Monthly Archives: April 2014

Race Reports

2014 San Gabriel Valley Championships

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The ninth edition of this meet took place for the first time at San Dimas High School on a blustery day.  Thirty-nine schools competed for the SGV title on a day of strong competition that saw seven Varsity meet records and 55 Top-Ten performances.

The Athletes of the Meet were Pomona senior Britney Mitchell and Damien junior Thaddeus Smith.  Britney had solid wins in both hurdle races, and her 44.71 in the 300 hurdles took down a record held by 2012 Olympian Cori Carter of Claremont.  Thaddeus went home with four first place medals, with wins in the 100m (11.04) and 200m (22.19) – both into negative winds), and first in both relays, with a 42.87 meet record in the 4×100.

Arcadia were the strongest team performers, easily winning the Girls Varsity and Boys Frosh/Soph titles, and edging Glendora in the Girls Frosh/Soph division.  The Apache Varsity were led by a meet record in the 4×100 (47.93) and 4×400 (3:53.37), along with wins from Veronica Yamane in the 1600 (5:02.46, #2 All-Time in this meet) and Kyra White who defended her title in the 20om (25.74 into a -3.5 wind).

Girls Varsity records were set by Susie Garza (Sr, Baldwin Park) with a dominating 2:17.61 in the 800m, and Britney Mitchell. India Hines (Jr, La Salle) was also under the old 300 hurdles record, just .03 behind Britney in one of the best races of the day.  Claire Kieffer-Wright (Sr, South Pasadena) also turned in a strong day with wins in the high jump (5’10”) and 400m (57.86) just off the meet record.  The girls 400m was probably the strongest event, with five finishers ranking in the meet’s All-Time Top Ten.

Damien and Walnut came down to the last event for the Boys Varsity team title, with the Spartans edging the Mustangs 97-87.  Damien scored in 14 events with six wins while Walnut scored in eleven events with one win.

The Varsity meet records are very strong, so there were only two new entries, Damien’s 4×100 and Arcadia soph Phillip Rocha defending his 3200m title with a MR 9:11.15.  His senior teammate Josh Ji defended his titles in the Shot (53’5″) and Discus (142’7″), while the strongest race of the day saw Estevan de la Rosa lead five men under 4:20 with his 4:13.50 win in the 1600m.

In the Frosh/Soph division, the most notable performances came in the boys 800m and the girls Pole Vault.  Schurr soph Abraxaz Sanchez was nearly 9 seconds below his seed in winning the two lapper in 1:56.88, a mark that would have ranked second in the Varsity race.  Even better was Karlly Feng (So, Temple City).  Her Frosh/Soph meet record jump of 10’3″ was 11″ better than the varsity winner.

So it was a great day for our sport and our athletes.  We’ll look forward to the 10th edition of this Championship on Saturday, April 25, 2015.

The Numbers

 

Previews

2014 SGV Champs Preview

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This is the Ninth Annual edition of this regional championship, contested by the schools of the (broadly defined) San Gabriel Valley.  We are bounded by the Mountains on the north, the County Line on the East, the 5 Freeway on the South, and the LA City boundary on the West.  Thirty-nine schools will compete this year and we especially want to welcome newcomers Norwalk, Diamond Ranch and Schurr.

The meet was first contested at Walnut, and then Citrus and then we were at West Covina for the next six years – and we’re grateful for their partnership.  This year, we are happy to hold our Championships at San Dimas High School in their new stadium and on their Mondo track, which allows out athletes to compete on the same ideal track surface used for CIF Finals and the California State Meet.

Returning Champs

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Emily Hoey

 The Glendora Girls are two time defending team champs, but Arcadia and Walnut look like the favorites to lift the team trophy.  Los Altos were the 2013 Boys Champs with a senior heavy team.  Damien, Walnut and Arcadia should contend for the team title

The Covina boys and Glendora girls were big winners in the Frosh/Soph division last year.

