Saturday, February 25, 2017

NorCal Invitational Results

Some performances have been highlighted already below and in the comment section below. If you have others that should be noted, please add them in the comment section as well.

Skyline Invitational results LINK (including 1:54.53 800 for Cooper Teare)
De La Salle/Carondelet Super 7 results LINK (now posted)
Bulldog Invitational
Capital Classic Relays results LINK (new)
Clarke Massey Relays results LINK (new)

Dean Andreeson Classic results LINK (new)
Viking Invitational

Other invites will be posted as well as soon as I get them. If you have any results, email them to me at albertjcaruana@gmail.com

NorCal athletes with leading marks in California:
800m Cooper Teare St. Joseph Notre Dame (NCS) 1:54.53
110mH Shawn Bettencourt Golden Valley (SJS) 14.86
Long Jump Philip Brown Foothill (SJS) 23'9"
Pole Vault Laurel Wong Santa Catalina (CCS) 12'10.25"

Also, Campolindo '12 grad Sara Mostatabi finished 12th overall/2nd female at Mesa Phx Marathon in near 9 minute PR of 2:40:09. That time qualifies her for the Olympic Trials (standard 2:45:00).

Friday, February 24, 2017

CIF Track & Field State Meet 2016 (Boys 800 meters)

For those of you chomping at the bit (hopefully this reference is not outdated) for the start of the season, here is a great video from last year's California state meet featuring the boys' 800 meters final (thanks to Jesuit track coach Walt Lange). Great last lap with Isaac Cortes of Great Oak completing the 1600/800 double victory with a time of 1:50.75 (after 4:04.62 1600). If you would like to see another video of a specific race or event, let me know and I will post it.

Thursday, February 23, 2017

2016 CA state HJ champion, former Mt. Pleasant HS jumper, Darius Carbin

MSU’s Leon is next great miler (Former Anzar HS runner)

Great article about former Anzar (CCS) and Hartnell College runner, Diego Leon. He is currently at Montana State and just recently ran a altitude adjusted sub 4 minute mile. You can check out the article at this LINK.

If you know of other Northern California HS grads doing well in college, please forward any article links, info or whatever you have to albertjcaruana@gmail.com.

Wednesday, February 22, 2017

Catching up with St. Joseph Notre Dame senior, Kiera Marshall

We had an opportunity to chat with St. Joseph Notre Dame senior, Kiera Marshall (photo to the left courtesy of her twitter account at @kier_mar). This past weekend, Marshall announced that she will be attending University of Washington next fall where she will continue to participate on both the Cross Country and Track and Field teams. This past fall, Marshall won her first section title by winning the NCS MOC meet at Hayward High School. She followed that up by winning her first state championship at Woodward Park in Division V. Fellow senior and teammate, Cooper Teare, also won the boys' individual title making them the 4th pair of California teammates to win individual state titles in the same season. For those historians out there, the other duos were Bryan Dameworth and Deena Drossin (Agoura) in '87 and '89, Austin and Katie Fritzke (Mt. Shasta) '04, German Fernandez and Maritza Garcia (Riverbank) '05. Marshall went on to qualify for the Footlocker National meet at Balboa Park where she finished in 26th place. Cover photo courtesy of Ben Crawford.
1) You have decided to attend University of Washington next fall to continue your academic and athletic pursuits. How did you go about narrowing your choices and in deciding to attend the UW? 

When I started my college search I was really looking for a school where I could get a balance between running and academics. I plan on pursuing a degree in biomedical engineering, which a lot of schools don't have, so my initial search was just finding the best running programs that also have good science and engineering programs. After I found the right schools, I went on my officials and narrowed it there. I picked University of Washington because I felt it was the best choice for me and there were so many things that I liked about it.
2) Looking back at your last cross country season, what do you feel were your best races and proudest accomplishments?

I think my best races this past cross country season were Woodbridge and Footlocker west regionals. Woodbridge was my first race of the season and I felt that I ran it really well. My goal was to go sub 17 and I ran 16:49 so I was really happy with that race. At footlocker west regionals my plan was to stay around sixth or seventh place during the race and finish top ten to qualify for nationals and I ran it almost exactly as I planned. It's one of my proudest accomplishments because it's one of my best executed races even with all the pressure I had put on myself to do well.
3) Did you do anything different during the summer to prepare for your senior XC season?Aside from focusing more in practice and training harder I drastically changed my mindset towards racing after my track season. I had a disappointing end to track last year and I wasn't happy with how I performed. Heading into the cross country season I changed how I raced, making sure that I was the one pushing myself and not waiting for other people to make a move so that I could follow.
4) What does a typical training week look like for you now? Distance of long run? Pace of most recovery runs? Any morning runs? Strength work? 

