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2002 Senior Stars - Nikki Chase and Alexis Bartschi sign with Cal Poly - SLO

Go West Ladies: The Race Is On
By Bill Carr

John Harvey had no intention of becoming the head track and field coach at Tracy’s Merrill West High School.

But a chance visit to a West practice session where he witnessed sprinters heading on a three mile run (in April), married with children, and three years later, he and the Lady Wolf Pack stand poised to bag the school’s first-ever Sac Joaquin Section Track and Field title, hoping to cap off their season with a top-five (team) finish at this year’s CIF California State Track and Field Championships in Norwalk, Cerritos Junior College.

A native of Jackson Mississippi, Harvey arrived at West in 2000, from Wilcox High School (Santa Clara), where from 1990 to 1992, he apprenticed as the school’s assistant coach. He served seven more years, from 1992 to 1999, as the school’s head coach. A 1993 graduate of San Jose State University, John competed in track and field and trained under legendary sprinter and former world 200-meter dash record-holder (1959) Bobby Poynter, whom he considers as one of his mentors. “He taught me a lot about conditioning and making sure kids are in shape, flexible and ready to compete.”

In three short years, Harvey and his staff have assembled arguably one of the Section’s most dominant squads in recent memory, with his girls establishing section leading marks in no less than eight track and field events.

His girls currently rank among the state leaders in the 400 and 1600-meter relay, 100 and 200 meter dash, 800 meters, 300 meter low hurdles, long and triple jump where sophomore Brittany Daniels is the CIF leader with a best wind-legal mark of 42-feet. Daniels soared an outstanding 42-7 at the Oakland relays, but officials removed the wind gauge (they only had one) in favor of the 100 meter races and the mark was subsequently recorded as wind-aided.

The foundation for the Wolf Pack juggernaut was laid during the 2000 season when then-freshmen Alexis Bartschi (distance), Latrise Nunnally (horizontal jumps), and Nikki Chase (sprints) arrived at MW. Says Harvey, “the goal then was to get as many kids out on the team as possible and expose them to as much as possible about the sport.”

Trips “to watch” at such prestigious meets as the Stanford Invitational, Arcadia Invitational and the CIF State Championships proved both inspirational and productive as senior long jumper Trevell Quinley garnered the school’s first state title, winning the event in 2001.

The Lady Wolf Pack continue to build on the “foundation” and with the addition of talented sprinter, Jennifer Nash, from Kennedy High Sacramento, the assault on the section record books has begun in earnest. “The older girls have taken over the team and taught the younger ones what they’ve been through and how to keep it going.”

Bartschi, who has a career-best 2:10.21 in the 800 meters, paces the section with a 2:13.44 mark. The rapidly (pardon the pun) improving Nash is the section leader and Stanford Invitational 100 meter champion with a ‘PR’ 11.93. Her fourth place 24.77 200 meter dash finish at Arcadia also leads the SJS.

Other section leaders include Shevell Quinley in the 300LH with a best mark of 44.23. Daniels, along with Nunnally and Quinley form the “Three Amigos” in the long jump with 19-7, 18-7 and 18-2 marks respectively. If you’re scoring at home that’s potentially 24 points! Both relays belong to the Ladies of West with 47.41 in the 400 meter relay to go with a 3:47.04 1600 meter relay leader.

Don’t you just love it when a plan comes together? Good luck the rest of the way to the Lady Wolf Pack of Merrill West.

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