We have a number of returning champs…

In the sprints and hurdles, Pomona Catholic’s Araya Williams returns in the 100m, while Kyra White (Sr, Arcadia) will defend in both the 200m and 400m.  Pomona senior Britney Mitchell will face a stiff challenge to defend the 100m hurdles crown.

In the distances – Aracadia soph Phillip Rocha will defend in the 3200m while Emily Hoey (Sr, Glendora) will look to win both the 800m and 1600m again.

Arcadia’s Josh Ji was a double winner in the throws last year, and Britney Johnson (Sr, Glendora) returns to defend her long jump, triple jump double.  In the shot, Muir senior Tierra Adams returns with a seasonal best of 43’7”, which ranks her #5 All-Time in the SGV and is well beyond the meet record.

Notable Performers

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Josh Ji

Besides Tierra & Josh, we have six entries that are superior to the Meet Record: Keeya Cotlage (Muir) 110m Hurdles, Claire Kieffer-Wright (South Pasadena) 400m & high jump, Susie Garza (Baldwin Park) 800m, Estevan de la Rosa (Arcadia) 3200m, and the Arcadia girls 4×400, and the record is in danger in eight other events.

Rankings: Rocha is 9th in the State in the 1600 and 7th in the CIF-SS and De La Rosa is 5th CA & 2nd CIF in the 3200.  Kieffer-Wright is the State leader (and SGV record holder) in the high jump, and Adams is 10th CA & 8th CIF.

 

San Dimas High School is at 800 W. Covina Blvd.  Spectators may enter walk through the school and enter the Northwest gate or park on the south side of the school on Cypress Ave and enter through the southwest gate.

Admission is $5 and the first event is at 10:00am

 

Rankings

SGV Rankings: Walnut Back on Top, Sydney Mosley is 5th AT!

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We have a new boys team leader, three new event leaders and one change in the All-Time list as we finish the Big Invite portion of the track season.

DSC_0290WEB-965x1024The main action was at the massive Mt.SAC Relays – we are really fortunate to have two of the top high school tracks in the country right here in the SGV!  The top performance came from Monrovia junior Sydney Mosey – her 13.88 in the 100m Hurdles placed her third in the Invite race, and she moved from 9th to 5th on the SGV All Time Performers List.  Her teammate, senior Cravon Gillespie was 2nd in the Invite 100m with a wind-aided 10.69.  In other top finishes at Mt.SAC, SGV record holder Claire Kieffer-Wright (Sr, South Pasadena) as 2nd/5’10” in the high jump, the Monrovia girls were 3rd/47.42 in the 4×100 Relay, improving their SGV seasonal leading mark, and Eric Knowles (Sr, St. Francis) was 4th in the Invite Triple Jump with a PR and SGV leading 45’1-1/4″

We gained three new SGV seasonal leaders from Mt.SAC - Barrett Weiss (Jr, Flintridge Prep) regained the Pole Vault lead from his brother Gareth with a big PR 15’0″ (4th Seeded), and Michael Dondalski (Sr, Pasadena) continued his massive improvement with a 1:54.35 (2nd Seeded) finish in the 800m.  in the Girls 800, where Susie Garza (Sr, Baldwin Park) took over the SGV seasonal lead with a PR 2:16.13 (3rd Seeded).  SGV 400m leader Ross Niederhaus (Jr, St. Francis) PR’d with a 48.54 (3rd Seeded), and girls 4×400 Relay leaders Arcadia improved to 3:54.85 (6th Invite)

The Cougar Classic, after being rained out on the opening weekend, was contested last weekend with an understandably diminished field.  SGV athletes won most of the events, with notable performances coming from Thomas Medina (Sr, Santa Fe) 49.81/400m, Morgan Love (Jr, Charter Oak) 25.75/200m & 57.24/400m, and the Covina boys 4×400 – 3:27.51.

SGV athletes also competed at two small school meets, the Ocean View Invitational and the Russell Cup.