A typical week of training for me would be easy, recovery runs on Monday, Wednesday and Friday. These are usually 50 minutes at 7-7:15 pace. I also do morning runs on those days, which are 30 minutes, and our core routine. Tuesday and Thursday are hard workouts at the track, followed by arm and legs circuits in the weight room. Saturday's are another workout day. On Sunday I'll a long run usually 10-12 miles. When we have races our week will be a little different catering to the race that we are running and which day it is on.
5) How did you get your start in running? Did you compete before attending high school?

I didn't really start running until sophomore year. I played volleyball and soccer and during the spring of freshman year I decided to start track along with doing club volleyball. I went to about 3-4 practices a week and one of those practices was usually spent with the hurdlers (because I thought I could be good at that, I was wrong). But Tony, my coach, saw my potential and told me to run cross country. But I played volleyball which was the same season as cross country so I told him I couldn't. He asked me to train with the team over the summer to see if I liked it, and by the time school started there was not question: I was going to run. I got so close to the team and I ended up really enjoying running, so I gave up volleyball and later I gave up soccer to completely focus on running.
6) When do you feel like you made the jump to your current level as a runner? What do you feel was the impetus for the improvement that you made? When did you realize you had a future in running? 

Around the middle to end of my cross country season junior year I realized that I could actually be really good at running if I tried a little harder. Up until that point I wasn't really taking it very seriously. I would go to practice everyday and do all the workouts but I wasn't putting my full effort into it. But around the middle of my junior year cross country season, and especially after I had gotten second at state for the second time, I told myself that I was going change things. The next track season really showed the extra effort I was giving in order to improve. I had some major PR's and I only wanted to get faster and faster. I would say that was when I realized that I could have a good future in running. I saw the potential that I had only begun to tap into and I kept training hard and getting better.
7) Who are your coaches and how have they helped you achieve your athletic goals? 

My two coaches, Tony Fong and Alex Mason, are two of the most important people in my life. Without them I would not be anywhere close to where I am now and I owe everything that I have accomplished to them. They are both so knowledgable about the sport and they know me so well that they can push me to the exact point that I need to do my best. Without them I wouldn't be a runner and I'm so grateful that I have them as coaches. But, not only have they been influential to my athletic career, they have become part of my life and we're all like one big family.
8) As you look ahead to the Track and Field season, what are the races that you are most looking forward to and do you have any goals that you would like to share?

I'm most looking forward to Arcadia and the state meet. I didn't run at the state meet last year but I my goal is to make it this year. My goals for this upcoming season are 4:50 in the 1600 and 10:20 in the 3200.
9) Favorite XC course? Favorite XC invitational? Favorite XC workout? Favorite TF event? Favorite TF invitational? Favorite TF workout? Favorite long run? Favorite St. Joseph Notre Dame tradition? Favorite free time activity? 
My favorite XC course is probably Woodbridge because it was so fast and running under the lights was really fun. But my favorite invitational would have to be Mt. Sac. I find it's more of a test than a race because it's so challenging, but crossing the finish line is always rewarding. My favorite XC workout is what we call piedmont loops, which are repeats about 1200m long that we do in the Oakland hills. My favorite track distance is the 3200m. My favorite track invitational is Arcadia, there's always a great atmosphere and it produces really fast time. I would say my favorite track workout is 7x1000m because, although it's not the easiest, it gives the biggest payoff throughout the season. For a long run, I like to go into the Oakland hills and do 11 miles in Joaquin Miller and Redwood. My absolute favorite Saint Joe's tradition is our post run meals. On some Saturdays after the workout we'll go to a breakfast place in Alameda called Jim's and sometimes during the week after practice we'll go to on of the Chinese restaurants in Alameda called Hong Kong City. In my free time I'll probably be doing something with my friends. 
10) Who are the runners that have had the biggest impact to your success and this could be current and former SJND runners as well as runners from other schools? 

The girls on my team have been very impactful to my success because they're always there to support me. We're like a little family, I want to do well for them and they want me to do well too, so we all support each other. Also having a teammate like Cooper has had an impact on my performances as well. He works so hard and seeing him accomplish so many amazing motivates me to do better and run the best I can.
11) From your own experiences, what would your advice be for younger runners looking to be successful in both XC and TF?

