2015: Marks, Weather Terrific in San Diego Section Track Finals
The stars shone in the afternoon yesterday as two meet records fell and seasonal bests were set or tied in 19 boys and girls events in the 55th San Diego Section track and field championships.
Perfect weather at the pristine Mt. Carmel facility made it a great day for the athletes and the aficionado.
It’s on to the state meet Friday and Saturday at Buchanan High in Clovis. There are no predictions of individual champions, but there should be many medals for the taking.
The area improved slightly against statewide competition (see table below), even with two major casualties.
Mount Miguel weight champion Laulauga Tausaga, third in the state at 156 feet, 7 inches, fouled out in the discus. Tausaga rallied strongly with a 48-3 1/2 shot put, putting her second in the state, and setting a meet record.
Cathedral’s Hanna Labrie-Smith was far in front and seemingly headed for a sub 42-second performance on the 300 hurdles when she began having trouble with her number of steps between hurdles as the field came out of the curve.
Labrie-Smith tried to compensate as she struggled down the stretch but crashed into the final barrier and went unplaced.
Dani Johnson, Labrie-Smith’s younger teammate, doubled in the hurdles, edging Valhalla’s Leah Molter in the 100 barriers, :13.991 to :13.99.6 (officially :14.00 for each) and logging :42.14 in the 300s.
Molter, coming strong late in the season with better marks almost every week, backed up Johnson with a :42.55 for second in the 300.
Labrie-Smith rallied with a :55.5 anchor as Cathedral came home in 3:49.54 for a meet record in the 4×100 relay. The Dons appear capable of slashing more time off that mark.
Others who got people’s attention:
St. Augustine junior Tanner Batthika, long jumped 24-2 to move to fourth in the state;
Oceanside’s Jordan Miller triple jumped from seventh to fourth with a 48-4 effort.
Jordan’s teammate, Charles Lenford, improved almost 12 feet to leap from ninth to third in the discus at 191-7.
Lenford and Miller pushed Oceanside to the team title. The Pirates outscored Morse, 83-49.
Nia Akins of Rancho Bernardo ran the fifth all-time fastest 800 in San Diego, winning in 2:09.07 and moving to second in the state. The Broncos won the Girls’ team title with 69 1/2 points. Steele Canyon, third in the boys with 47, was topsecond with 54.
State events in which San Diego athletes are in Top 10:
GIRLS
| EVENT | NAME | SCHOOL | MARK | STATE | NAME | SCHOOL |
| 100 | Acolatse (4) | Mission Hills | :11.46w | :11.24w | Francis | Oxnard Rio Mesa |
| 200 | Acolatse (7) | :23.69 | :22.68w | Williams | Westlake Village Oaks Christian | |
| 800 | Akins (2) | Rancho Bernardo | 2:09.07 | 2:08.44 | Smith | Clovis North |
| 100 Hurdles | Johnson (10T) | Cathedral | :14.00w | :13.21 | Graham | Corona Eleanor Roosevelt |
| Molter (10T) | Valhalla | :14.00w | ||||
| 300H | Johnson (3) | :42.14 | :41.10 | Woodward | Vacaville | |
| Molter (8) | :42.55 | |||||
| Labrie-Smith (9)* | Cathedral | :42.62 | ||||
| Shot Put | Tausaga (2) | Mount Miguel | 48-3 1/2 | 53-5 ½ | Bruckner | San Jose Valley Christian |
| Discus | Tausaga (4)* | 156-7 | 182-8 | Bruckner | ||
| 4×400 Relay | Cathedral (9) | 3:49.54 | 3:44.76 | Corona Eleanor Roosevelt |
BOYS
| EVENT | NAME | SCHOOL | MARK | STATE | NAME | SCHOOL |
| Shot Put | Lenford (4) | Oceanside | 61-8 | 71-11 ½ | Katnik | Bellflower San John Bosco |
| Discus | Lenford (3) | 191-7 | 194-8 | McMorris | Santa Ana Mater Dei | |
| Pole Vault | Zawadski (8T) | Patrick Henry | 15-7 | 16-3 ¼ | Laut | El Dorado Hills Oak Ridge |
| High Jump | Morris | Steel Canyon | 6-9 | 7-0 | Burke | Lemoore |
| Long Jump | Batthika (4) | St. Augustine | 24-2 | 24-10 ½ | Vann | Oxnard Rio Mesa |
| Triple Jump | Jordan Miller (4) | Oceanside | 48-4 | 49-9 ¾ | Huggins | Kingsburg |
*Did not qualify for state meet.