The Arcadia girls are holding steady at the top of the girls SGV Team Rankings.  These rankings are based on the number of places in the top ten of the 2014 San Gabriel Valley Performance List.  Following an excellent week Walnut moved back to the top of the boys rankings, with Flintridge Prep moving into the first ten for the first time.

Girls

  • 17.0 - Arcadia (Last Week: =1st/16 pts)
  • 14.0 - Walnut (2nd/12.9)
  • 11.5 - Monrovia (3rd/11.5)
  • 10.0 - South Pasadena (4th/10.4)
  • 10.5 – Glendora (5th/8.7)
  • 8.0 –  La Salle (6th/8.3)
  • 7.0 –  John Muir (7th/8)
  • 7.0 –  Bishop Amat (8th/6)
  • 5.0 –  Santa Fe (=10th/4)
  • 4.0 –  Bonita (=10th/4), Claremont (=10th/4), Flintridge Sacred Heart (=10th/4)

Boys

  • 14.0 – Walnut (Last Week: 3rd/13.0 pts.)
  • 13.0 - Damien (Last Week: 1st/13.5)
  • 12.3 - California (4th/10.4)
  • 11.1 - Arcadia (2nd/13.1)
  • 9.3 – Monrovia (6th/8.4)
  • 8.8 - Santa Fe (5th/8.8)
  • 7.0 - St. Francis (7th/8)
  • 7.0 – Covina (=8th/6.0)
  • 6.0 – Maranatha (=8th/6.0)
  • 5.0 - Glendora (=8th/6.0)
  • 5.0 - Flintridge Prep (NR)
Rankings

SGV Rankings: Claire Kieffer-Wright ties SGV Record – Damien Takes Over the Boys Lead

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pas-0308-2013-track-and-field-preview-tigers-l-001Most of the SGV’s best competed in the massive Arcadia Invitational this last weekend.  The results gave us just one new SGV leader, but three marks on the San Gabriel Valley All-Time Top Performers list that we are introducing this week.

The top performance by place and quality at Arcadia came from 2012 State Champ Claire Kieffer-Wright (Sr – South Pasadena).  Her 6’0 jump in the Invite high jump earned her second place while equaling the previous meet record and the SGV record she set in 2012.  Earlier in the day, Claire took over the SGV lead in the 400m with a PR 57.07.

There were two other All-Time performances in the Arcadia Night Meet.  Monrovia junior Sydney Mosley was 4th at 14.04 in the Invite 100m Hurdles, which makes her =8 All Time SGV.  And in the “slow” heat of the 3200m, Estaban de la Rosa (Sr – Arcadia) was the winner in the 8th All-Time SGV time of 8:56.55.  His senior teammate Veronica Yamane improved her SGV seasonal leading marks in both the 1600m & 3200m, where her 10:51.32 was a PR.  In the girls relays, Monrovia improved their SGV seasonal best with a 47.57 to win the Seeded 4x100m, and in the 4x400m, SGV leaders Arcadia dropped their best to 3:55.10 while finishing 5th in the Seeded race.

There are two other active SGV athletes on the All-Time list.  Muir’s Tierra Adams (Sr) is 5th All-Time SGV with her 43’7″ throw in the Shot at this year’s Pasadena Games.  And in the girls 1600m, Bishop Amat junior Emily Hubert holds down the 10th spot with her 5:01.45 from last year’s CIF Div. III Prelims.

You can view the entire San Gabriel Valley All-Time Performers List here: SGV All Time Performers  Please Note: This is a work in progress.  I put this together using every public record I can find, but I’ve undoubtedly missed some top marks.  Please send any additions you have to info@sgvtrackandfield.net – but please make sure any marks in the 100, 200, LJ, and TJ are wind legal.

SGV teams also competed at the South Pasadena Tiger Invitational, the Irvine Distance Carnival, and down south at the Willie Banks Invite, while fifteen seasonal Top 10 marks came from dual meet action.

