CCCAA T&F CHAMPIONSHIPS REPORTS
May 15 & 16, 2009
Mitchell (SW) Has Elite Men’s Sprint Double-Double; Mitchell (OCC) Sets National Record
RIVERSIDE MEN AND CERRITOS WOMEN REPEAT IN CCCAA T&F CHAMPIONSHIPS
SAN MATEO -- The Riverside City College men and the Cerritos College women repeated as champions in the California Community College Athletic Association Track and Field Championships at College of San Mateo, May 16, before a sun-drenched crowd of 2,450.
Riverside didn’t win an event but had three runner-up performances and a lot of depth to roll up 68 points.
Cerritos College of Norwalk and Moorpark tied for second (58), with Sacramento and Mt. San Antonio sharing fourth (52 1/2).
Cerritos won a tight duel with Laney College of Oakland for the women’s title, 107 1/2 to 101. Riverside (64), Orange Coast (51 1/2), Mt. San Antonio (49) and West Los Angeles (43) followed.
Athletes from more than 80 men's and women's teams competed in the finals, after more than 100 teams began the qualifying procedures for the USA's largest community college championship event four weeks earlier.
MEN’S ROUND-UP:
Curtis Mitchell of Southwestern College completed an outstanding double-double, defending his titles in the 100 and 200 meters with the best legal times of any American JC/CC athlete this year.
He had a legal aiding wind of 1.5 meters per second in both races. His 100 time was 10.31. In the 200, Mitchell ran 20.58, the third best clocking by any American collegian this year – and better than the 20.59 this year by former Olympic champion Shawn Crawford.
The last athlete to win back-to-back 100 and 200 titles was Carlos Moore of Mt. San Antonio College in 2002-03.
Cerritos won the 4 x 100 meter relay in 40.24 --the fastest time in the state and No. 6 in the USA this season, with Riverside second in 40.30. Riverside was anchored by Daniel Auberry, who also placed third in the 100 (10.43) and second in the 200 in 20.86. Mitchell anchored Southwestern to fourth place in 41.10. He also anchored a fourth place 4 x 400 meter relay (3:17.93).
American River won the meet concluding relay in 3:09.24, with a 45.3 anchor by Kianti Gix. That is the No. 2 outdoor JC/CC time in the USA this year. Riverside placed third in 3:10.17. Gix had won the 400 meters earlier in 46.59, best California time of the year and No. 4 among all JC/CC athletes.
Riverside had gotten off to a good start the first day of the meet, on Friday, scoring 17 points in the long jump, led by Charles Smith’s second place at 24-5 3/4 (behind champion Ryan Butts of Antelope Valley at 25-4 3⁄4).
Dennis Aliotta of Moorpark completed a notable hammer and shot put double. His 60-7 1/4 shot mark is the only JC/CC mark over 60 feet this year and a personal best by over four feet. He won the hammer throw at 181-2.
Daniel Tapia of Hartnell was an impressive double winner, adding the men’s 5,000 meters (15:10.96) to the 10K title he won on Friday.
Mike Denman of San Diego Mesa won the men’s steeplechase in 9:33.70, beating state leader Christopher Gerber of City College of San Francisco
Ray Stewart of Merritt upset state 110 meter high hurdles leader Michael Hancock of Long Beach in a photo finish in 13.83, the No. 5 JC/CC mark in the USA this year. Hancock, who has run 13.77 to rank No. 3 nationally this year, ran 13.87 for second, with a legal aiding wind of 1.0 meters per second.
Torion Bailey of Cerritos won the men’s 800 meters in 1:53.49, upsetting defending champion Stephan May of Riverside, who finished third in 1:54.36. May is the state leader this year at 1:51.96, however.
A.J. Mitchell of El Camino was second in 1:53.75.
Other men’s winners Saturday:
Carlos Perez of San Bernardino Valley in the 1,500 meters, 3:56.83;
Marcus Pope of Mt. San Antonio in the 400 meter hurdles, 51.27;
Karl Gehrke of Moorpark in the discus throw, 165-8;
Kenneth McGee of Fullerton in the triple jump, 48-6 1/4;
Eric Adophus of Mt. San Antonio in the pole vault, 16-2 3/4;
Nicholas Armstrong of Cerritos in the decathlon with 6,867 points. .
WOMEN’S ROUND-UP:
Cassie Mitchell of Orange Coast College set a national JC record in Saturday’s first running final, the women’s 3,000 meter steeplechase. She repeated as state champion in 10 minutes, 44.46 seconds.
She was a double winner this year, taking the 5,000 meters in 17:54.81.
Cerritos had three individual state champions: repeating triple jump winner Jessica Barfield (41 feet, 1 inch), Erin Straughter in the 100 meter hurdles (14.37), and Karen Guravska in the pole vault (12-2). Guravska also placed third in the javelin and fifth in the high jump to tally 20 points.
