” Soza said. “We keep progressing and I think at state we’re gonna be even better.”
Considering the four Balers haven’t each delivered personal-record split times in the same relay, the foursome feels the sky is the limit.
“We should all improve by half a second each, easy,” said Williams, who ran the first leg in 52.25.
“I’m just proud of all these guys. They worked real hard for this. I’m just happy I can do my part.”
San Benito’s nearest competitor on Friday was Bellarmine, but the Bells weren’t much of a threat. After Soza grabbed the lead on the third leg, the Balers cruised to beat the Bells (3:22.76) by more than a second.
“There was a little pressure,” said the second-leg Roascio, who clocked a 49.34. “But it was a good pressure.”
Allen sticks to plan, takes first in 1,600
Courtney Allen felt the pressure in the 1,600. The senior Lady Baler was nearly boxed in by her competitors on the inside lane, leading to a bloodied knee after she was spiked by another harrier.
“I tried to get out before getting boxed in,” Allen said. “I knew people were coming on pretty strong and I wanted to get out …”
Surging forward ahead of the pack, Allen took the lead out of the first turn of the final lap, and held a narrow gap over Mountain View’s Allison Sturges.
“I didn’t think this was gonna happen. I just tried to make it to state,” Allen said. “My strategy was just to stay behind that first girl (Sturges).”
But Allen found herself behind once again when Sturges grabbed a narrow lead on the final turn, eventually leading to a neck-and-neck home stretch that drew a gasp from the crowd when the two distance runners made contact by linking elbows with just 20 meters to go.
“It felt like she was moving in and trying to push me outward, and I didn’t want that to happen,” said Allen, who beat Sturges by just 24 one-hundredths of a second. “I think we accidentally linked arms because we were trying to sprint in. It’s not like I meant to do it. I was just trying to sprint my way in and break five minutes.”
Distance coach Jess Morales said Allen is the first of his runners to break five minutes. In fact, Morales actually reviewed tape of the CCS Trials the week prior, and broke the 1,600-meter event down to a science, noting where each of the top competitors “make their move” on the final lap.
“Courtney knew everything she was gonna do and what she was gonna counter with,” Morales said. “It came down to the straight-away, and that’s exactly what Courtney saw on the video. It came down to the last 10 feet and it was about who wanted it more, [Sturges] or Courtney.
“I knew Courtney had it. She had that kick and she wanted it more.”
Previously scratching from the 400, Allen wanted to drop out of the 800 as well after she put forth nearly all of her energy into the mile race. But CCS rules state, Allen said, that runners must scratch with 24 hours notice.
Allen ran the 800, and finished in eighth place in 2:20.88.
“I wasn’t here for the 800,” Allen said. “I was here for the mile. That was my main focus.”
Martinez’ throw falls just short of state cut
Frankie Martinez, meanwhile, missed the state cut by just 40 inches in the discus event. Finishing fourth, the junior thrower recorded a toss of 155-03 on the second of his six throws, and placed behind Jeffrey Butler of St. Francis (158-07).
Martinez said he was confident going in, but was surprised after two of his opponents set personal-record throws.
“But they did there best and I did my best, too,” said Martinez, who still has another year compete. “I was hoping for that state spot, and hopefully I’ll get that next year.”
BOYS
TEAM
1, St. Francis (Mountain View), 47; 2, San Mateo, 30; 3, Evergreen Valley, 26; 4, Junipero Serra, 25; 5, Santa Cruz, 24; 6, Gilroy, 20; 7, Mitty, 19; 8, Wilcox, 18; 9, Sobrato, 16; 9, Independence, 16; 11, San Benito (Hollister), 15; 12, St. Ignatius College Prep, 14; 13, Willow Glen, 13; 14, Aptos, 12; 14, Pioneer, 12; 14, Andrew Hill, 12; 17, Salinas, 11; 18, Bellarmine College Prep, 10; 18, Oak Grove, 10; 18, Half Moon Bay, 10; 21, Mt. Pleasant, 9.50; 22, Archbishop Riordan, 9; 23, Carlmont, 8; 23, Gunn, 8; 23, Valley Christian (San Jose), 8; 23, Silver Creek, 8; 23, Monterey, 8; 23, Mountain View, 8; 23, Piedmont Hills, 8; 30, Overfelt, 6; 30, Milpitas, 6; 30, Santa Teresa, 6; 30, Branham, 6; 30, Westmoor, 6; 30, Palo Alto, 6; 30, Scotts Valley, 6; 30, Everett Alvarez, 6; 38, Burlingame, 4; 39, Monte Vista Chr., 2; 39, Westmont, 2; 41, Palma, 1.50; 42, Seaside, 1; 42, Carmel, 1; 42, Pacific Grove, 1; 42, Woodside, 1.
