Boys 4×400 relay team sets season-best time at Los Gatos Top 8,
finishes first at prestigious meet
Los Gatos
The San Benito boys 4×400 relay team lived up to their top-spot standing at the Central Coast Section Top 8 Track and Field Classic last Friday, as they broke yet another mark and continue to raise the bar amongst their competitors.
The relay foursome, made up of Jamil Taylor, Ryan Shorey, Ian Bambrick and Nik Soza, set a season best time when they clocked 3:25.55 at the Top 8 meet, and took first place among 15 teams.
“They looked great,” boys coach Iran White said. “There were some little things that let us know that we’ve got more in us. It’s still the top mark in the CCS.”
The 4×400 team entered the Top 8 meet at Los Gatos High School with the best time already in the section – a 3:26.69 at the West Valley Relays on March 22 – making their Top 8 mark an improvement of more than a second.
Riordan, which entered with the second best 4×400 time in the CCS – at 3:27.26 – finished in second at the Top 8 with a 3:29.40.
“At the beginning of the season, it was their goal to make state, and they have a shot,” White said of his 4×400 team. “It looks pretty good right now, but there’s still a long way to go.”
The first-place finish for the relay team earned San Benito 10 points, and the ‘Balers finished ninth out of 43 teams with 17 points.
Host Los Gatos took first with 75 points.
The Lady ‘Balers, led by a personal-record time from Courtney Allen in the 3,200 meters and a fourth-place finish from Lila Yoldi in the shot put, took 28th out 39 teams with four points.
Milpitas was tops at the Top 8 with 45 points.
Yoldi’s throw of 36-02 1/2 in the shot put placed her fourth and earned San Benito four team points.
Allen, who although finished seventh in the 3,200, did take a whopping 35 seconds off her previous best time with an 11:30.39. Allen set a personal record in the 800 as well, shedding four seconds off her time with a 2:20.60.
Girls coach Laurie Cottrell could not be reached at press time.
The Top 8 meet came just one day after San Benito’s league dual meet against rival Gilroy. Said White, “It’s pretty tough to go back-to-back meets.”
The Haybalers’ 4×100 team of Mitchell Cook, Shorey, Taylor and Chris Koroluk took fourth at Los Gatos with a PR time 43.80, while Austin Schmidt in the long jump (5th, 20-11 1/4) and Shorey in the 400 (6th, 50.31) earned points for San Benito as well.
San Benito will host North Salinas in a dual meet Thursday. With North Salinas matching San Benito’s record against league teams so far this season, White calls the meet the “biggest dual” to date.
Meet time is 3:30 p.m.
Girls
800 – 7, C. Allen, 2:20.60. 3,200 – 7, C. Allen, 11:30.39. 4×100 – 10, San Benito, 51.79. 4×400 – 9, San Benito, 4:16.10. Shot put – 4, L. Yoldi, 36-02 1/2; 10, S. Yoldi, 31-10 1/2.
Boys
200 – 8, R. Shorey, 23.19. 400 – 6, R. Shorey, 50.61. 800 – 15, A. Smith, 2:04.11; 18, I. Bambrick, 2:05.89. 110 hurdles – 7, E. McFadden, 15.70; 8, A. Schmidt, 15.90. 300 hurdles – 7, A. Schmidt, 41.50. 4×100 – 4, San Benito, 43.80. 4×400 – 1, San Benito, 3:25.55. Pole vault – 8, B. Gonzalez, 13-0. Long jump – 5, A. Schmidt, 20-11 1/4; 10, C. Koroluk, 18-08 1/2. Triple jump – 7, J. Bryant, 40-04 3/4.
