Last weekend was the weekend of collegiate conference track and field championships across the country and King Wolf alums were right in the thick of things.

Starting off in the Pac-12-UCLA Sophomore Lane Werley (C/O 2011) , an All-American in cross country this past Fall –battled right down to the wire in the 5000 meters only to finish second to ASU’s Nick Happe. Happe turned in a 14:05.20 while Werley clocked 14:06.04. University of Arizona's Hanna Peterson (c/o 2011) also qualified to compete in the Pac-12 conference meet in the 1500 meters.  Jessica Wiese (C/O 2011) won the Big Sky’s Women’s Shot Put Championship for Northern Arizona University with a PR throw of 49-11. Jessica was ranked third coming into the competition. Jessica’s accomplishment helped the Lumberjacks to a third place finish in the conference.

Competing for Gardner-Webb University in North Carolina, Megan Melton (C/O of 2012) finished sixth in the Big South Women’s Pole Vault at 11’-6” she is the second ranked frosh pole vaulter in the conference. Noelle Abboud (2012)of UC-Riverside finished 13th in the Big West 400 and was part of the sixth place Women’s 4 X 400 team. Carrie Soholt helped the Biola Eagles win the GSAC Women’s championship with a fourth place finish in the 5000 at 18:23.8. Carrie, another 2011 King grad also finished 7th in the 10,000 at 38:34. Casey Candelaria (C/O 2009) competing for Cal-State Fullerton just missed the 800 final finishing 10th in 2:15.74.

In the Southern California Junior College Regional, Riverside Community College’s men raced to first place with a record 225 points scored. Key point contributors included 2012 grads Jacob Porter and Josh Jeter. Both have qualified for the State Finals beginning this weekend in San Mateo. Jonny Barnes (Class of 2011) finished his JC career with a vault of 14-5 which gave him 10th in SoCal.

There is an old saying in coaching that says that "close only counts in horseshoes and hand grenades." The meaning behind that cliche is that despite the fact you may come close to victory, close doesn't necessarily mean success.  After the results were made on Saturday at the CIF prelinaries,  for the King Track and Field Wolves, "close" didn't count for the CIF Division 1 Finals either.

With  the top nine times and performances of the day moving on to Divisional Finals May 18 at Mt. SAC, the day became almost a litany of close calls and "almosts" for the Wolves under a blazing sun and the blazing competition the division annually provides.

This didn't come from the lack of effort however. The Girls 4x100 team recorded a second place in their heat and their second best time of the year (48.28) only to finish 10th overall. TravisThomas also recorded a second place in his heat and got his second fastest time of the year in the 400 at 49.86.  But, he finished 13th.   Bayleigh Porter had the same overall finish in the 800 as Thomas did in the 400. The Girls 4x400 finished 11th overall and the boys 4x400 finished 13th. Both teams recorded their second fastest times of the season. Blake Bergstrom missed qualifying in the long jump by three inches finishing 15th and in the triple jump by 4 inches getting 13th. Frosh Ruthie Wiggins went 5:14 in the 1600. All of them close, but no cigar.

The good news though was that there were a few who got over the top and into CIF Finals. Tayler Fleming qualified in both the 100 Hurdles (14.74) and the 300 Hurdles (44.15). Bergstrom also got into the final spot for the 300 Hurdles at 39.54. Nathan Torres ran a great race breaking his own school record in the 800 at 1:54.55.   For both Nate and Tayler, it will be their second straight trip to the Finals. The last King  qualifer was senior  Niarobi Watson, who surprised everybody with a 9th place finish in the triple jump. Niarobi had come into the meet with a middle of  the pack mark of 34-5  and on her first jump went 35-8-a 15 inch PR!!! She would win her flight and hang on to get a trip to Mt.SAC Saturday.

Other impressive efforts included the boys 4x100 team of Dylann Hosley; Brandon Hubley; Jahai Scott and Jamal Orme who posted their second best time of the year at 43.34.  Anissa Claiborne improved her league finals shot put mark 6 inches out to 37-0-cementing her spot as the number two King shot putter of all time.

Division One Southern Section is no cake walk, that's for sure, and it requires talent and good fortune to snag one of the coveted 9 advancing spots.  King is excited to send four kids in five events, but sadly for many others, close wasn't close enough. It almost never is.

RESULTS

After a rocky beginning to the 2013 Big 8 League season, in which both varsity teams lost to Roosevelt and Corona, the King squads found themselves in a deep, competitive hole and looking at a long climb out. On thursday night, the Big 8 League Championships were held at Santiago HS in Corona, and given the stirring performances by so many of King's best on the track and in the field, one could well assert that the teams had found redemption of sorts for a season that appeared to be all but over just five weeks ago.

There were numerous standouts throughout the afternoon and evening, as King crowned itself with six individual titles, four for the girls, two for the boys.  There were numerous medal finishers and CIF qualifiers as well.  For good measure, the all-time lists were altered greatly and three new school records were minted. It was quiet a competition.

Blake Bergstrom emerged from the competition having qualified for CIF (top three finishes) in four different events. He helped to win the night's final event, the 4x400 relay. Along with Travis Thomas, Nathan Torres and Romalio Cosey, Bergstrom's carry helped them to the #2 time in school history and take a little of the sting out of the loss to Roosevelt back in March. He finished second in the triple jump with a two-foot improvement over his previous best and the #4 mark in school history. He literally jumped out of his shoe as his gear ripped in mid-flight from the force of his plant. He also took second  in the long jump but won his specialty, the 300 hurdles.  Consider the lad tired after a night like that!

Tayler Fleming, who signed with UCR the day before, finished third in the 100 hurdles, but ran a superb last 110 meters in the 300's to win her second-straight title in that event, matching to the hundreth, the SR she set at the State meet in 2012. (43.03). She anchored the 2nd place 4x400 team and helped to set a new SR in the 4x100 relay, where Jordan Lofton, Tia Parrish and Courtnee Davis combined to finish second and go 47.86.  In the 300 hurdles, the most competitive event in the night, teammate Leighana Weaver ran her first ever sub :45-second split but finished fourth.  She qualified for CIF nonetheless by meeting the very rigorous qualifying time for finishers outside the top 3.

In the distance events, King's kids really shined, and not just on Thursday but in Tuesday's preliminaries as well. Alyssa Haring won the JV 3200 in a lifetime best and also won the JV 1600.  Ruthie Wiggins finished third in the varsity 1600 to qualify for CIF in this her freshman season.  Bayleigh Porter, after a very frustrating season in which she struggled to find her stride, showed that tenacity and never giving up has its merits as she ran a lifetime best, the #2 time in school history and qualified for CIF in third place. It was a great performance for the senior.  Perry Elerts ran a very gutty race in the 1600 and held off hard charging competitors after a scintilating 4th lap to finish second in 4:30.50  In that race was Tyler Janes who qualified for the final in just his freshman season. Joe Casco qualified for CIF in the 3200, finishing third in a negative-split race. Raelyn Werley won the 3200 as well, leading all the way, but was almost upstaged by Lauren Boydd who ran a gigantic PR and snagged 2nd place with a terrific kick.  Very impressive and gutsy race by the relative newcomer to the event!  In the 800 meters, Nathan Torres finished second (behind the current state leader) with a fine race. Jacob Norys and AJ Boebinger were 6th and 7th respectively, AJ finished the season with the #3 All Time freshman mark in school history for the 800 at 2:02.52.