INDIVIDUAL
4×100 – 1, St. Francis (Mountain View), 41.68; 2, Junipero Serra, 42.13; 3, Evergreen Valley, 43.06; 4, Santa Cruz, 43.19; 5, Scotts Valley, 43.20; 6, San Benito (Hollister), 43.35; 7, Palma, 43.44; 8, Mitty, 43.52. 1,600 – 1, Nohe Lema, Willow Glen, 4:15.42; 2, Rylan Hunt, Aptos, 4:19.98; 3, Greg Innes, St. Ignatius Col, 4:20.71; 4, Rogan Meza, Burlingame, 4:21.35; 5, Weston Strum, Pioneer, 4:22.49; 6, Valentino Julien, Willow Glen, 4:23.18; 7, Kyle Rae, Bellarmine, 4:23.82; 8, Nati Wolde, Willow Glen, 4:23.86; 9, Alex Cagwin, Bellarmine, 4:24.82; 10, Eric Safai, Los Altos, 4:25.94; 11, Alan Menezes, Saratoga, 4:29.31; 12, Max Bell, 4:31.14. 110 Hurdles – 1, Peter Guenther, Gilroy, 14.68; 2, Marcus Romo, Wilcox, 14.94; 3, Jeffrey Campbell, Mitty, 14.98; 4, John Paul Williams, Westmoor, 15.11; 5, Carter Lyman, St. Francis, 15.16; 6, Nolan O’Dowd, Santa Teresa, 15.30; 7, Christian Cusella, Los Gatos, 15.31; –, John Prader, Salinas, FS. 400 – 1, Josh Tran, Independence, 49.20; 2, Jaquelle Thompson, Piedmont Hills, 49.39; 3, Benjamin Knight, Overfelt, 49.47; 4, Winton Nguyen, Milpitas, 49.66; 5, Justin Montgomery, Bellarmine, 49.68; 6, Alex Craig, Woodside, 49.72; 7, Ryan Shorey, San Benito, 49.90; 8, Isaiah Dugall, Mt. Pleasant, 51.85. 100 – 1, Kendall Spencer, San Mateo, 10.68; 2, Zeke Sanders, Santa Cruz, 10.84; 3, Parnit Sainion, Andrew Hill, 10.87; 4, Glyn Borel, St. Francis, 10.91; 5, Don Andre Clark, Serra, 11.07; 6, Nate Harvey, Serra, 11.08; 7, Phillip Depond, St. Francis, 11.10; 8, Charles Chisom, Gunn, 11.16. 800 – 1, Nathan Strum, Pioneer, 1:54.84; 2, Jake Arveson, Monterey, 1:55.45; 3, Kevin Jani, Branham, 1:55.74; 4, Alan Rios, Sobrato, 1:55.74; 5, Ryan Thomas, Evergreen Valey, 1:57.18; 6, David Perez, Salinas, 1:57.75; 7, Kian Banks, Saratoga, 1:58.34; 8, Steven Nichols, Independence, 2:03.81. 300 Hurdles – 1, Peter Guenther, Gilroy, 38.16; 2, Jeffrey Campbell, Mitty, 38.20; 3, Mike Skinner, Everett Alvarez, 38.98; 4, Nolan O’Dowd, Santa Teresa, 39.14; 5, Phillip Depond, St. Francis, 39.22; 6, Michael Vickers, Carmel, 39.62; 7, Ryo Kubozono, Cupertino, 39.95; 8, Alex Meldrum, Sobrato, 40.08. 200 – 1, Kendall Spencer, San Mateo, 21.72; 2, Zeke Sanders, Santa Cruz, 22.11; 3, Parnit Sainion, Andrew Hill, 22.19; 4, Charles Chisom, Gunn, 22.57; 5, Winton Nguyen, Milpitas, 22.58; 6, Dominik Arbet, Westmont, 22.91; 7, Don Andre Clark, Serra, 23.00; 8, Byron Marshall, Valley Christian, 23.24. 