My advice to younger runners is dedication is key to success. If you want to excel at something you have to put all your efforts into it, you can't sit back and expect good things to happen. You would be surprised by what you're capable of when you give it your all.
12) Anything else you would like to add.

I want to thank anyone who has supported me over the years and helped me get to where I am today.
Thank you very much for your time Kiera! AJC

Tuesday, February 21, 2017

When it's not your day

I know many of you have seen this video but if you haven't, here you go.  Check out the rough finish for this 800m runner.

Monday, February 20, 2017

College decisions

If you would like to announce where you will attend college next year, please feel free to add your name and college in the comment section below.

Cooper Teare St. Joseph Notre Dame (University of Oregon)
Michael Vernau Davis (Stanford University)
Niki Iyer Harker (University of California, Berkeley)
Ben Micallef Bellarmine (University of Wisconsin)
Jurnee Woodward Vacaville (Louisiana State University)
Rachel Estell Mt. View (Harvard University)
Kiera Marshall St. Joseph Notre Dame (University of Washington)
Neil Braganza Dougherty Valley (Yale University)
Daniel Maneloveg Monte Vista (University of San Francisco)
Meredith Corda Monte Vista (University of California, Berkeley)
Anirudh Surapaneni Dublin (University of California, Berkley)
Glennis Murphy Redwood (Dartmouth College)
Sofia Castiglioni Davis (University of Portland)
Jake Lange Nueva (Williams College)
Tori Knapp Nueva (Oberlin College)

Caitlin Stoner Palos Verdes (University of San Diego)
Olivia Polischeck Palos Verdes (Amherst College)

The San Jose Mercury News posted non-Football college bound athletes today which you can find at this LINK. In the article, you can find where your athletic director can email the SJ Mercury News with athlete college destinations for their own schools.

Sunday, February 19, 2017

Kiera Marshall, St. Joseph Notre Dame senior announces college decision

St. Joseph Notre Dame senior Kiera Marshall announced her college destination this morning on twitter and she will be attending the University of Washington next fall. Marshall had a terrific cross country season in the fall that including winning the BCL East and North Coast Section and State Division V titles. She qualified for the Footlocker National meet at Balboa Park where she finished in 26th place with a time of 18:09.5. Last Track and Field season, Marshall recorded PRs of 2:23.27, 5:01.85 and 10:41.80. She will look to improve those times this coming season. Best of luck to her at University of Washington.

NorCal weekend Track and Field results

CAL all-comers meet #3 results:
http://rtspt.com/events/cal/21817/compiled_res.htm

At Simplot Games:
Bishop O'Dowd girls won 1600 Sprint Medley Relay in 4:12.33 US #6
Kaylay Robinson (El Cerrito) 8.36 in 60 Hurdles final US #3

Other NorCal results?

Saturday, February 18, 2017

Stanford Invitational meet info

You can find all the info for the Stanford Invitational HERE. Take note of all the deadlines if you want to get individuals and/or teams into this meet.

Wednesday, February 15, 2017

Top returning athletes in each individual event for upcoming 2017 Track and Field season

As athletes throughout the state continue to train in preparation for the upcoming Track and Field season, check out all the NorCal athletes who return as the best in their respective individual event(s). You can check out the article at this LINK. How many can you name without looking at the article first? How many defending champions? What other NorCal athletes will contend for state titles? Who has the best chance to repeat? Strongest favorite?


Monday, February 13, 2017

Cooper Teare and Luis Grijalva finish 1st and 2nd at Davis Stampede Half Marathon

St. Joseph Notre Dame senior Cooper Teare and Armijo senior Luis Grijalva (photo courtesy of Travis Miller and MileSplit), two of the top cross country and track and field runners in the nation stepped away from the track to compete at the Davis Stampede Half Marathon yesterday (Sunday 2/12). Teare was the winner of the race with a time of 1:12:05.5 followed by Grijalva at 1:12:58.3. You can check out official results at this LINK.

For those of you not familiar with half marathons, Teare's time breaks down to 5:30.19 per mile. Grijalva's time breaks down to 5:34.22 per mile.

According to Jack Daniels, the following half marathon times are equivalent to the following:
1:11:56 = 9:45 2 miles and 4:33 mile
1:12:53 = 9:53 2 miles and 4:37 mile

One other interesting note, the Crystal Springs course record holder Mitch Kingery ran a 2:23:47 marathon as a sophomore which is 5:29.27 per mile.