In the field events, Kiarra Ginwright won a huge contest with Roosevelt's best high jumper as the two matched misses and makes over several pole placements and jump off, until the Kiarra finally pulled out the victory at 5-04.  Niarobi Watson was the other league champion in the field with a fine leap and PR of 34-05 in the triple jump.

Travis Thomas was all over the place on the day, competing in the relays but also in the 400, where he finished 2nd in a photo finish! His PR and #2 AT mark of 49.58 took some of the pain out of the picture. Hannah Blache was third in the 400 with her own quality race, running a PR as well at 57.81. In the 200 on Tuesday during the prelims, Jamal Orme scorched the track for a SR in the event at 22.24.  His 11.09 in the 100 was the #5 time in school history, so it was quite a haul for the speedster. Tia Parrish finished 4th in the 100, and she's just a freshman! Cournee Davis was a split second behind her in fifth, and Courtnee is a sophomore so there is a bright future in store for King!  Kiazha Ginwright was third in the triple.  In the vault, favored place-finisher Cameron Brock pulled a hamstring during competition, and had to bow out.  TC Wilson won the JV vault at 11-06, but King wasn't able to place any vaulters in the top five of the varsity contest. Finally, Anissa Claiborne threw the shot to a PR distance of 36-5.5 to finish second in that event.

The lesson of 2013 then, could perhaps be the one that say "it's not over 'till it's over."  It seemed like it was over back when the squads were 0-2 and showing the life of something slightly warmer than a corpse.  But the last three league meets went to King and the championship rounds showed a couple of groups with more passion and competitive fire than we've seen all season long.  It was therefore a very rewarding night and not for only those mentioned here. It was, in the end, an indicator that no matter how dark the valley, redemption is still available.

You just gotta keep going till its over.

Results (includes prelims)

With some of King's "A-teamers" training through or resting, the last Big 8 contest of 2013 against Norco HS allowed for different faces to see time at the front of races and winning points in lopsided victories at all four levels agains the Cougars of Norco.

The JV teams rounded out undefeated league schedules, while the varsity teams ended the season 3-2 in the league.

For the boys, Cameron Brock had the highlight of the day out in the pole vault.  Brock set a lifetime PR of 13-7 to put him in a tie for #2 all time in King's history. He tried three attempts at 14-1 and the school record, but came up short.  Hopefully next time it will happen.  Vault-mates Vallejo and Zavaleta helped King sweep the event, helping the overall team to win by a 77-59 margin. 

The 400 relay team got it rolling with a victory by a full second. Then in the 1600 meters, Carlos Ramirez continued his fine racing of late, with a wire-to-wire win and a solid 4:33 mark despite gusting winds. Tyler Janes was 2nd and Daniel G. Gonzalez was third for the sweep. Nick Abboud continued to show strong growth in the hurdles, winning the 110 highs over the second-place Norco athlete. Blake Bergstrom won the 300's as he has so often. Norco had its main points come in the 400, 100, 200, shot and high jump.  In the 3200, King swept as Jacob Enriquez, Tyler Janes and Matt Cleland combined to take the top three spots.  There was a King sweep of the 800 as well, with Jacob Norys, Romalio Cosey (normally a 400 runner) and Tyler Janes doing the honors.  Janes used the day to score three times.

On the girls side King's team won very easily, amassing over 100 points. The day could have been dubbed, "The Sister Act" as siblings took the stage and earned points.   In the 800, the Sanchez sisters, Ashley and Emily, were first and third respectively, while the Haring sisters, Alyssa and Amanda were first and third in the 3200. The Ginwright sisters, Kiazha and Kiara took first and second in the high jump.  (Kiazha also placed second in the long jump with a leap of 14' 8".

Lisa Garside took the victory in the 1600 with a very nice 5:25 effort.In the sprints, Tayler Fleming ran a 15-second 100, all while hurdling ten flights of barriers. Pretty impressive. Jordan Loften did the same distance without the barriers, going 13.05 for the win. Sacha Bowen won the 200 meters, and Leighana Weaver took first in the 300 hurdles. 

So after losing the first two meets of the Big 8 season, the teams took home victories in the remaining three and are now set to enter the championship season.

The fourth "re-running" or "re-annual" of the Riverside City Championships was held at King High School on Saturday and turned out to be a great event that brought the track community from across the greater Riverside area.  Almost every school was in attendance and the meet ran smoothly and with great competition and fanfare.

For the host school, King, it was a very special night of track and field.  In almost every event, the King runners, jumpers, vaulters and throwers were present and more than accounted for, with a sizeable contingent finding themselves on the victory stand at the end of their event; earning "City Champion" titles or attractive medals for their accomplishments.

Senior Travis Thomas and freshman Ruth Wiggins had performances that were especially noteworthy and will no-doubt create indelible memories in their lifetimes.  For the hard working and likable Thomas, he found himself climbing the victory stand numerous times and subsequently climbing King's all time charts as well. It started in the 4x100 relay race in which he teamed up with Dylan Holsey, Brandon Hubley and Jahai Scott to win the event title while clocking a very impressive 43.20, good for the second fastest all time mark in school history.  Thomas came back in the 400 with a PR of 50-flat, the second-fastest time in school history and winning again over Galloway of North.  Then at the end of the night, he ran a sterling effort in the 200, clocking at 22.73 (#3 all time) to finish second, then for good measure, anchored the victorious 4x400 team.  What a night for the talented senior and one in which you may give him a pass for finishing it tired!

While one exits, another enters, and so introductions are in order for 9th grader Ruth Wiggins who had a stunning "quadruple crown" in her only event, the 800 meters. Ruth's PR going into the meet had stayed stationary for a few weeks at 2:20.08, and a tantalizingly close half-second off the school record. The SR wast her goal for the evening and did she ever reach it!  Racing with aggressiveness and poise, the rookie ran nearly even-splits for the two lap race, crossing the finish line in 2:16.85.  It was the school record that she wanted, but the mark was also a King High 9th grade record, the King Stadium Record and the Riverside City Championships Meet Record!  A race with consequence!

Wiggins and Thomas may have captured the biggest spotlight, but there were numerous King stars that shined brightly.  The boys pole vault swept their event with Cody Vallejo winning at a PR of 13-0. Cameron Brock was second, Maros Zavaleta and TC Wilson medaled in third and fourth. Blake Bergstrom, who won the 300 hurdles, was third in the long jump but won the triple in a fine 41' 11.75". Steling Hampton was the lone Wolf to medal in the throws, taking third in the discus. Dylan Hosley, while aiding in the 400 relay victory, was third in the 100 meter dash. Brandon Berz, a night after running his lifetime PR in the 1600 meters with a relay split of 4:18.7 at Mt.SAC ran the 800 here in Riverside.   He took on the field and led from the gun to notch a 1:57.57, the #3 time in school history. Jacob Norys, just a sophomore, was third in 2:00.33, a lifetime PR and good for the #7 time in school history. Joe Casco won the 1600 and Perry Elerts won the 3200, bringing a clean sweep of the distances for King High.  In the 1600, Carlos Ramirez had a lifetime, breakout performance, dropping his PR in the race a full ten seconds to 4:30!  Tyler Janes improved on his own SR for 9th graders, running 4:31.