3,200 – 1, Lance Wolfsmith, Sobrato, 9:07.10, 2, Garrett Rowe, Mountain View, 9:08.17; 3, Philip Macquitty, Palo Alto, 9:10.93; 4, Mitch Moriarty, Aptos, 9:11.57; 5, Nohe Lema, Willow Glen, 9:12.89; 6, Paul Summers, Gunn, 9:13.68; 7, Will Geiken, Los Gatos, 9:20.86; 8, Daniel Filipcik, Woodside, 9:21.73; 9, Lawrence Smith, Bellarmine, 9:24.50; 10, Marcos Hinojosa, Bellarmine, 9:28.53; 11, Skyler Cummins, Palo Alto, 9:37.67; 12, Tyre Johnson, Palma, 9:43.06. 4×400 – 1, San Benito (Hollister), 3:21.74; 2, Bellarmine College Prep, 3:22.76; 3, Independence, 3:22.77; 4, Scotts Valley, 3:23.35; 5, Sobrato, 3:23.85; 6, St. Francis (Mountain View), 3:23.88; 7, Mitty, 3:24.37; 8, Mt. Pleasant, 3:28.36. High Jump – 1, Frank Lima, Half Moon Bay, 6-06.00; 2, Derion Taylor, Evergreen Valley, 6-04.00; 3, Dalyn Pacheco, Serra, 6-04.00; 4, Aaron Thompson, Riordan, 6-04.00; 4, Marcus Anderson, Gunn, 6-04.00; 6, Greg Talley, Westmont, 6-02.00; 7, Lasjohn Johnson, St. Franci, 6-00.00; 7, Jake Davis, King City, 6-00.00. Pole Vault – 1, John Prader, Salinas, 15-10.00; 2, Fedor Garin, Carlmont, 15-06.00; 3, Chris Bet, Serra, 15-02.00; 4, Shawn Toney, St. Francis, 15-02.00; 5, John Tran, Mt. Pleasant, 14-06.00; 5, Alex Bassi, Palma, 14-06.00; 7, Andy Curry, Soquel, 14-00.00; 8, Eric Dill, St. Ignatius Col, 13-06.00. Long Jump – 1, Kendall Spencer, San Mateo, 23-05.50; 2, Byron Marshall, Valley Christian, 22-06.50; 3, Aaron Thompson, Riordan, 22-06.50; 4, Lasjohn Johnson, St. Francis, 22-00.00; 5, Aaron Feliciano, Westmoor, 21-09.00; 6, Nick Pfeiffer, Pacific Grove, 21-08.50; 7, Anthony Andrighetto, St. Francis, 21-03.50; 8, Marcus Romo, Wilcox, 20-09.50. Triple Jump – 1, Derion Taylor, Evergreen Valley, 47-03.50; 2, Lasjohn Johnson, St. Francis, 46-01.50; 3, Vanera Chuun, Mt. Pleasant, 46-00.50; 4, Taylor Kientzel, Santa Cruz, 45-08.00; 5, Dalyn Pacheco, Serra, 44-02.00; 6, Everett Dailey, Mitty, 42-10.00; 7, Oscar Pearson, Alisal, 42-04.50. Discus – 1, Derek White, Oak Grove, 162-09; 2, CJ Nwuzi, Silver Creek, 162-05; 3, Jeffrey Butler, St. Francis, 158-07; 4, Frankie Martinez, San Benito, 155-03; 5, Seth Mazerik, M.V.C., 153-04; 6, Chris Smith, Santa Teresa, 149-10; 7, Laurence Duterte, Mitty, 147-08; 8, Erik Kramer, Mills, 145-07. Shot Put – 1, Anthony Pohahau, Wilcox, 52-11.00; 2, Dom Pasquali, St. Ignatius Col, 51-06.00; 3, Jeffrey Butler, St. Francis, 51-03.50; 4, Nathan Wright, Mitty, 50-04.00; 5, Benny Nava, Mt. Pleasant, 49-08.00; 6, Gino Catugda, Seaside, 48-04.00; 7, Tevita Lataimua, Mills, 48-01.00; 8, Paul Marcroft, Palma, 46-05.00.
