The quick and the strong

Agoura’s Davis breaks Marion Jones’ meet record in long jump; Oak Park’s Smith breaks two school standards in jumping events




LANDING GEAR—Oak Park High’s Reece Smith lands en route to winning the boys’ long jump in a school record 22 feet, 7.5 inches at the Ventura County Track and Field Championships on April 28 at Moorpark.

LANDING GEAR—Oak Park High’s Reece Smith lands en route to winning the boys’ long jump in a school record 22 feet, 7.5 inches at the Ventura County Track and Field Championships on April 28 at Moorpark.

The Ventura County Track and Field Championships is one of the most highly anticipated meets of the season.

The strongest and fastest local high school athletes converged at Moorpark on April 28 to duke it out for bragging rights in the final tune-up before league finals and postseason events.

Stars at Agoura, Calabasas, Camarillo, La Reina, Moorpark, Newbury Park, Oak Park, Oaks Christian, Rio Mesa, Royal, Simi Valley, Thousand Oaks and Westlake took part in the meet.

Agoura’s Tara Davis captured gold medals in the girls’ triple jump, long jump and 100-meter hurdles. The Georgia-bound senior’s record-breaking long jump of 21 feet, 8.75 inches moved Davis ahead of Marion Jones in the meet record book.

Oak Park senior Reece Smith had a day to remember. The Eagle, who committed to Cal Lutheran, set school records and nabbed first place in both the boys’ long jump (22-7.5) and triple jump (45-4.5).

Thousand Oaks senior Miles Zoltak added 200- and 400-meter gold medals to his trophy case.

Sammy Barajas, Hailey Golmon, Makenna Smollen and Sarah Winkler set the Simi Valley 4×800 relay school and meet record in 9:24.90.

THROWERS THROW DOWN

Nothing could contain Simi Valley throws coach Mike Torie’s excitement.

“It was the best county championship ever,” said the sixth-year coach, who trains multiple throwers from numerous schools throughout the county.

Oak Park senior Robbie Otal broke the discus meet record with a toss of 199 feet, 3 inches while capturing gold. Otal trains with Torie.

“There’s so much great competition in Ventura County this year,” Otal said. “I just wanted to come out and get the win. I was pretty happy to do that. The meet record was a cherry on top.”

Otal sat out the shot put event with a sore wrist, but talented throwers displayed their skills.

Torie let out a roar when Simi Valley junior Dexter Stephens broke his personal record in the shot put by more than 4 feet, going for 53-6.5.

“One of the things I’ve been saying to Dexter is sometimes you have to be the fire starter,” Torie said. “Sometimes the competition is a little bit lax. It takes that one throw to ignite. As soon as he hit that 53-6, I went off because I knew it was a big lifetime PR for him.”

The rest of the field fed off the excitement from Stephens, who took third in the shot put and discus.

Agoura senior Kushaal Tadepalli followed Stephens up with a shot put toss of 56-7.25, good enough for second. Ventura’s Carlos Aviles closed the event with a PR of 59-9.75 to take gold.

The throwers gave onlookers a taste of what the CIF postseason is all about.

“The league championships will be very dull compared to what happened today,” Torie said of the county meet. “This is one of those meets that build you up for CIF prelims.”

SENIORS SEIZE THE MOMENT

Agoura’s Jonathan Lee and Thousand Oaks’ Colin Virgines made the most of their final trips to the county meet.

Lee missed last year’s 1,600 race after emptying his tank while helping the 4×800 group take gold in 2016.

He was determined to set the pace in the 1,600 this spring. Lee was out in front for more than two laps while others relied on strategy to try to pass the Charger.

“If they want to sit and kick, they can do that, but I was going to be the one with the most guts in that race,” Lee said.

He crossed the finish line in a lifetime-best 4:24.38. He placed third overall.

“It’s nice to come back and run a PR,” he said.

Virgines snared 110 hurdles gold last weekend. He struggled with injuries last season.

“Since it’s my last year, I knew I had to give everything I had, nothing less,” he said.

Virgines trailed early but made up ground in the final two hurdles to edge out Agoura senior Steven Imes IV and Oaks Christian junior Talin Lewis.

“I kept thinking I had to keep fighting through,” Virgines said. “Usually my starts are my weak point, but I pick it up at the end.”

Virgines said he’s feeling healthy heading into league finals and the postseason.

“I saw this meet as a benchmark to compare how I’m doing to other kids,” he said. “I think I’m in good shape to move on to CIF.”

HIGHLANDER RIDING HIGH

Adama Fall, a Royal freshman, is thriving in his first track and field season.

The rookie started attracting attention when he leaped 42-10.5 in the triple jump at the Burbank Backwards Meet on April 22. That was the fourth-best mark in the county.

He’s continued to excel since accepting a challenge from his coaches earlier this year.

“I was bothering the coaches since the first week of practice asking, ‘Why am I not on varsity?’” he said. “They told me to run faster and jump higher. I did that, and now I’m here.”

Fall finished eighth in the triple jump at his first county meet.

The up-and-comer said the experience boosted his confidence. He’s hoping to set new PRs in the long jump and triple jump before the season ends.

“I’m just trying to have fun and learn the sport,” the Highlander said. “I’m honored to be here. I’m just trying to take advantage of the opportunity.”