The girls 1600 saw a very big broom being used by King, as the Lady Wolves took all five medal places. Raelyn Werley, Lisa Garside, Lauren Boydd, Emma Jaramillo and Rachel Rosales did the duties in that one. King's ladies had five of the top seven places in the 3200, led by Boydd's PR of 11:48.16.

Hannah Blache was the winner in the open 400, with a PR of 58.64, but it was Courtnee Davis who was sparkling in the sprints. She ran 12.83 for third in the 100 (followed by Jordan Lofton in 4th and Tia Parrish in 6th). In the deuce, she threw down King's #4 all time mark of 25.49 winning the race by less than 2-10ths. Katy Fatten took fifth in the 800. In the hurdles, King's Queen was over at Mt.SAC taking on some of the state's best, so the event was open for Leighanna Weaver to take on Riverside's best. Weaver took 4th in the 100 meter hurdles, followed closely by Katherine Domenici and Sabrina Suarez. Weaver's 300 saw the talented sophomore winning easily. Domenici and Suarez were fourth and sixth respectively.

Becky Collier of Woodcrest Christian set a new stadium record in the high jump, with a State-level leap of 5-8. She doubled her pleasure by winning the long jum at 1604, leading all "big school" opponenets. Nairobi Watson was third in the long jump with a mark of 15-01.  Hannah Olobri was third in the pole vault with a season-best of 9-0. Jaymei McCray, Watson and CAitlin Smith were all medalists in the triple jump. Anissa Claiborne shot put to 35-0, good for second in the event. Breanna Collins and Rayo Soyemi both medaled in the event, with Rayo taking third in the discus.

The 4x400 relays proved to be a fun and electric way to end the night. The girls kicked it off with a great victory, setting the meet record in the process at 3:59.55.  Leighana Weaver, Blache, Davis and Jordan Lofton were the stick-carriers who made history. The boys' squad won as well, capping off a great night of competition.

The City Meet will be renamed in 2014 as "The Raincross Tradition"  but on this night it was pretty clear that no matter what you call it, the stage and the event brings out the best in town.

Full Results

One of the most prestigious meets on the yearly calendar is the famous Mt.SAC Relays which draws high school, college and professional track athletes from across the country to race upon its storied track.  King entered on Friday night, four of its best distance runners, all seniors, to circle that track as a team one final time in the 4x1600 meter relay.  To a man, Nathan Torres, Perry Elerts, Joe Casco and Brandon Berz raced with ease, poise and competitive fire and the result was simply amazing.

The result was a shattering of the school record for the event, taking down the old mark by 31 seconds!  Their mark stands as the third-fastest ever in Riverside County history!

Torres took it out first and ran a season-best 4:23.9 and gave the stick to Elerts in 5th place.  Perry ran a terrific leg, notching his fastest 1600 split ever at 4:26 and gave the stick to Joe Casco in 7th of a very fine field.  Casco, who's been nicknamed the "Flyin' Fillipino" put down another terrific performance, moving up two places and splitting at 4:24, also a personal best.  Berz had a breakthrough race in his own right, dropping his PR by 8 seconds and closing the race in 4:18.7 and moving the team into fourth place to medal and secure the school record of 17.33.53. The old mark, set by the very same guys last year was 18:04.68 ... dramatic improvement!

Nathan Torres and Tayler Fleming returned to Mt.SAC for the Saturday session, seeking competition that the city of Riverside could not, perhaps, match. They were not disappointed. 

In the 800, Torres ran just 3-10ths off his lifetime PR in the 800, matching to the second his CIF Finals time from last year at 1:55.62.  He finished fourth in his heat.  Fleming threw down another superb effort in her specialty, the 300 hurdles, and finished third in the invitational heat that included competitors that will likely be next to her in the CIF rounds and, hopefully, the CA State Finals. Her time of 43.25 was, like Nathan's mark, just a fraction off her lifetime best in the event and currently sits as the third-best mark in all of the Southern Section of CIF!

So, while their teammates were lighting up the city of Riverside, these select few were making the most of their moment under the stars and the sun of one of the nation's premier relay meets. 

After getting tossed around by Roosevelt and Corona in the two opening meets of the 2013 season, King was stumbling a bit and looking for traction or some sign of hope that the season would not be a complete misstep.  The Beaumont Invitational, the Azusa Meet of Champions and the the IE Championships all breathed life in the team and gave a sense that the train was still rolling.  An expected and easy win over weak Centennial one week ago, while satisfying, was so expected that one could forgive the Wolves if they had had their sights set on the Sharks of Santiago.

Surprisingly, what most assumed was going to be a strong contest, the meet yesterday turned into something of a route.  The Santiago Sharks - usually a solid opponent, who's girls pushed Corona to the final event last week before losing - could barely nibble on the Wolves and King won handily and easily at all four levels.

King's varsity boys won by a margin of 86-50, this while resting out some key scoring athletes. The majority of Santiago's points came in the field events where they were scoring twice in seemingly every event.  While King's throwers scored 10 of their 18 available points, the big damage was done on the track where a number of sweeps were in orer. Joe Casco, Nathan Torres and Perry Elerts did the brooming in the 1600, while Bergstrom, Abboud and Carlson swept the 110 high hurdles. Berz, Jacob Norys and Tyler Janes swept the 800.  Near-sweeps came in the 300 hurdles where Bergstomr and Carlson wen 1-3 and the 200 where Jamal Orme and Travis Thomas went 1-2. 

For the King girls, their mastery over Santiago was unchallenged, winning by a score of 102-34.  Santiago took first in only four events, and King's ladies swept three events and won both relays. Raelyn Werley, Ruth Wiggins and Lauren Boydd took the 1600 to kick off the meet and the girls never looked back from tehher. Tayler Fleming closed out her stellar career on King's home track with her final two hurdle events ever to be run at home. She won both, winning the 100's in 15.74 and the 300's in a modest 45.36.  When told she didn't need to run the 300's near the end of the meet and the King victory already secured, she responded, "I have to, it's my last 300 on our track!" 

Hanna Olibri, Courtney Blanck and Justine Petty swept the pole vault while Katy Fatten had the fastest time of the day while running the JV 800, a quirk of being misplaced in level. She ran 2:31, while newcomer Ashley Sanchez, in just her 2nd 800 ever, won the varsity race in 2;32.  Lauren Boydd came back from the 1600 to win the 3200 in a really solid time of 12:02 - just seconds off her PR -- despite pretty significant winds. Courntee Davis won the 100 dash and took second in the 200. 

The Inland Empire Championships is broken into two sections, "Day" and "Night" and in both sections frosh soph and varsity athletes from across Riverside and San Bernardino go head-to-head.  The Day Meet isn't quite as competitive as the Night Meet is, but both provide stages for kids to shine.  For King, it was a day for happy athletes which led to a very good night ... in fact, Coach Corona remarked that this may well qualify as King's best ever overall showing at the annual affair.