Damien LogoIn the boys team rankings Damien is now the clear leader, with last week’s co #1 Walnut falling to 3rd, but only just.  All of the leaders lost ranking points, with the Spartans losing the least.  Arcadia remains best among the girls, holding a 3 point margin over Walnut, while there’s a crowd at the foot of the rankings, with five new schools entering the list at =10th.

Here are the San Gabriel Valley Team Rankings – (1 point for every Top Ten event ranking).

Boys

  • 13.5 - Damien (Last Week: =1st/15 pts)
  • 13.1 - Arcadia (3rd/14)
  • 13.0 - Walnut (=1st/15)
  • 10.4 - California (4th/10)
  • 8.8 –  Santa Fe (5th/9)
  • 8.4 –  Monrovia (=6th/8)
  • 8.0 –  St. Francis (=6th/8)
  • 6.0 –  Covina (=6th/8)
  • 6.0 –  Glendora (=9th/5)
  • 6.0 –  Maranatha (=9th/5)

Girls

  • 16.0 - Arcadia (Last Week: =1st/18 pts)
  • 12.9 - Walnut (2nd/15)
  • 11.5 - Monrovia (=3rd/12)
  • 10.4 - South Pasadena (=3rd/12)
  • 8.7 –  Glendora (=5th/9)
  • 8.3 –  La Salle (=5th/9)
  • 8.0 –  John Muir (7th/8)
  • 6.0 –  Bishop Amat (=8th/6)
  • 5.7 –  South Hills (=8th/6)
  • 4.0 –  Bonita (=8th/6), California (NR), Claremont (NR), Flintridge Sacred Heart (NR), Pomona (NR) & Santa Fe (NR)

 

Rankings

SGV Rankings: Damien/Walnut Top the Boys, Arcadia Leads the Girls

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Gareth & Barrett Weiss
Gareth & Barrett Weiss

With most teams on Spring Break, last week was a slow one for the track programs of the San Gabriel Valley.  This gave us only one new event leader.  Flintridge Prep junior Gareth Weiss, who took over the Pole Vault lead from his twin brother Barrett with a PR 14’6″ jump at the Prep League Meet #3 last Wednesday.  Among the girls, Veronica Yamane (Arcadia, SR) improved her lead in 1600m with a fine 5:05.34 in a Tri-Meet with Pasadena & Burbank.

At the big Trabuco Hills Invite, Walnut soph Kayla Richardson was 2nd in the 100m, and her junior teammate Millan Trujillo was 3rd in the Invite 3200m with a PR 9:24.16.  In San Diego at the Arnie Robinson Invite, Mountain View senior Sandra Marquez took two firsts (100m & 400m) and a 2nd (200m) and now has a SGV Top 10 Mark in all three events.

And in the team rankings, from this week forward, we’ll rank the Boys and Girls teams separately.

On the girls side, Arcadia maintains a slim margin over Walnut – both continue to be complete teams, with athletes ranked in, respectively, 12 and 11 of the 16 events we contest.  Walnut and Damien are tied at the top of the Boys rankings, with Spartans leading with ranked athletes in 10 events.

This week, the focus moves to the national Arcadia Invitational (Update: SGVTrib Group coverage here) and to a full slate of dual meets.  At Arcadia, three girls and seven boys have qualified for the prestigious night meet, along with four relays.

SGV Team Rankings – Top Ten Athletes (through April 6)

Girls

  • 18 - Arcadia
  • 15 - Walnut
  • 12 - Monrovia
  • 12 - South Pasadena
  • 9 –  Glendora
  • 9 –  La Salle
  • 8 –  John Muir
  • 6 –  Bishop Amat
  • 6 –  Bonita
  • 6 –  South Hills

Boys

  • 15 - Damien
  • 15 - Walnut
  • 14 - Arcadia
  • 10 - California
  • 9 –  Santa Fe
  • 8 –  Covina
  • 8 –  Monrovia
  • 8 –  St. Francis
  • 5 –  Glendora
  • 5 –  Maranatha
  • 5 –  South Hills