The California Interscholastic Federation National Track and Field Championships are going down this weekend at Buchanan High in Clovis, and the Bay Area is sending quite a few athletes to Central California who’re expected to perform well.
The trial runs will happen on Friday, the finals on Saturday.
Among the North Coast Section representatives are a couple of fastest who could compete within the boys' 100-meter dash. Paul Kuhner of Acalanes has one of the best time within the section with a time of 10.36, and Jaden Jefferson of De La Salle won the section championship after running the space in 10.46.
“It’s just an honor to win the NCS as a sophomore,” said Jefferson, who may receive additional awards on Saturday.
Mountain View junior Hannah Rutherford won the women' 400 in 53.88 seconds within the Central Coast Section finals last weekend, and now, as she makes her third appearance on the state championships, she knows what to anticipate.
“It comes down to running your own race,” Rutherford said. “I think the last few years when I've been at state, I've felt like everyone there is better than me and I'm not pushing as hard as I could. So this year I want to focus on myself and have confidence.”
Ellie McCuskey-Hay, a sophomore at St. Ignatius University who competes in 4 events, together with her best being the 100m and long jump, shares Rutherford's view on the importance of experience.
“Now I know what to expect and what the crowd is like, so I have experience,” McCuskey-Hay said. “I've trained hard and worked hard for this, so I'll be ready.”
Benjamin Bouie (4:06.92) of Crystal Springs Uplands and Miles Cook (4:08.33) of Sacred Heart Cathedral have the 2 fastest qualifying times within the boys' 1,600-meter run.
“I'll talk to my coach and try to regroup and figure out what the best strategy is,” Bouie said.
Olaf Dietz of Berkeley and Lucas Cohen of Albany hope to compete for a podium place within the boys' 3,200-meter race.
“A time of 8:50 minutes is a good goal for me. I will definitely try to stay up there,” said Cohen.
Other top contenders include Landon Pretre of Menlo, who ran a CCS record of 8:48.11, and Grant Morgenfeld (8:50.95) of Palo Alto.
Clayton Valley runner Zoe Lahanas survived a March automotive accident that left her bedridden for 2 weeks to win the NCS girls' 800 meters.
“I really want to set a personal best. I hope to run a time under 2:12. I think I can do it,” said Lahanas.
Prospect's Kylie Hoornaert, who has already broken the two:10 mark this season, left the competition behind to win the CCS girls' 800. She may even be seeking to set a private record in Clovis.
“This is my first time taking part in the national championships and I'm really looking forward to it,” said Hoornaert. “Hopefully I can manage more consistent intermediate times. With a faster second lap I could have achieved a personal best.”
Future Cal wide receiver Trevor Rogers, Kuhner's teammate at Acalanes in track and football, said “finishing second in the 200-meter dash means a lot” since it qualified him for the state championship.
His best event, nevertheless, is the long jump, where Rogers previously set this season's state record at 24-5 3/4 and simply won the NCS title at 24-2.
Tyson Bonilla of Wilcox and Jonathan Craft of James Logan are also among the many top eight long jump qualifiers.
Kyler Headley of Silver Creek is fifth amongst qualifiers within the boys discus at 178-10. Headley's best this season is 189-6.
Serra junior Luke Lewis has the sixth-best qualifying rating within the boys' shot put (57-9).
If Los Altos runner Nathaniel Guillory can match or beat his personal better of 21.18 within the 200 meters, he should have the option to realize his goal.
“I really believe I can get on the podium,” said the senior. “I just need to pull myself together and work on my start because that's a weaker part of my race.”
Brandon Rush of Bishop O'Dowd captured the NCS title within the boys triple jump with a distance of 47-0 ½, placing him among the many top five athletes within the state.
Khaliq Muhammad of Pittsburg and Lexington Lehnert of St. Ignatius, who each posted combined scores of 16-0 to win sectional titles, are among the many top qualifiers within the boys' pole vault, as is Campolindo discus and shot putter Pinkie Schnayer in each of those girls' events.
Menlo School's Summer Young, daughter of former 49ers quarterback Steve Young, will attempt to win a medal within the high jump after entering the state championship with the second-best performance of 5-6.
The hurdle trio of Archbishop Mitty, Laniah Simpson, Taylor Oden and Tiana Osuna, took 1st, 2nd and third place within the CCS girls 100-meter hurdles. When asked what strategy they’d pursue for the state meet, coach Ryan Oden's answer was easy.
“The work is already done,” Oden said. “You just have to do it.”
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