At the Frosh Soph level, King's girls took second and the boys took 3rd. The boys varsity finished 4th and the girls varsity 5th -- this against over 30 scoring squads. Indeed, it was quite a day.

In the pole vault, King's FS boys stacked the upper scoring ranks, with Marcos Zavaleta winning the title. Daniel Mukasa and Noah Poole finished 3rd anf 4th.  Zavaleta was only one of a handful of "IE Champions"; a siginficant accomplishment in the face of the region's solid track culture and talent.  Lauren Carr was the winner in the day heat of the varsity 3200, with a lifetime PR of 12:06.  In fact, the 3200 crew was in fine form at both ends of the long day, as Raelyn Werley and Brandon Berz won the nighttime meet in the same event, some 7 hours after Lauren took home her title. Both seniors ran quality performances.  Hannah Blache ran a lifetime PR in the night FS 400, improving her #3 all time school mark to the low-58's. Leighana Weaver had a championship run in the FS300 hurdles at night, running a lifetime PR of 45.61, the #2 time in school history.

Blake Bergrstrom ran a terrific 300 hurdles that had to be decided by a photo to determine his second-place finish after a hard-charging last flight brought him to the line a sliver into silver. It was a great display of his drive and talent and capped a great week of competition;  he won four events on Wednesday against Centennial. 

Jamie McCray was fourth in the day portion of the long jump, with a leap of 14-4, but Lexi Opuko was 2nd overall in the Day FS long jump with a leap of 15 feet.  Rachel Hales was second in the FS Day triple jump. In the night-time FS long jump, Sissy Underwood was 4th with a fine leap 15-2.75. Grant Higgins was 5th in the day FS long jump.

Lauren Boydd ran the 1600 in the morning hours, and just as she didn in 2012 at the IE Championships, she used the track at Vista Murrieta to deliver another breakthrough PR, this time going 5:24. She and Brianna Jacklin would come back at night and run excellent 3200 meter races, with both girls dropping below 12:00 for the first time ever and becoming King's second and third runners this year to eclipse the significant barrier.  (Werley is the other).  While out of the medals, Bayleigh Porter had her fastest time of the year in the night-meet 800, going 2:22.  Similarly, Ruthie Wiggins missed out on a medal, but still threw down King's #6 all  time 1600 mark in 5:10.89 - a mere 4-tenths off the #5 spot!  Tyler Janes dropped 5 seconds off his best-ever in the 800, going 2:05 in the day meet for third. He came back later and made a huge move over the final 100 meters of the 1600 to finish second in 4:38. In the 3200 that Berz won, his teammate Joe Casco was right on his heels and finished in third with another gritty performance.

Tayler Fleming, who's having another very special year while entertaining numerous college scholarship offers for her talent, was the runner-up in the 100 hurdles with a seasonal best at 14.71.  She was a bit off her game in the 300's going 44-plus and finishing third behind two Roosevelt rivals. Tia Parrish had a very fine outing in the FS100 dash under the lights, going 12.60 for King's #5 all time best mark. She finished third. Courtnee Davis was the runner-up in the FS200.

The meet finished with a sterling effort in the 4x400 meter relay by Fleming, Blache, Porter and Weaver ran the #2 time in school history and for only the second time dipped under 4:00 for the race (3:59.42). What made it a bit more exciting was the side-by-side dual Fleming had with a JW North runner on the anchor leg; a battle that was reminiscent of six years ago when North and King track meets were fraught with epic clashes. Tayler pulled away strongly in the last 100 to secure the championship for the foursome.  

Given the lack-luster perfomances King has put forth in recent weeks, the meet was a day and night of competitive spirit for King that has been sorely missed. Whether it was the grand stage layed out Vista Murrieta or the thousand-plus fellow competitors that brought it out, one can only guess at the cause. Whatever it was, the day's competition brought smiling faces and the night duplicated the day. 

Full Results 

Preparing to compete the week after Spring vacation is never easy. The awareness that the end of the school year is upon us and the weariness of day-to-day work sometimes takes away from the team competing at peak form. Sending less than a full squad to the starting line against Centennial, the Wolves proved they are ready to finish off the season with success, defeating the Huskies convincingly winning  104-32 for the girls and 94-42 for the boys.

On the girls’ side, the Lady Wolves walked away with 12 victories and swept in seven events.  For the distance squad, Lisa Garside and Hannah Johnson ran away with personal bests for this season in the 1600 in a closely contested race. Alyssa Haring, Brianna Jacklin went 1-2 in the 3200 easily defeating  all Centennial runners who toed the line. The hurdle squad swept in both the 100 and 300 contests with Tayler Fleming and Leighana Weaver winning handily in both of their races respectively.

Off the track, the jumps and throws were equally as successful, sweeping both long and triple jumps with Nairobi Watson scoring in both.  Breanna Collins, Anissa Claiborne and Rayo Soyemi had equal success on the field, flipping places and sweeping in both the shot put and discus.

For the boys, the team had more competition against the Huskies, but was able to find the same success as their female counterparts.  Blake Bergstrom earned victories in the four events he contested, earning victories in both hurdles and the long and triple jump. Bergstrom led the way for the Wolves in his events, with sweeps in the 100 and long and triple jumps, including an all-time top 5 mark in the long.  

The throwers outscored Centennial 15-3, with Anthony Calvillo scoring in both. Although the meet could have proven to lack the intensity and atmosphere of a highly contested battle, several King Wolves chose to compete with something to prove, setting a goal to finish out their season with class and commitment.

With the dust of vacation fading, the team can look forward to renewing its goals and individuals can set their minds to competing with intensity to finish on top.   

Nobody said that for the King High Track program, in trying to bounce back from the disappointments of mid-March, the road would be seamless; that there still wouldn't be obstacles to overcome. After encouraging and positive movement forward at the Meet of Champions; the Beaumont Invitational and the King Soph/Frosh Classic, the Arcadia Invitational proved to be a roller coaster ride of elation to frustration and back again. 

Arcadia - the nation's most prestigious and competitive high school meet - boasts athletes from across the country (some 25+ states were represented) and foreign countries. Entry is highly selective and to get a lane or a spot on the line is an achievement in its own right.  The meet will highlight the strengths and weaknesses of those who take the place there over two nights and a day. 

The distance crew  for King ran a combined total of 13 miles in six different races and kicked off that half-marathon on Friday night with a sweet school record in the boys 4x800. They went 8:07, eclipsing the old mark by 4 seconds and did it with only seven shoes.  On the second leg, Jacob Norys was spiked at the end of the first turn but gutted out nonetheless a 2:05 with only one shoe.  Brandon Berz, Dalton Seckinger and Nathan Torres rounded out the SR-setting crew with both Berz and Torres dipping under 2:00!   Not to be left off the all-time lists, the girls 4x1600 team of Ruthie Wiggins, Lauren Boydd, Emma Jaramillo and Raelyn Werley cut off 28 seconds from the old mark in that event set back in 2008.  

