June 17-18, 2005

       International-class youth talent headlines 87th annual CIF-State Championships!
SACRAMENTO -- Where does one focus the spotlight as the curtains are drawn and the nation's grandest stage of track and field talent is unveiled?
       Do we start with the Sac Joaquin Section boys pole vault champion ranked #1 in the world among the under-18 crowd in his specialty event? Or with the North Coast Section junior-year star whose versatility has drawn comparison to Olympic decathlon legend Rafer Johnson?
       Do we kick off with the Sac Joaquin Section female phenom who annihilated the national prep triple jump record and competed in the Olympic Trials as a mere 17-year-old? Or with the Los Angeles City Section speed merchant whose world-class talents have earned him scholarship entrance into America's premier one-lap dash program?
       Do we focus on the deepest and fastest-rising crop on female vaulters in national prep history? Or shall we look to the Southern Section's highly decorated distance runner whose successes have canvassed two sports during a storybook career?
       Each deserves to share top billing here, as Scott Roth, David Klech, Brittany Daniels, David Gettis, Brysun Stately, Tori Pena and Mark Matusak help comprise the deep wealth of talent decorating this weekend's lineup card that promises to keep every fan glued to their seats for the 87th edition of the CIF-State Track and Field Championships!
       Here's our detailed preview of the action:
       To get a glimpse of the stars, it is said that one only needs to look skyward. On this weekend, that's where one finds the Golden State's pole vaulters -- the greatest collection of youth aerialists in the Western Hemisphere, if not the globe! Granite Bay (SJS) junior Scott Roth headlines the vault competitions after wins at Arcadia and Stanford, with his recent 17-foot, 2-inch clearance at sectionals not only setting a national age-16 record, but also registering as the leading under-18 mark in the world this year. Roth has scaled over 17 feet on this very track twice in the last month, hoping to execute a trifecta this weekend that not only lands a successful defense of his California title, but perhaps also erases Anthony Curran's 27-year-old state-meet best 17-00.50, the oldest field event mark in the state record books. Roth's main challenge will come from teammate Ryan Shuler, the 2003 state champion as a freshman who has battled tendinitis problems this spring to rank among the region's best. From down south, La Jolla's Jeff Coover has enjoyed excellent improvement during the year to clear a lifetime-best 16-4 that ranks among the top 10 marks nationally in 2005.
       On the girls side', the vault competiton is even more stacked! Senior Brysun Stately of Cordova (SJS) has soared 13-06 in recent weeks to move to #3 on the state's all-time list in the event, with newly christened recordsetter Tori Pena of Edison (Huntington Beach-SS) also on display. Pena curled over the cross bar at 13-01 in sectionals action last weekend to set a state junior-class record, beating a very deep field in the process. Rancho Bernardo's Kate Mattoon (SD), St. Francis of Mountain View's Natasha Barthel (CCS) and Rocklin's Rachel Simmons (SJS) have each cleared 12-09 this season to rank among the top 15 on the all-time state list and round up the deepest contingent ever at any state meet, with the quintet also ranking among the top 7 youth performers in the Western Hemisphere this spring. National 10th-grade recordholder Allison Stokke of Newport Harbor (13-05.75) fractured her tibia in late April, sidelining the defending state champion this weekend.
        The girls' horizontal jumping events also pack major star power, with 2004 Olympic Trials participant Brittany Daniels of Merrill West (SJS) fresh off another jaw-dropping bound that left us scurrying through the record books! Daniels, who signed with the University of Southern California last month, spanned a wind-aided 45-07.50 in the triple to record the best mark under any conditions in national prep history and post the top Juniors (19-and-under) mark on the planet this year! Although left to compete on a runway positioned into a headwind here last year, perhaps meet officials will situate those aiding conditions to her advantage (and at her back) this year, with her wind-legal national record (44-11.75) and Juliana Yendork's 14-year-old state meet record 44-00.50 hanging in the balance! Fellow 40-plus footers Ke'Niya Richardson of Holy Names (OAK) and Decontee Kaye of James Logan (NCS) will keep the pressure on Daniels and battle for valuable team points! Prognostications in the long jump took a major turn in recent weeks with injuries to national-class leapers Shana Woods of Long Beach Poly and Mindy Neely of Dos Pueblos (both from the SS), leaving the sensational teammate tandem of Daniels and Shevell Quinley as the heavy favorites for the top two spots. Daniels (20-05.50) and Quinley (20-03.75) are the first 20-foot teammates in national prep history!
