Home Sports High School Local prep track and field athletes shine at CIF Southern Section Prelims

Local prep track and field athletes shine at CIF Southern Section Prelims

May 11, 2022

Top competitors advance to Finals this weekend

— The CIF Southern Section Track and Field Prelims took place Saturday, May 7, at four separate locations across Southern California, depending on the Division. Trabuco Hills High School was the setting for Division 1, Division 2 took place at Ventura High School, Division 3 held their meet at Estancia High School, and Carpinteria High School was the Division 4 spot.

Yes, it was only a qualifier. Yes, maybe it was not a time for personal best performances from the best of the best. Yes, maybe some athletes did just enough to advance to the divisional finals, which will be held Saturday, May 14, at Moorpark High School. But that mindset is not what some of the top student track and field athletes from the local area had going into last Saturday, that’s for sure. In fact, most were at the top of their game as several athletes from area schools advanced to the section finals. Highlights from the division preliminary meets were exciting to say the least.

At the Division 1 meet, Murrieta Mesa’s Cade Moran not only qualified first in the discus, but he broke his own Riverside County record with a toss of 207 feet, 4 inches. That mark is No. 1 in the state, and it shares the No. 1 mark in the nation this season. Moran also qualified first in the shot put with a toss of 65-1. Great Oak’s JC Stevenson advanced to the finals in three individual events with the top mark in the triple jump (46-11) and he also qualified in the 100 meters and long jump. Elsinore’s Elijah Yoshinaga also qualified for finals in three events: 110 hurdles, long jump, and triple jump. Two other local athletes qualified in two individual events: Elsinore’s Elijah Ignacio (shot put, discus) and Great Oak’s Aiden Pastorian (shot put, discus).

Murrieta Mesa’s Cade Moran qualified in the top spot for both discuss, and shot put, at the CIF Division 1 track and field prelims at Trabuco Hills High School Saturday, May 7. Valley News/Rob Davis Photography

As for the girls’ highlights, Orange Vista’s Kailah McKenzie qualified in three individual events. She recorded the top time in the 100 hurdles (14.61), tied for first in the high jump (5-2) and also advanced in the long jump. Vista Murrieta’s Aspen Fears and Katie Rodriguez tied for first place in the pole vault (11-3), Vista Murrieta’s Alyssa Alumbres qualified in the long jump and triple jump and also ran legs on the team’s two relay teams that will race this weekend.

Two other area athletes qualified in two individual events: Vista Murrieta’s Isabella Smith (1600, 3200) and Elsinore’s Dej’Eauna Williams (long jump, triple jump).

Vista Murrieta’s Aspen Fears tied for first place with her teammate, Katie Rodriguez, in the pole vault with a height of 11 feet, 3 inches. Valley News/Action Captures Media Group

Division 2 highlights include Murrieta Valley’s Tiger Bachmeier, who tied for first in the pole vault (13-9) and ran a leg on the team’s 400 relay team. Girls’ highlights include Murrieta Valley’s Madyson Negro as she finished first in the pole vault with a mark of 11-9. The final local highlight came from Division 4 as Linfield Christian’s Ryley Burns advanced to the finals in the 1600 and 3200 meters.

Local marks from the CIF-SS Track and Field Preliminaries include:

(Top nine athletes advance to finals. In running events, heat winners plus the next fastest times advance.)

Division 1

Boys

100 meters: Area qualifier: 8. JC Stevenson (Great Oak) 10.79.

800: Area qualifier: 6. Gabriel Rodriguez (Great Oak) 1:55.85.

1600: Area qualifier: 4. Lance Denhalter (Vista Murrieta) 4:13.67; 6. Brandon Calderon (Vista Murrieta) 4:16.39

3200: Area qualifier: 9. Ramses Cortes (Great Oak) 9:20.82.

110 hurdles: Area qualifier: 7. Elijah Yoshinaga (Elsinore) 15.00; 9. Arthur Celestine (Vista Murrieta) 15.22.

400 relay: Area qualifier: San Jacinto 42.66; 9. Vista Murrieta 42.80.

High jump: Area qualifier: 5. Jonh Saracay (Vista Murrieta) 6-2.

Pole vault: Area qualifier: 6. Austin Pepito (Great Oak) 13-9; 8. Caleb Fuller (Murrieta Mesa) 13-9.

Long jump: Area qualifier: 2. Elijah Yoshinaga (Elsinore) 22-10.75; 3. JC Stevenson (Great Oak) 22-8

Triple jump: 1. JC Stevenson (Great Oak) 46-11. Other area qualifiers: 4. Elijah Yoshinaga (Elsinore) 45-9.25; 7. Kyran Jackson (Vista Murrieta) 45-3.

Shot put: 1. Cade Moran (Murrieta Mesa) 65-1. Other area qualifiers: 3. Aiden Pastorian (Great Oak) 58-2.5; 4. Leland Godfrey (Chaparral) 51-8; 5. Joshua Stovall (Vista Murrieta) 51-1; 9. Elijah Ignacio (Elsinore) 49-2.5.

Discus: 1. Cade Moran (Murrieta Mesa) 207-4. Other area qualifiers: 2. Elijah Ignacio (Elsinore) 184-4; 4. Matthew Hodges (Elsinore) 155-2; T6. Aiden Pastorian (Great Oak) 153-5.

Elsinore’s Elijah Ignacio broke a school record with 184′ 4″ discus throw at the CIF Division 1 track and field preliminaries Saturday, May 7. Valley News/Rob Davis Photography

Girls

100 meters: Area qualifier: 6. Keelan Wright (Vista Murrieta) 12.17.

200: Area qualifier: 9. Kaila Robinson (Vista Murrieta) 25.12.

400: Area qualifier: 9. Jaylen Spencer (Chaparral) 57.65.

1600: Area qualifier: 5. Isabella Smith (Vista Murrieta) 4:56.48; 7. Kelli Gaffney (Great Oak) 4:58.43.

3200: Area qualifier: 9. Isabella Smith (Vista Murrieta) 11:01.72.

100 hurdles: 1. Kailah McKenzie (Orange Vista) 14.61. Other area qualifiers: 9. Jalyn Guglielmana (Elsinore) 15.66.

400 relay: Area qualifier; 8. Vista Murrieta 48.52.

1600 relay: Area qualifier: 4. Vista Murrieta 3:56.19-h; 5. Orange Vista 3:59.39-h.

High jump: T1. Kailah McKenzie (Orange Vista) 5-2.

Pole vault: T1. Aspen Fears (Vista Murrieta) 11-3. T1. Katie Rodriguez (Vista Murrieta) 11-3. Other area qualifiers: T3. Hayden Clark (Murrieta Mesa) 10-9; 9. Michal Coates (Great Oak) 10-9.

Long jump: Area qualifiers: 4. Alyssa Alumbres (Vista Murrieta) 18-2.5; 5. Kailah McKenzie (Orange Vista) 19-0.25; 9. Dej’Eauna Williams (Elsinore) 17-8.75.

Triple jump: Area qualifiers: 6. Alyssa Alumbres (Vista Murrieta) 37-8.75; 8. Dej’Eauna Williams (Elsinore) 37-1.5; 9. Arlanna Fowler (Vista Murrieta) 36-8.5.

Discus: Area qualifier: 5. DeAna Davis (Great Oak) 117-11.