While Friday night featured those school records and some outstanding racing, the Saturday day portion was one of uneven performances. Though running hard, the 4 X 100 relay teams; the 4 X 400 teams and the girls DMR had results that disappointted. The day, perhaps, can be capsulized in the running of the boys and girls 300 hurdles.  First, sophomore Leighana Weaver went down midway through her heat having hit a hurdle on the turn.  Then Blake Bergstrom, one of King's most competitive athletes, charged hard through his best event and was in second place of his heat until the final hurdle when he clipped it too and crashed.  Before he could right himself, the field had passed him to the line. But later, in the same event, King's most decorated athlete - 2012 State Qualifier Tayler Fleming - pranced around the track in the elite night meet and finished third overall and dropped her season-best mark by 1.5 seconds. It demonstrated her "re-arrival" at the level she finished her amazing 2012 season.  Falling and rising, the 300 hurdle event seemed to be emblematic of King's two days in Arcadia.

On Saturday, Nathan Torres proved he's pretty-much back to 2012 form after battling illness all winter. He ran in the "day meet" portion of the Arcadia Invitational in the 800 and went 1:57, just a couple seconds off from his season-best 1:55 he  ran in last year's CIF rounds.  The Distance Medley Relay on Saturday night was crazy, as 33 teams left kids with blood on their legs and exchange zones that looked like NASCAR pileups - bodies and baton bouncing off each other in mad exchange zones.  The boys' team of Perry Elerts, Travis Thomas, Berz and Torres were placed in the heavily talented "invitational" heat during the elite night section of the meet and held their own against many of the best in the state. Though they were about 10 seconds off the school record set last year, they battled gamely with some pushing, shoving, bleeding and wild baton exchanges that made for an exciting conclusion to the meet for the Wolves.  

A rollercoaster of 16 hours is perhaps the best way then to describe the King experience in the nation's finest and most competitive high school meet. There were some really exciting highs, but some lows too that seemed to indicate there is still more to grow on as the season enters its final month.

Full Results    Some photos  

The purpose of King's annual Frosh Soph Classic is to stage an event that mimics everything a varsity meet would, just keep the upperclassmen(and women) at home. Let the young ones have their moment in the spotlight.

In the 9th running of the "Classic", the kids didn't disappoint.  Glendora, a staple of the meet and the defending champions on both sides, was pushed in a mighty battle by Heritage and King in the boys contest and the three teams finished just a handful of points apart. 

In 2012, Glendora seemed to have an answer for every threat any opponent threw at them, but here in 2013, it was a battle at every turn.  Heritage saw big points come their way via sophomore Jarett Carter, who scored 18 points in the 200 and 400, winning the 400 in a solid 51.55. Teammate Torrey Atkins took home 20 points by winning both hurdle races, so between the two of them, Heritage's young stars collected just about half of the team's haul. Axel Aveakovi won the shot and finished third in the discus, behind Hemet's CJ Hicks who set a meet record to win at 138' 7".

For their part, the host team King kept chipping away at smaller point totals here and there, including a big push in the 3200 at the end of the day to snag 3rd, 4th, and 5th places and 12 points. Tyler Janes was third in the 1600, notching a King High freshman record for the distance in the process at 4:35.66. The relay team finished second in the 4x400 to earn another 8  points. In the pole vault, the Wolves took in a haul, winning 1, 2 and 6 - 19 points!  Marcos Zavaleta and Daniel Mucasa were the winner and runner-up respectively, with Noah Poole taking the final point in sixth. Grant Higgins scored in the long jump, finishing 4th, while Montiel Johnson went 46' 6" in the shot to finish second behind the aforementioned Uveokovi.  Jacob Norys was the runner-up in the 800 at 2:04, taking 8 points and earned a point in the 1600 finishing sixth overall.

Glendora was persistent and tenaciously fought for a repeat win but came up just short.  Jeff Kirwin was masterful in the distances, grinding out a sub-10:00 3200 (and meet record) along with a well-timed attack in the 1600 to score 20. James Reyes was second in the 400, Daniel Castro won the 800 with teammate Parker Seale in 5th.  Seale would "seal" 18 points for Glendora in the 1600, taking 2nd behind Kirwin. Glendora also won the 1600 relay as mentioned earlier, but also scored twice in the long jump and once in the triple. While one could point to their multi-lappers as their MVP's on the day, it took concerted effort by many that got them within 2 points of Heritage's 75.  King had 70 to make it a close battle for the victory. It was quite a meet.

On the girls' side, it was not close as the King girls ran away with the victory, winning by 28 points over Rancho Verde and 58 points over Yorba Linda and Glendora who tied.  (Their 95 points combined with the boys' 70 made King HS the Sweepstakes winner).

Courtnee Davis led the way for King's ladies with a very busy and productive day. She scored in both short sprints and the 4x100 relay in which she helped the Wolves go to victory.  In the 200, she finished in 3rd during the preliminary rounds, then came back to win the event in the late afternoon. Ruthie Wiggins scored 18 points by taking 2nd in the 800 and winning the 1600. Alyssa Haring won the 3200, after sprinting out to a big lead in the opening lap and never relinquishing it. Leighana Weaver scored twice in the two hurdle races, finishing in the middle of the medals in the shorter version but winning nicely in the 300's. Justine Petty and Courtney Blanck scored 12 points in the vault., Sissy Underwood scored in the long jump.  King would close the day with a 4x400 victory as well.

In the throws, King was shut out, but Corona's Kayla Zempoalteca won both tosses, setting TWO new meet records.  First, in the shot, she heaved it 35' 02" and then in the discus, her 116' 00" was 19 feet beyond her strongest oponent. Aliyah Crawford of Citrus Hill set a new meet record in the 400, going 58.01 and distinguishing herself as the only sub-60 second quarter miler on the day.

For almost a decade now, King High Track and Field has been throwing out the welcome mat for schools near and far to show up with their "young-ins" and treat them to a first class, "varsity" meet.  Given how well so many of the competed this year, that welcome mat could very well be seen as red carpet. 

Photo gallery      Full Results (Scroll to end to see team scores)

We are hard-pressed to remember an Azusa Pacific (APU) Meet of Champions that went as well as the 2013 edition did for the King distance runners. While the meet is always a place to run fast, there seemed to be something even more magical about the track this time around as the PR’s (personal records) started early and just kept coming throughout the long, 14 hour track meet. By the end, with King well represented in the elite “invitational” sections under the lights, there was a sense that no one wanted the parade of personal improvements to end.

After running dozens of heats of the 800, 1600 and 3200 throughout the day, the meet reserves the fastest two heats of those distances to be run under the lights at night. It’s an electric setting as many of the elite distance runners in So Cal are present. King was well represented in each of those. AJ Boebinger and Rolando Phalen kicked it off in the 800 with both dropping big PR’s and medaling. They ran 2:07 each, AJ’s was the 5th fastest freshman time in school history! Jacob Norys was next and ran incredible 2:02.63 lifetime best. Ruthie Wiggins equaled her all time best in the 800 at 2:20, despite getting shoved by an opponent with 150 to go. Katy Fatten was also under the lights but her smile was illumination enough after running a huge PR of 2:21.55, the #6 time in school history!

