If the Hollister High girls track and field team ever gets
healthy, the Balers could dominate even more than they did at
Thursday’s Tri-County Athletic League meet vs. Notre Dame at Andy
Hardin Field.
If the Hollister High girls track and field team ever gets healthy, the Balers could dominate even more than they did at Thursday’s Tri-County Athletic League meet vs. Notre Dame at Andy Hardin Field.
The final score of 111-25 explained it all. If more credence of domination minus some talented athletes, one can look at the individual events, all of which were won by Baler performers.
Naomi Ruiz, fresh off her school-record heave of 133-0 last Saturday at the King City Invitational, came close in blustery conditions on Thursday.
Ruiz, who has the best mark in the Central Coast Section by far, won the discus at 126-3, not that far off her school record. She doubled, winning the shot with a 34-9.
“Considering her injured elbow is still hurting her, she did great,” said Baler girls coach Jennifer Logue. “That’s a good throw in the shot put, too.”
Ruiz will get a much needed rest after entering the Carmel Classic this Saturday.
“I’m pretty happy with the mark,” said Ruiz after taking the discus. “I was excited after I broke the school record. I hugged coach and jumped up in the air.”
The afternoon began shakily for the 4X100 relay team, which managed a 53.2. It was almost dq’d for a faulty pass from Kathleen McCullough to Dani Andrewson, who run the second and third legs, respectively. McCullough kept running after Andrewson, who finally had to slow down to get the baton.
“We need to work on our steps,” said McCullough. “I was worried I wouldn’t catch her.”
“I started out too fast,” added Andrewson, who pulled a quad muscle in the triple jump.
Sophomore Jamie O’Brian, who owns two of the better marks in the CCS in the 100 and 200 meters, doubled in the two sprints. O’Brian easily won the 100-yard dash in 12.61 and coasted in the 220-yard dash in 27.40.
“I want to go to state,” said O’Brian, who will have to finish in the top three at CCS to do so.
Allison Schmidt doubled in the mile (5:50) and 2-mile (13:02) without much effort.
“It’s hard for me to improve my times if I’m not pushed,” said Schmidt. “I’ll probably be pushed when we run against Salinas.”
That dual meet is May 1 in Hollister.
Not to be outdone was senior Sarah Groman. Groman cleared 5-2 to win the high jump, then added a 33-1 1/2 for first in the triple and a 16-4 in the long jump to win that. Groman, who cleared 5-4 her sophomore and junior years, has yet to hit that barrier in ’03. Five CCS high jumpers have cleared 5-5 or higher, putting Groman in a tie for sixth for now as far as current rankings go.
“I’ll clear 5-4 this year,” said Groman emphatically. “I promise.”
In a nice subplot for the Balers, junior Kristen Para PR’d in the high jump with a leap of 5-0. Para missed on her first two efforts then celebrated after the bar wobbled, but stayed afloat on her third try.
“It feels so great,” said Para, who is now a member of the ‘5-0 Club’, along with Groman and Andrewson. “I’ve been trying so long to make it.”
“Kristen is the kind of girl you root for,” said Logue. “She works hard and has a great attitude. I’m happy for her.”
Stephanie Starritt had a fine day in the pole vault, clearing 10-6, her PR. Starritt, the school record holder, barely missed at 11-0.
All in all, it was an outstanding day for the Balers, who were without freshman Amanda Boyd (ankle) and junior Lee Ann Morales (leg).
Some Balers will enter the Carmel Classic. Others will be at the Avis Kelley Meet in Gilroy Saturday. After Saturday, the rest the next two weeks should to the Baler girls some good for they’ll be well-represented at the Top 8 meet in Los Gatos on April 26.