GIRLS
TEAM
1, Leland, 39; 2, Gunn, 35; 3, St. Francis (Mountain View, 33; 4, Valley Christian (San Jose), 26; 5, Saratoga, 24; 6, Wilcox, 22; 6, Mt. Pleasant, 22; 6, Prospect, 22; 9, Leigh, 21; 10, Carlmont, 20; 10, Pinewood, 20; 10, Aptos, 20; 13, Mitty, 18; 14, Santa Teresa, 16; 14, Homestead, 16; 16, Mountain View, 15; 17, Willow Glen, 14; 18, Half Moon Bay, 11; 19, San Benito (Hollister), 10; 19, Evergreen Valley, 10; 21, St. Ignatius College Prep, 9; 22, Castilleja, 8; 22, Hillsdale, 8; 22, Monta Vista, 8; 22, Pioneer, 8; 26, Lynbrook, 7; 27, Presentation, 5; 27, Los Altos, 5; 29, San Lorenzo Valley, 4; 29, Westmont, 4; 31, Burlingame, 3; 32, Sequoia, 2; 32, North Salinas, 2; 32, Gilroy, 2; 32, Santa Cruz, 2; 32, Live Oak, 2; 37, Cupertino, 1; 37, Menlo-Atherton, 1; 37, Santa Clara, 1.
INDIVIDUAL
4×100 – 1, Evergreen Valley, 48.89; 2, St. Francis (Mountain View), 49.02; 3, Mt. Pleasant, 49.07; 4, Mitty, 49.08; 5, Burlingame, 49.17; 6, Monta Vista, 49.55; 7, Presentation, 49.87; 8, North Salinas, 50.09. 1,600 – 1, Courtney Allen, San Benito, 4:59.08; 2, Allison Sturges, Mountain View, 4:59.32; 3, Erin Robinson, Gunn, 5:02.24; 4, Toni Sarge, Pioneer, 5:08.74; 5, Mary Reynolds, Mountain View, 5:12.50; 6, Morgan Healy, St. Francis, 5:15.21; 7, Marissa Ferrante, Aptos, 5:16.46; 8, Jean Feng, Monta Vista, 5:16.79; 9, Melissa Hastings, Hillsdale, 5:17.94; 10, Erin Hicks, Los Altos, 5:21.14; 11, Kim McMullen, Aptos, 5:23.39; 12, Kristine Talbot, Mountain View, 5:30.89. 100 Hurdles – 1, Hannah Goranson, Valley Christian, 14.27; 2, Katie Nelms, Leland, 14.33; 3, Mariah Rogers, Prospect, 14.56; 4, Mina Alexis, St. Ignatius Col, 14.96; 5, Sunny Margerum, Gunn, 15.03; 6, Symone Evans, Leigh, 15.05; 7, Kira Rienecker, Pioneer, 15.58; 8, Lia Randazzo, Evergreen Valley, 16.54. 400 – 1, Iesha Hardiman, Wilcox, 56.11; 2, Lauren Irish, Half Moon Bay, 56.74; 3, Shanie Landen, St. Francis, 56.90; 4 Jenna Davis, Valley Christian, 57.35; 5, Natasha Sakaller, Monta Vista, 57.94; 6, Emily Andrew, Mountain View, 58.09; 7, Erica Arenas, Evergreen Valley, 58.83; 8, Courtney Kimmey, Los Gatos, 58.83. 100 – 1, Angela Gradiska, Pinewood, 11.76; 2, Katie Nelms, Leland, 11.95; 3, Andrea Martinez, Willow Glen, 12.18; 4, Mariah Rogers, Prospect, 12.35; 5, Anita Crumlin, Monta Vista, 12.46; 6, Dominique Greene, Menlo-Atherton, 12.53; 7, Brittney Wright, Presentation, 12.57; 8, Ivy Gates; Los Altos, 12.84. 800 – 1, Justine Fedronic, Carlmont, 2:12.81; 2, Jordan Diaz, Leigh, 2:13.75; 3, Cindy Huang, Lynbrook, 2:13.96; 4, Tori Tsolis, Presentation, 2:14.59; 5, Elle Sanders, Santa Cruz, 2:15.15; 6, Kieran Gallagher, Gunn, 2:15.36; 7, Melina Shak, Milpitas, 2:17.86; 8, Courtney Allen, San Benito, 2:20.88. 300 Hurdles – 1, Katie Nelms, Leland, 43.39; 2, Libby Cooper, Castilleja, 44.14; 3, Mariah Rogers, Prospect, 44.28; 4, Christine Ristow, Westmont, 44.52; 5, Sunny Margerum, Gunn, 44.58; 6, Allison Daley, Burlingame, 45.04; 7, Emily Gordon, Santa Clara, 45.07; 8, Lisa Erkander, Mountain View, 45.86. 