In the 1600’s Tyler Janes moved to #2 on the Frosh all time list at 4:38 while Carlos Ramirez raced well for the first time in a loaded and hyped race! Dalton Seckinger had a very special 1600 in the same race, and put himself at #5 on the all time list with a 4:28 gem. It was the 3200’s that seemed to scream that the best was saved for last, as the long-lappers finished off the night in tremendous fashion. David G. Gonzalez and Mark Werley were the first up and ran text-book 32’s moving steadily through the field to finish in the top 6 overall. More significantly, the crushed the 13 year old freshman school record of 10:23, as Gonzalez ran 10:04 and Werley 10:09! Sophomore Kyle Johnson was next and cooly laid down a lifetime best of 10:04 – 56 seconds faster than he was last year!

Then came Raelyn Werley who dropped her lifetime best of 11:34 to 11:07.51. It’s the 5th fastest mark in school history and was without doubt, the best race the senior has ever run. Joe Casco finished the PR’s for King with another stud-like effort, racing to the second-fastest 3200 in school history and running 9:29 – 15 seconds faster than his all time PR.

But there were PR’s in the daylight as well, and a few of them stood out in attention grabbing ways. Brenton Havsgaard won his heat in 5:01.62, earning a coaster-sized medal for his efforts. Michael Robinson lowered his 6th-fastest freshman 1600 mark by 3 seconds. Daniel Gonzalez put down the 7th-fastest freshman time in the 1600 some 8 hours before breaking that 3200 record. What a day for the freshman! Wyatt Smith, Daniel J. Gonzalez, Garrett Koontz Joe Quiambao and Isaiah Curtner all took home PR’s in the 800. Emily Fajardo and Hannah Huscher did as well. Brandon and Parker Gutzmann, twins, ran twin times at 4:50, both were lifetime PRs in the 1600. Emma Jaramillo – who’s not a twin – ran a PR in the 1600 as well, at 5:26. Rachel Rosales had a nice drop of time in the 1600, going 5:36.66 to snag fourth place and a medal in her heat.

Maybe the biggest race though came from Bayleigh Porter who ran superbly to a 5:21 clocking, her best ever. Lauren Boydd equaled her best time at 5:28.35, while Lauren Soholt dropped another 5 seconds from her fastest to go 5:34.57 with Brianna Jacklin coming across also with a PR at 5:38.77. David Huff and Jacob Enriquez became the newest members of the sub-5:00 1600 club with 4:53 and 4:59.46 marks respectively. Nathan Torres won his heat at 4:26.65, a great time in his come back from a lengthy illness. Brittany Saucedo missed getting under 6:00 in the 1600 by a half second – heart breaking a bit, but still another PR.

So there was a lot to smile about and a lot to cheer for as the King kids had a romp in what we were calling a “PR Playground”. It was fun. Now comes the challenge of maintaining that level of expectation in races and meets that may not be as magical as the oval in Azusa.

Full Results    King Results    A few photos      Updated All time lists

On Thursday of this past week, Coach Corona told his team that "this might be the lowest point ever in King Track and Field history." It wasn't so much losing back to back meets ( a first on the girls side) to tough league rivals Roosevelt and Corona that put the Wolves in this position but the way in which these losses had come. The tenacity; the togetherness and the preparation which have been hallmarks of the Wolves program for years were noticeably absent in those two losses. Corona also said to his charges that once you get to the lowest point, then one has to find their way back to what they know-back to who they really are. " It will not be an overnight process", he said, "but a step by step process".

Saturday, with the distance kids at Azusa Pacific and the rest of the team at the Beaumont Invitational, the Wolves took the first step. With the distance group flying around their PR Playground" the other parts of the team acquitted themselves well at the Beaumont Cougar Classic. The boys and girls varsity and soph/frosh teams all finished in the top three in the team standings carried by some top flight performances. On the boys side, Travis Thomas was the meet winner in the 400 with 51.23 and was a runner-up in the 200 at 22.97-3/100's from the gold. Team mate Jamal Orme was right behind in the 200 for third. Cameron Brock also won an invitational title with a leap of 13-0 in the pole vault. Cody Vallejo got his PR in that event at 12-6 for fourth. Blake Bergstrom won the 300 Hurdles in 40.11. Sterling Hampton continues his discus prowess with a third place finish at a near PR of 131-03. David Gardner jumped a PR 39-9 in the triple jump.

The girls varsity was once again led by senior Tayler Fleming. Tayler won both hurdle races without really being pushed and anchored the 4 x 100 relay to a meet record 48.8. She also anchored a cobbled together 4 X 400 to a second place finsh. Aiding in the scoring was Hannah Blache in the 400 at third place in the 400 and Courtne Davis in the 100/200 as well as Hannah Olobri and Alyxs Boonkukoa in the pole vault. Sissy Underwood and Jennifer Gutierrez stepped up in the girls Soph/Frosh division for the Wolves. Sissy would win the 100 Hurdles in 18.48 while Jennifer finished third in 18.98. Gutierrez would come back and be the meet winner in the 300 hurdles finishing at 50.62. Underwood also got a meet title with a PR long jump of 16-1. Courtney Blanc got a third place in the pole vault. The Soph/Frosh boys were led by meet champion Montiel Johnson in the shot put winning the event by some three feet with a 40-8 toss. Montiel also finished third in the discus with his second best throw ever at 99-7. Not bad for a guy who has just picked up the implements this year!! Another meet champion was Marcos Zavaleta who cleared his PR of 11-6. He was followed by jump-mates Daniel Mukasa in second at 11 feet and Noah Poole in 4th with a PR 10-0. Saddiq Jennings, Grant Higgins, Kris Ewens and Elijah Jackson raced to thrid place in the 4 X 100 and Delynn Holland collared third place in the long jump.

So from Azusa to Beaumont, Saturday was the day the Wolves took their first step on their journey back. There are still many steps to go.

Full Results 

Though the varsity scores were relatively close (the boys lost by only six points) against Corona on Wednesday, the outcomes could have (should have?) been a reverse of what they were and King could have been looking at the remaining part of the season in control of 2^nd place in the league.  That didn’t happen, for many reasons, and when the day ended the highlights fell to the JV boys who took home the only victory on the day.

The distance teams of both Corona and King have enjoyed friendly and equal rivalries in both XC and Track  for some time, and today’s distance races were no exception to that pattern.  Carlos Ramirez and Tyler Janes went 1-2 in the 1600 and led a field that saw 6 King runners eclipse 5:00 in the event.  Tyler’s 4:40.31 was the #4 frosh time in school history, while 6^th place Michael Robinson’s 4:45.18 was #6. Corona handled well the 800 taking the victory from Rolando Phalen who PR’d at 2:10. In the 3200, the boys from King did exceptionally well, taking places 1-4, led by Daniel G Gonzalez’s #2 frosh time in school history (2-tenths off the record!) at 10:23.49! 