For Laney, track and field newcomer Lauryn Newson won the 100 meters in 11.78 and the 200 meters in 23.64 – the USA’s top outdoor furlong mark by a JC/CC athlete this year. On Friday Newson had won the long jump (in which she is the national leader) and placed third in the high jump.
But Laney was hurt by the absence of its state-leading 4 x 100 meter relay team, which has run 45.56. The Eagles were disqualified for a relay violation during the Northern California Meet. That cost Laney 10 potential points.
Champelle Brown won the 400 meters in 53.89, improving her own state leading and No. 2 national leading time. She placed second to Newson in the 200 (23.93) and ran a 53.3 anchor leg to bring the Eagles from fourth to first place in the 4 x 400 meter relay – which won in 3:48.20.
Sacramento City College won the 4 x 100 meter relay in 46.35 with a quartet of Mia Moreno, Ki-Ana Lay, Samantha Tansil, and A lisa Jenkins.
Other repeating champions included:
--Mekka White-Edwards of LA Valley in the 800 meters, 2:12.23.
--Christine Cortez of Mt. San Antonio in the women’s 1,500 meters, 4:34.06;
--El Camino’s Na’I Leni in the women’s shot put, 50-7 1/4.
Sarah Nichols of Butte won the women’s heptathlon with 4,504 points, ahead of former state leader Turquoise Williams of West Los Angeles (4,357). Nichols now ranks No. 4 in the USA and Williams No. 5. The top six finishers all produced top ten USA marks, along with the leading marks in the state this season.
Jasmine Steward of Fresno won the women’s discus throw at 160-0, with defending champion Whitney Ashley of Cerritos fourth (139-1).
Ashley Jsames of Fullerton was a close winner in the 400 hurdles in 60.84 over Lakesha Adams of Monterey Peninsula (60.95).
QUAD THROWS SCORER:
Kelly Young of host College of San Mateo pulled off the unusual feat of scoring in all four women’s throwing events, including a second place in the javelin. She totaled 15 points. The two-time Northern California field events MVP totaled 15 points. She made it to the state finals in seven of eight throwing events in her CSM career.
OUTSTANDING MEN PERFORMERS: Track: Curtis Mitchell, Riverside. Field: Dennis Aliotta, Moorpark.
OUTSTANDING WOMEN PERFORMERS: Track: Cassie Mitchell, Orange Coast. Field: Lauryn Newson, Laney.
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First Day Winners at California CCAthletic Association Track & Field Championships:
THOMPSON SETS JAVELIN RECORD; U.S. LEADERS NEWSON, CARLYLE, HICKS WIN
SAN MATEO -- Cooper Thompson of Bakersfield College broke the state meet record in the men’s javelin throw and national women’s long jump leader Lauryn Newson of Laney College won her new specialty on the first day (May 15) of the 2009 California Community College Athletic Association Track and Field Championships at College of San Mateo.
Thompson threw the javelin 222 feet to break the mark of 221-11 set by Ken Teasley of Moorpark in 1993.
Newson, still in her first year of track and field competition, won the women’s long jump at 19-feet, 10 3/4 inches and came back to place third in the high jump with a personal best of 5-5. On Saturday afternoon she will run in the 100 and 200 meters. She is the state leader in both races and has the top U.S. JC/CC long jump, 20-3 3/4.
--Newsom began competing in the jumps last summer at the Pacific Association Junior Olympics, after graduating from Pinole Valley High School, where she focused on baskeball.
Susan Jackson of Sacramento City College won the high jump at 5-8 3/4. Sacramento also had the men’s winner, Fletcher Carlyle, at 6 -10 3/4. Carlyle is the U.S. JC/CC leader with his 7-2 1/2 jump in last week’s Northern California Championships.
Randi Hicks of Ventura College, the national leader in the women’s javelin throw, won with a throw of 149-8 -- just off her best of 152-5.
Other first day winners:
Men’s long jump: Ryan Butts of Antelope Valley, 25-4 3/4;
Men’s hammer throw: Dennis Aliotta of Moorpark, 181-2;
Women’s hammer throw: Holly Lohse of Shasta, 164-8.
The lone first day race finals, at 10,000 meters, were won by Lenore Moreno of Mt. San Antonio for the women, in 37 minutes, 58.95 seconds, and by Daniel Tapia of Hartnell for the men, in 31;23.04.
Aysha Moultrie of West Los Angeles is the first day heptathlon leader, with 2,810 points after four events, followed by Alisa Jenkins of Sacramento (2,760). In the decathlon, Nicholas Armstrong of Cerritos leads after five events with 3,684 points, followed by Aaron Victorian of San Jose (3,425).
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