         Harbor senior Julie Dufresne delivered a tape-measure effort at the Central Coast Section Finals, heaving the iron shot a distance of 50 feet, 7.25 inches to easily record the state leader in the event, a CCS record, and the #7 mark in state history! Her performance leads the seasonal state list by more than four feet over Long Beach Poly's April Phillips. Over in the discus ring, a quartet of 150-footers are slated for battle, with Pittsburg's (NCS) Alexaraee Toeaina heading the list at 154-08. Over on the high jump apron, Mindi Wiley of Sonoma (NCS) extended her state lead with a 5-11 clearance, although Bakersfield Stockdale's Desirae Gonder (recently named to the USA World Youth Team that will compete in Morocco this summer), Coronado's Jamie Klages (SD) and Branham's Amber Kaufman (CCS) have each made at least 5-10 this season.
         In the boys' weight events, senior Danny Rohr is the latest All-American talent to emerge from the famed Arroyo Grande weights juggernaut, with the senior boasting seasonal-best marks (202-00 in the discus and 62-08 in the shot put) that rank among the top half dozen in the nation this spring. Rohr figures to accept steep challenges from Central Section star Bobby Scott (60-00.50) of Clovis West and San Diego Section double champ Darius Savidge (196-10 and 59-11.25) of Morse.
Defending champion Nkosinza Balumbu leads the parade of qualifiers in the triple jump yet again, with the Arkansas-signed James Logan talent boasting a dazzling 52-04 wind-aided effort in early April that still ranks atop this year's national list under any conditions. Junior gem Zuheir Sharif of Franklin in Elk Grove (a third-year school in the SJS) went 49-09.75 in qualifying to state, with Southern Section Masters winner Richard Sherman stretching 49-05.75 to arrive here.
         California High (NCS) of San Ramon all-around phenom David Klech is the only athlete in America to be ranked among the Top 10 in three individual events this season, but he will be severely challenged in each of those disciplines this weekend. The state leader with a wind-aided 24-04.75 in the long jump, Klech has lost to rival Alex Pearlstone of Sir Francis Drake (NCS) in successive big-meet showdowns recently, with Klech prevailing once in an earlier matchup in the pits. Colony's (SS) Derrick Smith and St. Francis of Mountain View's Kyle Mills-Bunje, another exceptional all-arounder, are among other leading title threats. Klech's task in the high jump is no easier, with state leader Aiona Key of Mesa Verde (SJS) ranking second nationally in the event at 7-01, a shade higher than Klech's US #4 7-00.75 effort, with a trio of others at 6-10 or better this season as well.
          The girls overall team title picture has a definite beachside look to it... as in Long Beach Wilson. The Southern Section superpower is loaded in the track events, with all-everything 10th-grader Ebony Collins leading the dynamite Bruins, who hold the best times in the state in both relays (45.73 & 3:40.35) in 2005. Wilson figures to get rocking early and bring the house down late (with the relays being the first and last events on the schedule), with Collins and Co. taking care of its hurdles and dashes scoring business in between! Collins is part of an ultra-evenly matched 100-meter field that includes SS star frosh Yasmine Woodruff (St. Mary's Academy), CCS champion Khrystal Carter (Valley Christian of San Jose), Kristina Davis (James Logan) and Elizabeth Olear (Louisville). All five have seasonal bests marks within eight-hundredths of a second of each other!
           The longer sprints are Sa'de Williams' turf, with the amazing Rancho Cucamonga (SS) blazer holding down the #2 and #3 times in the nation in the 200m and 400m, respectively. Williams also has been running anchor on her national-class long relay, unit which figures to duel with Wilson for baton bragging rights repeatedly this weekend.
           Collins is also the heavy favorite in the low hurdles race, with her 40.81 clocking of a year ago still registering as the national 9th-grade record and more than a second ahead of her in-state rivals this year. The high hurdles outlook is a bit more uncertain, with state leader Kimyon Broom (13.81) of Serra defeating Diamond Ranch's Leslie Mercado by a mere .05 seconds at Southern Sectionals qualifying. Keep an eye on Mt. Pleasant frosh Vashti Thomas, who has posted fine times this year as well.
           The girls' distances should be real smokers, with a mind-blowing collection of CCS two-lappers leading the field. The state's five fastest 800m runners that made it here hail from the CCS, led by two-time defending state 1600m champ Alicia Follmar of Saratoga. Follmar won the CCS showdown last week with a huge 2:07.97 lifetime best, with Menlo School's Libby Jenke, Archbishop Mitty's Christine Whalen and Live Oak's Christine Jones finishing in heated pursuit. With that kind of leg speed, Follmar is favored to three-peat at 1600m as well, although 2005 state leader Alex Kosinski (Oak Ridge) and Corona del Mar ace Annie St. Geme lead a long list of suitable challengers. The 3200m clash could be a classic, with eight girls separated by seven seconds this season, led by Washington-signed Tori Tyler of Gunn, fresh off a seasonal best 10:31.04 last weekend. Cross-country All-American and Central Section champion Lauren Saylor of distance power Buchanan (CE) and ultra-consistent Shannon Murakami of Saugus (SS) spearhead the remaing list of superb entries.