Seth Tyler , Mohsin Sabrin and Jay Roddie swept the 400, Sam Lumpkin, Saadiq Jennings and Matthew Tarrt swept the 100 while Ryan Moussad won the 300 hurdles.  Lumpkin would double back to win the 200 as well, pulling Tarrt and Kendell Moore with him to add another King sweep to the ledger.  In fact, sweeping was the Special of the Day, it seemed, as King brought the broom to the Triple Jump as well, while coming close to it in both of the throws.  Sueung Lee and Marshall Levine took the 1-3 spots in the discus.

While the JV boys dominated, there were too many lack-luster elements of the varsity contests – both boys and girls – to overcome a motivated Corona program. The Panthers’ girls were upheld by the tenacity of distance runner Alicia Williams and sprinter Cydney Powell who combined for 30 of the whole team’s point totals!  Williams swept all three distance races despite quality challenges by Raelyn Werley in the 1600 and Ruthie Wiggins in the 800.  Powell was strong enough hold off Courtnee Davis in the 200, despite Davis’s #4 time in school history at 25.78. Powell bested her hard-charging opponent in the 100 as well while also took “gold” in the 400, winning with ease. 

On the boys’ varsity level, the efforts for King were a bit more consistent but it still brought them up short by six points. Joe Casco’s brilliant 9:43.25 3200 at the end of the meet – made dramatic as Corona’s David Aguilar went side-by-side with him for all but the last 50 meters of the race – embodied what the coaching staff wished King had displayed throughout the meet.  The high points were few, however, allowing the Panthers to move into second place in the Big 8.  Brandon Berz won both the 1600 and the 800, running the 1600 in King’s #3 best mark ever. Travis Thomas earned the win in the 400 meters, and Blake Bergstrom took a first and a second in the two hurdle races. Thomas came back to win the 200 as well in a solid sub-23 second effort.  To close the meet, the 4x400 squad ran an inspired effort with the fifth-best mark in school history at 3:42.80.  The field events turned out to be a dismal affair for King as they couldn’t take a victory in either of the horizontal jumps, both throws and no-heighted as a group in the high jump.  Cameron Brock’s 13-3 victory in the vault was the only field event that King could win.

Results   some photos

When the girls 4x400 team took the line to close out the meet against Roosevelt HS yesterday, all they were thinking about was perhaps, get the stick around and get it there first.  If they did, then victory would be theirs and their teammates who battled valiently throughout the warm afternoon to bring the meet to its dramatic closing.

They may well have been thinking they were on the same line with one of California's fastest mile-relay teams and the challenge would be daunting. But, as the Lady Wolves had done all day, this group of four put out a great effort, running 4:01 (the fourth-fastest mark in school history).  Sadly it wasn't quite enough to surpass the talented Roosevelt crew and the meet would close with King 8 points from the victory and a potential league title.

Roosevelt's girls were the defending champions of the Big 8 which made for an exciting meet from start to finish. In the 4x100 relay that launched things, the King girls ran the 2nd fastest mark in school history after three great exchanges but it was still not enough to take the win.  Ruthie Wiggins and Raelyn Werley were 2nd and 3rd in the 1600 - again, great efforts and times ... but still short by just enough for it to matter. In the hurdles, Tayler Fleming and Leighana Weaver made up 8 points by going 1-2, but Roosevelt stormed back by winning the 400 and the 100 despite great efforst by Hannah Blache and Tia Parrish respectively.  Ruthie Wiggins went wire-to-wire to win the 800 in a PR and the third-fastest mark in school history, while Raelyn Werley and Aimee Martinez went 1-3 in the 3200 to lead up to the exciting 4x400 that closed the tightly contested meet. 

In the field events, Kiarra Ginwright had another fine outing in the high jump, winning at 5-0. Anissa Claiborne had a sweet sweep of the throws, scoring 10 points in the process. In fact, the discus was swept by King as Claiborne, Vanessa McCullough and Rayo Soyemi all cleared the 73 feet Roosevelt's best was able to muster out there. In the Triple Jump, Kiazha Ginwright went 34-2 for the win and the leading mark for King on the season.

On the boys' side, it was never really close as the Mustangs ran away with it early and never looked back.  Even a raucous celebration by the King kids over the win the team took in the 4x400 relay that ended the affair couldn't muffle the fact that the Wolves were outdone by over 30 points. Kyle Warrick did a lot of damage with two wins for Roosevelt in the 1600 and 800 despite great races by Joe Casco and Nathan Torres who gave chase. Perry Elerts was third for King in the 1600 with his best time of the year at 4:31.49.  Blake Bergstrom and Kyle Carson combined for four placings in the two hurdle races; Blake won the 300's. Cameron Brock, who has been vaulting so well this year, cleared 13-0 again, but was outdone by two competitors in the blue and orange of Roosevelt. Sterling Hampton was the only King thrower to score points (2nd in the discus) as Roosevelt held the fort out in the field.

In the end it turned out to be - despite the losses - a series of events that saw strong efforts by the King kids. Unfortunately, it was not enough to tame the Mustangs who ultimately rode out of town victorious and in the saddle for the 2013 league crowns.

Results  

King Track alums - doning different uniforms than they once did - took to Cal State Fullerton's track Saturday night in the Ben Brown Invitational. Alongside them were three members of the current team, all of whom will be wearing a different uniform in the coming seasons for their prospective colleges. It was quite a reunion.

Earlier in the day, Casey Candelaria (Class of '09) and currently running for Fullerton, competed well in both the 800 and 1500.  Also in the 1500 was Morgan Sjogren-Gonzalez (Class of '05) who ran for Cal State San Marcos while in college and is now competing semi-professionally also had a fine outing in the 1500, running a lifetime best. Katrina Graham ('10) is running for the Master's College and raced well in the 5000 meters. Tyler Parrish and Chris Miller - along with a host of other King grads - wore RCC's colors and competed well.

On the track for King this evening were seniors Joe Casco, Perry Elerts and Raelyn Werley, all of whom were aiming for quality marks in the 5000 meters, a distance rarely contested at the high school level. For Raelyn it was first try at the distance and she did remarkably well, crossing the line in 18:18 -- all while coming by the 3200 meter mark just three seconds off eher lifetime best at that distance with still another mile to go.  Joe Casco and Perry Elerts both ran in the same race a year ago and on this evening they were both able to slice significant seconds off their previous bests and ran 15:29 and 15:32 respectively.

King's annual meeting with the Pumas of Chaparral HS (Temecula) along with a reunion with the Bulldogs of Hemet provided some really good competition and at the end of the long, triangular meet, the Wolves came home with victories at all four levels. The day was very cold and with three large teams on the field, it made for an endurance contest that lasted almost five hours. The host Bulldogs of Hemet were never really in the hunt at any of the four levels, but the Pumas of Chaparral made the varsity boys of King sweat with a great contest that went closely untill the final two events.