I am fairly certain both Teare and Grijalva ran controlled races as they look ahead to the start of the outdoor track and field season. 

Sunday, February 12, 2017

NorCal Weekend Track and Field Highlights

California Winter Championship meet at Arcadia HS
You can check out results of the meet HERE.

Here are some of the highlights from the meet for NorCal athletes:
Girls 1500-Kai Bohannon Liberty 3rd 4:40.00
Boys 1500-Niki Moore Campolindo 3rd 4:02.95
Boys 300-Max Glasser Marin Catholic 4th 35.13
Girls 3000-Niki Iyer Harker 2nd 10:05.95
Girls 3000-Kai Bohannon Liberty 3rd 10:18.02
Boys 3000-Robert Miranda Menlo 1st 8:51.14
Girls Long Jump-Katherine Jackson Rodriguez 1st 19'4"
Girls Pole Vault-Laurel Wong Santa Catalina 1st 12'10.25"

Also from the college and open athletes:
Mile-Thomas Joyce Cal Berkeley (formerly Campolindo) 3:58.47 at Husky Classic
3000-Vanessa Fraser Stanford (formerly Scotts Valley 9:04.78 at Husky Classic
5000-Lauren LaRocco (formerly St. Francis Sacto, now U of Portland) 15:54.26 Husky Classic
Mile-Nikki Hiltz (formerly Aptos, now U of Arkansas) 4:35.10 Husky Classic
Shot Put-Elena Bruckner (formerly Valley Christian SJ, now U of Texas) 51'8.25" Husky Classic
60 Hurdles-Ashtyn Davis (formerly Santa Cruz, now Cal Berkeley) 7.80 Husky Classic
Pole Vault-Jacob Bowler (formerly Del Oro, now U of Washington) 16'4.75" Husky Classic
800-Justin Fedronic (formerly Carlmont and Stanford) 2:01.36 at Millrose Games
Mile-Shannon Rowbury (formerly Sacred Heart Cathedral and Duke) 4:23.05 Millrose Games
Mile-Cristian Soratos (formerly Salinas, Hartnell College and Montana State) 3:54.23 Millrose Games

Feel free to add other notable marks in the comment section below.


Former NBL schools hoping to come back to the NCS

Friday, February 10, 2017

Brooks Inspiring Coaches Program

You can check out the first coach that was nominated, Orange Lutheran coach, Guy Poncy (far right in photo), at this LINK. At the bottom of the article, there is a link where you can nominate your own coach.

Tuesday, February 07, 2017

Anzar HS '13 graduate Diego Leon runs altitude adjusted sub 4 minute mile

The following is from a Montana State University press release which you can view at this LINK. Leon won the CCS Cross Country Division V individual championship in 2002. During the following track and field season, he recorded PRs of 2:00.94, 4:30.84 and 9:47.55. Leon then ran at Hartnell College where he was the 2015 CCCAA Male Athlete of the Year. Video highlights posted below.


The junior crossed the line in 4:07.52, which converted with altitude and track size to a sub-four minute mark of 3:59.13. His time is the 11th fastest in Division I track and field this indoor season and puts him atop the conference performance list.

Leon became just the third Bobcat to ever eclipse the mark. The Hollister, Calif., native joined two former All-Americans under the four-minute barrier. Cristian Soratos (in photo on left with Leon) was the last Bobcat to achieve the feat and finished his career with a personal-best time of 3:55.27 in 2015. Patrick Casey was the first MSU runner to eclipse four minutes as a junior in 2010 and holds the school record with a time of 3:54.49 he set as a senior in 2011.

Leon is the third Bobcat to earn the weekly award this indoor campaign. Junior Kyle Douglass won the Men's Field award on Jan. 17 and senior Christie Schiel was recognized as the Women's Track Athlete of the Week by the Big Sky on Jan. 23.

The following is a Montana State University media release:

Two of the best hurdlers in state raced this past Saturday at Cal All-Comers meet

Two of the best hurdlers in the state raced this past Saturday at Cal All-Comers meet. Jurnee Woodward, Vacaville (SJS), won the 60m hurdles with a time of 8.61 to finish just ahead of Kaylah Robinson of El Cerrito (NCS) at 8.70.
Robinson finished 2nd in state last year at the CA state meet 100m hurdles with a time of 13.44 ahead of Woodward's 13.66. Woodward won the longer hurdle race with a personal best of 40.62.
Video courtesy of Da'Fona McClain Jackson.

