The overriding truth of the Central Coast Section track and field semifinals is this: Nothing can be won, but much can be lost.
Two of the section's top male competitors learned the lesson all too well Saturday at San Jose City College.
St. Francis pole vaulter Kyle Mills-Bunje, a state championship contender, no-heighted and is done for the season in his specialty.
Los Altos junior Eric Hersey, a returning state finalist who earlier in the day broke his personal record in the 110-meter high hurdles, injured his hamstring while warming up for the 300 intermediates and scratched. His ability to run in the CCS finals Friday seems doubtful.
There's also the case of Aptos' Rylan Hunt, the state's top freshman distance runner. Two weeks after he injured his foot in bizarre fashion, he still wasn't well enough to run and his season is done.
The only objective of the meet is to survive another day, but there are no guarantees, not even for the elite. ``This is the meet I'm most nervous about,'' said Scott Slover, who helps coach Mills-Bunje. After three failed attempts at 14 feet, Mills-Bunje, whose best of 16-7 matches teammate Casey Roche, left the track and wasn't available for comment. But among the possible causes brought forth by teammates and coaches was an awful practice Wednesday that seemed to shake his confidence, and a bruised foot suffered last Friday that may have given him something extra to think about.
``It just wasn't there,'' said St. Francis pole vault coach Tom Tuite. ``There wasn't anything specific. It was just one of those days where it just wasn't going to happen.''
Slover shared the blame because of what he called ``poor coaching decisions.''
``He's the most talented athlete I've ever coached,'' Slover said. ``I just wished it hadn't happened to him.''
Mills-Bunje did qualify in two other events -- the long jump (22-11 3/4) and the 400 relay (43.01) and still is vital to the Lancers' championship hopes, but Hersey may not even have that.
Already having lowered his section-leading time to 14.20 in the high hurdles, Hersey suffered the injury while jumping over a hurdle before the 300s, where he was also a CCS favorite. He wanted to race anyway but was in no condition to do so, being barely able to walk, and Coach Julia Widstrand removed him from the race.
She said there is hope it was just a cramp or a spasm, and wouldn't know until he sees a doctor, but she didn't seem confident about such a diagnosis.
``If he pulled something, forget it,'' Widstrand said. ``For someone like him, it's just not worth it. He's got nothing to prove at this point.''
Hunt, the section leader in the 800 and No. 2 behind St. Francis standout Ben Sitler in the 1,600 and 3,200, suffered a foot injury that is a precursor to a stress fracture. He did so while playing dodge ball while jumping on a trampoline. The game also included bouncing high and landing on concrete.
``He's 14,'' Aptos distance coach Bill Hotchkiss said. ``We always tell kids to be careful, but we can't cover every contingency.''
Though the meet was overshadowed by misfortune, there were some highlights. Palo Alto junior Mia Lattanzi ran the section's fastest time in the 800 with a personal record of 2:12.44. Valley Christian's Khrystal Carter ran a fast, but comfortable 11.68 in the 100, and Mount Pleasant's Jeneba Tarmoh had a fast 23.78 in the 200.