The girls meet had highlights at several corners of the track and field. Kiarra Ginwright launched herself to the 5th best school mark in our 13 year history, going 5-4 in the high jump.  It was quite an effort. In the 1600, freshman Ruthie Wiggins would put down a school record for 9th graders, winning in 5:22. She doubled back to lead a King sweep in the 800 that netted her the #2 fastest 9th grade mark in King's history for that particular race. Right on her heels were Bayleigh Porter and Raelyn Werley who both ran very solid efforts as well. Tia Parrish and Courtney Davis went 1-2 in the 100 while Davis doubled back to snag another 5 points for King by winning the 200 later in the evening.  Tayler Fleming did her "usual" victory lap, winning the 100 and 300 hurdles.  Perhaps the brightest spot for King were two encouraging marks set in the shot, as Anissa Claiborne and Brianna Collins threw the shot beyond 30' and finished first and second. The girls varsity was never really challenged in the meet and won by a wide margin of 95-40 over Hemet.

For the boys, it was much closer and it took throwing in two "backups" at the end to seal the deal. Joe Casco and Perry Elerts were penciled in for the 3200 as "if needed", and with the gap between King and Chaparral a mere 4 points with two events to go, the two talented seniors were called on. Did they ever "fill in!"  Both guys took charge of the race despite the Puma's pesky top 2-miler and with a negative split race, finishing with a 64-second last lap, Perry took home the victory with Joe Casco right on his heals!  Brandon Berz took two victories in the shorter distance races on the day and led the distance crew to some really remarkable early-season times.  Berz's 800 time of 2:00.48 sits as the #6 time in school history. Dalton Seckinger and Jacob Norys - both sophomores - went 2-3 making a King sweep of both the 1600 and the 800 a reality ... not to mention some serious points.

The sprinter contingent did well on a very cold afternoon and evening. Indeed, they performed as if the temperatures were 30 degrees warmer than the high-forties the mercury was reading. They won the 1600 meter relay and Jamal Orme took first in the 100. Blake Bergstrom won the 300 hurdles while taking second in the 110's. He also took second in the long jump. Cameron Brock had another very fine outing in the pole vault, upping his season best vault to 13-06. R.Cosey and Derrick Johnson were 3rd and 4th respectively in the 400.  Sterling Hampton and Anthony Calvillo were the only throwers for King to score on the afternoon, heaving the discus 132' for third and fourth place. In the end, the boys were pushed by Chaparral, but came away with a 12 point margin of victory, 71-59.  Hemet was third with 40 points.

So it was, on the whole, a very good day. With the first Big 8 League meet coming next week with the favored Mustangs of Roosevelt, it could be just the kind of momentum building King will need.

Results (Warning - there are numerous known errors due to timing malfunctions)

The King Track program made its way out to the 605 freeway and Downey High School this past Saturday for its first invitational action of the season. The Downey Relays are in thier 13th year and attracts numerous teams from Los Angeles and Orange Counties. Along with Valley View out of Moreno Valley, the Wolves were the only Inland Empire entrant in the meet. The Wolf tracksters have traditionally shown well in relay events such as this and despite the breakdown of electronic timing and the fact tha tthe meet was two hours behind schedule, Saturday would be no exception.King fielded teams at the Boys Soph/Frosh; girls varsity and Boys varsity level and did extremely well in the team standings at the end of the day. In the 38 toal events that had King athletes, King medaled in 29 .

In the boys Soph/Frosh, Peninsula High finished with 92 points; Downey had 62 and King finished with 50. Daniel Mukasa highlighted the day with a first place finish in the pole vault at 10-6 and led the young Wolves to vicxtory in that event. Other fine efforst came from Grant Higgins; Delynn Holand and Ryan Moussad who pulled a second in the Triple jump relay with a total of 107-3 and a second place finish by the 4 X 1200 team of Mark Werley; Mikie Robinson. Daniel G. Gonzalez and Carlos Ramierz who ran 14:20.56. The boys 4 X 100 team of Shadig Jennings; Kris Ewens; Elijah Jackson and T. J. Noland ran to a second in the 4 X 100 despite Noland getting getting run into by a opposing anchor leg who ran out unto the track at the last minute.

The Boys varsity scored in bits and pieces all day and garnered enough points to finish third behind Downey (88) and Valley View (52). Their highest finishers were third place finshes by the Distance Medley team of Dalton Seckinger; Maurice Jones in his first ever 400; Jacob Norys and Joe Casco. Also, Cameron Brock, Cody Vallejo and TC Wilson combined thier jumps in the vault for a 33-6 total and a third place finish. Race of the day for the boys varsity was the 4 X 400 where the Santa Fe anchor leg barely edged out Travis Thomas at the finish. The team of Blake Bergstrom; Thomas, Romailo Cosey and Derek Johnson had to settle for second place.

The day, though belonged to the King Girls varsity who won the invitational championship outdistancing Downey (54) and Long Beach Poly's B team (52) with 96 points. The Lady Wolves were led by meet record breaking performances from the 4 X 800 team of Ruthie Wiggins; Kaitlyn Fatten; Lauren Soholt and Bailey Porter and the Shuttlle Hurdle team of Tayler Fleming; Leighana Weaver; Kathi Domenici and Cissy Underwood. The 1:07.8 recorded n the shuttle hurdles was also a new school record by some 5 seconds. The high jump relay of Kiara Ginwright, Lexi Opuku and Kiaza Ginwright also finished first with a 13-6 total. The girls would also record 4 second place finishes and two third places in their race to the title.

The girls of King, who have lost only 11 dual meets since the program’s inception in 2000, won for the 93rd time. The victory came by a comfortable, yet competitive margin, 77-59. In many respects, the “stars” of the meet for King were frosh/soph kids making the jump to the varsity level and having an immediate impact. Ninth grader, Ruthie Wiggins scored 6 points, taking 2nd in both the 1600 and the 800. Her times placed her among the top 7 freshmen King runners all time! Sophomore Hannah Blache also shined with relay legs and a victory in the 400. With Tayler Fleming out sick, sophomore Leighana Weaver took two seconds in both hurdle events. Courtney Davis and Tia Parrish – again, 10th and 9th grade respectively – went 1-2 in the 200, Tia took second in the 100. Kiara Ginwright (10th) took second in the high jump and freshman Destinee Underwood won the long jump. In the 3200 at the end of the night, Raelyn Werley, Iveth Gutierrez and Lauren Soholt led a King sweep, with Lauren running a lifetime PR!

Mesa’s men were able to edge King in a tightly contested (65-77) match that saw the track athletes for King doing what they could to stay close. Brandon Berz scored 10 points in the 1600 and 3200, Perry Elerts scored 8 himself winning the 800 and taking second 100th of a second behind Berz in the 3200. (Both guys closed the 8 lap race in a sweet 61 seconds). Derrick Johnson carried the stick in the relay but came back later to finish second in the 200 meters at 23.87. Blake Bergstrom, just three days removed from the soccer season, broke off some rust in the hurdles and nearly matched his 2012 PR in the 300’s where he won. He was third in the 110’s behind two Mesa hurdlers. Perhaps the highlight of the day came in the pole vault where Cameron Brock inaugurated his third season with a very impressive early season vault of 13-0. A nice way to start the season indeed and it bodes well for the remaining 10 weeks of the season. Delynn Holland scored for King in the triple jump with a leap beyond 38 feet.

In the end, under the lights and cold temperatures, the two large teams came to halt in their kickoff contest for 2013. Close scores and spirited competition marked the day and illuminated much on what is a season all hope ends well. .

Full Results