Friday, February 03, 2017

Breaking up with running: A reflection

You can check out an interesting perspective about the relationship with running from former Arcadia HS and University of Colorado runner, Ammar Moussa at this LINK. I know many of you can totally relate to what he had to say in the article.

You can also check out my interview with Ammar during his school days in 2009. You can check out the article here:
http://www.crosscountryexpress.com/2009/12/catching-up-with-arcadia-hs-runner.html

Pre-Season All-NorCal Track and Field 1st Team


BOYS

100m Jared Geredes Los Gatos (CCS) 10.70
200m Clinton Spellman Laguna Creek (SJS) 21.60
400m Myles Ellis Antelop (SJS) 46.78
800m Ben Micallef Bellarmine (CCS) 1:52.29
1600m Cooper Teare St. Joseph Notre Dame (NCS) 4:06.79 mile
3200m Cooper Teare St. Joseph Notre Dame (NCS) 8:53.74 2 miles
110m Hurdles Deion Lightfoot-Shelton Kimball (SJS) 13.87
300m Hurdles Bikram Thiara Sierra (SJS) 37.82
Long Jump Jared Geredes Los Gatos (CCS) 23'2.25"
Triple Jump Jonathan Shaw Dublin (NCS) 46'4.5"
High Jump Isaias Hunter Lathrop (SJS) 6'8"
Pole Vault Noah Hurley College Park (NCS) 16'0"
Shot Put Ben Campagna San Ramon Valley (NCS) 53'8"
Discus Iffy Joyner Pittsburg (NCS) 188'1"

GIRLS
100m Rae'vyn Lawler Sacramento (SJS) 11.70
200m Tierra Robinson-Jones Bishop O'Dowd (NCS) 24.18
400m Tierra Robinson-Jones Bishop O'Dowd (NCS) 54.05
800m Alyssa Brewer California (NCS) 2:06.86
1600m Olivia O'Keeffe Davis (SJS) 4:48.66
3200m Niki Iyer Harker (CCS) 10:24.39
110m Hurdles Kaylah Robinson El Cerrito (NCS) 13.44
300m Hurdles Jurnee Woodward Vacaville (SJS) 40.62
Long Jump Rachael Estell Mountain View (CCS) 19'6"w
Triple Jump Kali Hatcher St. Mary's Berkeley (NCS) 39'8.75"
High Jump Cassie Ackemann San Lorenzo Valley (CCS) 5'8.75"
Pole Vault Corey Friedenbach Pacific Collegiate (CCS) 12'1"
Shot Put Pamela Amaechi Lincoln (SF) 47'1"
Discus Pamela Amaechi Lincoln (SF) 166'5"

Wednesday, February 01, 2017

Dana Carvey Carlmont '73

Dana Carvey, now better known as Saturday Night Live alum (church lady etc.) as well as Garth in the Wayne's World movies was a pretty good high school runner with a 16:00 PR on the Crystal Springs course. He ran his best time at the SPAL finals in 1972, just 4 seconds ahead of one Hank Lawson. You can check out the results as well as a photo of Hank and some of his Gunn HS teammates at this LINK. Also in the photo to the left is teammate Steve Fuller who now snaps some awesome XC and TF photos.

CSM Bulldog Track and Field Open results

Here are the Results:
You can also write: “(If you qualified, Email Matt Layten at laytenm@smccd.edu for Winter Championships registration steps)”

CA Winter T&F Championships Series Meet @ Dublin, 2/4 @ 5:30 PM Online Form

If you are planning on participating in the California Winter Track & Field Championships Series meet at Dublin High School this Saturday, February 4, 2017 at 5:30 PM, please go to http://www.dublincrosscountry.com/WT%26FCS.html to fill out the online form for individual sign-ups.  The online form will be open until Friday, February 3, 2017 at 6:00 PM.
  • ATHLETES THAT HAVE FILLED OUT THE ONLINE FORM:  You will receive your bib number at the athlete gate upon you entrance into the stadium after paying your entrance fee of $12.  Please let the gate know that you filled out the online form and they will give you your number right there.  You do NOT need to go to the registration area - you are ready to go.
  • ATHLETES THAT DID NOT FILL OUT THE ONLINE FORM:  After you pay your $12 entrance fee at the athlete gate, you will be redirected to the registration tent to turn in your SIGN-UP SHEET to get your bib number.  This line can get long so if you do not plan on doing the online form, arrive early enough to wait in line and get your form processed well before the meet begins.

Thanks,
Chris Williams
Dublin High School

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