SISTER ACT

Hannah Wilson, an Oaks Christian freshman, enjoyed her first experience at the county meet.

The Lion faced a familiar foe in the 400—older sister Carolyn Wilson, an Oaks Christian senior.

“It was definitely hard,” Hannah Wilson said of battling her older sibling. “She’s such a good runner; it’s a good thing to model myself after.”

Carolyn Wilson, who took first in the 400, said the sisters engaged in friendly banter before the race.

“ It’s mostly supportive though,” she said. “I just want to see her do her best, and she wants to see me do my best.”

The siblings teamed up with fellow Lions Tasha Bierling and Julia Sullivan in the 4×400 relay to take silver.

Carolyn Wilson finished fourth in the 200 behind Calabasas sophomores De’Anna Nowling, who took first, and Tierra Crockrell, who nabbed silver, and Westlake’s Jenna Mencarelli, who had already claimed 100 gold earlier in the meet.

“I’LL BE BACK!”

Camarillo senior Daniel Gomez channeled his inner Arnold Schwarzenegger.

He finished seventh in the 800 in 2016. The Scorpion vowed to return for vengeance at this year’s county meet.

“I spoke with The Acorn last year,” he said. “I said I’d be back to win it this year. I guess I stayed true to my word.”

Gomez blazed through the race in a personal best 1:57.27, good for first place.

“I got boxed out in the first lap, but in the second lap I threw in a surge and got into a pretty good position,” he said. “I threw in another surge with 300 meters to go to put me into the lead.”

He celebrated his finish by setting new time goals for the season.

“My goal is to win league and hopefully break 1:55,” he said.

Email Jonathan Andrade at jandrade@theacorn.com.

The age of gold

The area’s top athletes vied for gold medals at the Ventura County Track and Field Championships on April 28 at Moorpark High. Here are the top finishers from Acorn country:

GIRLS’ GOLD
100: Westlake’s Jenna
Mencarelli (11.88)
200: Calabasas’ De’Anna
Nowling (23.78)
400: Oaks Christian’s Carolyn
Wilson (55.21)
800: Oak Park’s Sylvia Cruz-
Albrecht (2:14.90)
3,200: Oak Park’s Sarah
Shulze (10:55.11)
100 hurdles: Agoura’s Tara
Davis (13.24)
300 hurdles: Calabasas’ Kyla
Robinson-Hubbard (43.93)
Long jump: Agoura’s Tara
Davis (21-8.75)*
Triple jump: Agoura’s Tara
Davis (40-10.5)*
High jump: Oaks Christian’s
Cassidy Palka (5-7)
Pole vault: Thousand Oaks’
Seanne Chan (10-3)
Shot put: Thousand Oaks’
Meredith Weinstock (37-2.5)
4×100: Calabasas (47.98)
4×400: Calabasas (3:58.54)
4×800: Simi Valley (9:24.90)*
BOYS’ GOLD
100: Oaks Christian’s Myles
Webb (10.67)
200: Thousand Oaks’ Miles
Zoltak (21.47)
400: Thousand Oaks’ Miles
Zoltak (48.61)
800: Camarillo’s Daniel
Gomez (1:57.27)
110 hurdles: Thousand
Oaks’ Colin Virgines (14.98)
300 hurdles: Thousand
Oaks’ Winston Short (39.26)
Long jump: Oak Park’s
Reece Smith (22-7.5)
Triple jump: Oak Park’s
Reece Smith (45-4.5)
Pole vault: Simi Valley’s
Jonathan James (14-9)
Discus: Oak Park’s Robbie
Otal (199-3)*
4×100: Oaks Christian (41.77)
4×400: Oaks Christian
(3:22.19)
4×800: Simi Valley (8:09.85)
* Meet record


 

 

‘I BELIEVE I CAN FLY’—Calabasas’ Tierra Crockrell elevates during the girls’ long jump at the county meet last weekend at Moorpark.

‘I BELIEVE I CAN FLY’—Calabasas’ Tierra Crockrell elevates during the girls’ long jump at the county meet last weekend at Moorpark.

RECORD—Agoura’s Tara Davis set a county meet record, 21 feet, 8.75 inches in the long jump.

RECORD—Agoura’s Tara Davis set a county meet record, 21 feet, 8.75 inches in the long jump.

TURN THE CORNER—Oaks Christian High’s Myles Webb, left, and teammate Cristian Moore, second from left, battle Simi Valley’s Anthony Palumbo and Moorpark’s Cameron Feaster in the boys’ 200-meter race at the Ventura County Track and Field Championships April 28 at MHS.

TURN THE CORNER—Oaks Christian High’s Myles Webb, left, and teammate Cristian Moore, second from left, battle Simi Valley’s Anthony Palumbo and Moorpark’s Cameron Feaster in the boys’ 200-meter race at the Ventura County Track and Field Championships April 28 at MHS.

BLOCK PARTY—Westlake’s Maya Sharp takes off from the blocks in the girls’ 400 race. Sharp, a junior, snared second place in the 400 in 56.64 seconds. Oaks Christian’s Carolyn Wilson won the event in 55.21.

BLOCK PARTY—Westlake’s Maya Sharp takes off from the blocks in the girls’ 400 race. Sharp, a junior, snared second place in the 400 in 56.64 seconds. Oaks Christian’s Carolyn Wilson won the event in 55.21.

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