           Los Angeles City Section boys team champion Dorsey arrvies here as the team favorite as well, with mega-star David Gettis ripping an eye-popping 46.08 clocking for 400 meters last week, the fastest Golden State time in the event since the legendary Obea Moore toured the tartan 10 years ago. Gettis, bound for Baylor University (home to former Olympic 400m champions Michael Johnson and Jeremy Wariner) on football scholarship, will face challenges from Long Beach Poly age-group phenom Bryshon Nellum (46.92) and Dorsey teammate Courtney Williams in the long sprint. Over the shorter dash challenges, state leader Elijah Wells of L.A.Taft (21.11 and 10.38, with the latter also being the nation-leading mark) and Devin Mays of Lincoln in Stockton (SJS) are co-favorites, although a brimming rivalry between SS blazers Justin Woods (Los Alamitos) and Wes Williams (Esperanza) has pushed them into the title picture, along with vastly improved Rodney Glass of Sherman Oaks Notre Dame (SS).
            The relays figure to be a Dorsey-led affair, with Gettis, Williams and Marquis Charles helping comprise meet-topping 41.04 and 3:11.49 entries here. The long relay, the group's signature event, could very well seal up the team title at meet's end. Notre Dame, with Glass, Cary Harris and Garrett Green forming a great close on the short relay, and a very talented Dominguez crew on the long relay are the prime challengers in the baton events.
            A very special group has formed in recent weeks to distinguish itself on the yearly national 1600m list and can take aim at outperforming the great 1994 four-lap field that included prep legends and future American stars Meb Keflezighi (Olympic silver medalist), Michael Stember and Mark Hauser (the latter two becoming All-Americans for Pac-10 powers Stanford and UCLA). Keflezighi clocked 4:07.67 in winning that storied affair over Stember (4:08.52) and Hauser (4:08.97) when it counted, the best 3-deep state meet showing in nearly 15 years. In 2005, Loyola High (SS) senior Mark Matusak has already clocked 4:07.94 to rank second nationally, with El Camino (SD) junior star A.J. Acosta and Arroyo standout Luis Medina (SS) posting identical 4:08.63 list bests (Acosta's a converted mark from a slightly longer mile distance) to have distance aficionados squirming with excitement. But there's much more. Southern Section megathreats Jared Bell (Harvard-Westlake), Joe Gatel (Edison) and Michael Coe (Cabrillo) also appear on the national 15-deep list, with dominant sectional entries Brandon Rooney of Tehachapi (CE) and Evan Anderson of Menlo-Atherton (CCS) giving this event some alarming depth! We'll see if they run as fast this weekend and years down the road -- much liek the fames 1994 group did!
            The boys 3200m run pits the state-leading and highly decorated Matusak (3-time All-American, 3-time state champion, 4-time CIF-SS champion in cross-country and track) against future UC Berkeley teammate and defending state champion Yosef Ghebray of James Logan, along with precocious Southern Section sophomore Michael Cybulski of Royal. All took different paths here -- Matusak placing second in a blockbuster Arcadia Invitational field and winning all key races, Ghebray battling back from stubborn injuries to regain championship form, and Cybulski exhibiting exceptional improvement and race savvy uncommon for most 15-year-olds. The 800m challenge has mid-season national leader Colin Campbell of Ventura (1:51.26) pitted against SS foe Cory Primm (Westlake, 1:51.65) in an Arcadia rematch, with L.A. City Section winner Travis Bradford (1:52.04) also in the mix and ensuring a fast pace with his trademark hard opening lap.
            The hurdle races will have the aforementioned David Klech (California, San Ramon) battling for top honors yet again, with his 36.28 effort in the intermediate hurdles ranking him third nationally in that event and his 14.10 effort in the high hurdles tabbing him as a prime contender there. With state recordholder Kevin Craddock (James Logan) sidelined be season-ending injury, Ramona's Robert Williams and Pitman's Polly Gnepa are Klech's biggest adversaries. In the longer race, Klech's biggest challenge will be finding his steps in between the barriers. On multiple occasions this spring, the state leader has mistimed his pattern, once almost taking a horrible spill ... only to regain his footing and somehow post another sensational time.
            Roth, Stately, Pena, Daniels, Gettis, Matusak, Klech.. all among the nation's great ones in 2005. But at the CIF-State Championships, there's always dramatic surprises in store and new champions ready to emerge.
-- By Richard Gonzalez (Editor, DyeStatCal)