200 – 1, Angela Gradiska, Pinewood, 24.05; 2, Andrea Martinez, Willow Glen, 24.99; 3, Iesha Hardiman, Wilcox, 25.13; 4, Natasha Sakaller, Monta Vista, 25.48; 4, Lauren Irish, Half Moon Bay, 25.48; 6, Cherrelle Mcmillian, Valley Christian, 25.85; 7, Sarah Edwards, S.L.V., 25.97; 8, Dominique Greene, Menlo-Atherton, 26.09. 3,200 – 1, Jessie Petersen, Carlmont, 10:51.24; 2, Stephanie Barnett, Leland, 11:06.04; 3, Allegra Mayer, Gunn, 11:07.51; 4, Katy Daly, St. Ignatius Col, 11:11.88; 5, Kathleen Miller, Gilroy, 11:13.99; 6, Jennifer Bergman, Valley Christian, 11:14.48; 7, Samantha Garcia, Evergreen Valley, 11:27.91; 8, Lisa Fawcett, Gunn, 11:29.94; 9, Jean Feng, Monta Vista, 11:31.10; 10, Abby Barker, Carlmont, 11:34.37; 11, Marissa Ferrante, Aptos, 11:54.60; 12, Melissa Hastings, Hillsdale, 11:59.64. 4×400 – 1, Valley Christian (San Jose), 3:55.46; 2, St. Francis (Mountain View), 3:57.18; 3, Mitty, 3:57.89; 4, Mountain View, 3:58.00; 5, Mt. Pleasant, 4:00.81; 6, Leland, 4:01.66; 7, Burlingame, 4:05.90; 8, King’s Academy, 4:21.18. High Jump – 1, Kiersten Dolbec, Saratoga, 5-06.00; 2, Julia McCarthy, Aptos, 5-04.00; 3, Nikki Myashita, Aptos, 5-04.00; 4, Kristin Rimbach, Los Altos, 5-02.00; 5, Stephanie Armstrong, Live Oak, 5-02.00; 6, Emily Sklar, Presentation, 5-02.00; 7, Morgan Rumzie, Westmont, 5-00.00; 7, Sarah Unadia, Gilroy, 5-00.00. Pole Vault – 1, Christina Roche, St. Francis, 10-06.00; 2, Alison Ang, Gunn, 10-06.00; 3, Thresa Vinson, Aptos, 10-00.00; 4, Amanda Lackides, S.L.V., 10-00.00; 5, Rachel Bolton, Homestead, 10-00.00; 6, Maddy Collins, St. Ignatius Col, 9-06.00; 6, Jade Batstone, St. Ignatius Col, 9-06.00; 8, Marissa Engle, Homestead, 9-06.00; 8, Colette L’Heureux, Santa Clara, 9-06.00; 10, Nikita Kadam, Mt. Pleasant, 9-06.00. Long Jump – 1, Sunny Margerum, Gunn, 18-01.25; 2, Ailene Nguyen, Saratoga, 17-09.75; 3, Mariah Rogers, Prospect, 17-09.25; 4, Symone Evans, Leigh, 17-02.50; 5, Lauren Chin, Leland, 16-09.75; 6, Laura Whittaker, Santa Clara, 16-04.75; 7, Caity Michels, Notre Dame Salinas, 16-01.00; –, Kira Rienecker, Pioneer, FOUL. Triple Jump – 1, Cydney Leath, Mt. Pleasant, 39-04.25; 2, Symone Evans, Leigh, 37-06.25; 3, Ailene Nguyen, Saratoga, 36-08.25; 4, Tianna Carter, Mt. Pleasant, 36-07.00; 5, Lauren Chin, Leland, 35-08.00; 6, Diana Lee, Lynbrook, 34-05.50; 7, Amy Woo, North Salinas, 34-04.50; 8, Maria Suarez, Alisal, 34-04.00. Discus – 1, Jillian Weir, Homestead, 133-03; 2, Quinta Ekong, Hillsdale, 133-01; 3, Meagan McKee, Santa Teresa, 127-06; 4, Mercedes Pardo, Pioneer, 125-07; 5, Mele Langi, Sequoia, 124-01; 6, Michelle Chung, Cupertino, 123-09; 7, Briona Sullen, North Salinas, 121-09; 8 Mele Pentitani, St. Francis, 107-09. Shot Put – 1, Meagan McKee, Santa Teresa, 42-11.50; 2, Elizabeth Gordon, Mitty, 41-01.50; 3, Myeesha Hardiman, Wilcox, 38-11.75; 4, Jillian Weir, Homestead, 38-11.00; 5, Briona Sullen, North Salinas, 38-09.25; 6, Paige Logan, Los Altos, 38-05.00; 7, Nikki Uikilifi, Mills, 37-04.00; 8, Ana Kilikiti, Sequoia, 36-04.00.
