In his final shot at qualifying for the section finals, Live Oak
High
’s standout senior Billy Wong found another gear. Wong, who had
made the section cross-country finals all four years of his high
school career, turned in a personal record 2:24.42 in the 1,600 at
the Central Coast Section track and field semifinals on Saturday.
The time, which was about three seco
nds better than his previous PR, allowed Wong to claim the
eighth and final spot in Friday’s finals. Wong’s time was also just
a second off the school record set by Chris D’Anjou in 1996. The
CCS finals will be held at Los Gatos High on Friday. Field events
begin at 4pm, followed by track even
ts at 6pm.
In his final shot at qualifying for the section finals, Live Oak High’s standout senior Billy Wong found another gear.
Wong, who had made the section cross-country finals all four years of his high school career, turned in a personal record 2:24.42 in the 1,600 at the Central Coast Section track and field semifinals on Saturday. The time, which was about three seconds better than his previous PR, allowed Wong to claim the eighth and final spot in Friday’s finals.
Wong’s time was also just a second off the school record set by Chris D’Anjou in 1996.
The CCS finals will be held at Los Gatos High on Friday. Field events begin at 4pm, followed by track events at 6pm.
According to LO coach Dean Raymond, Wong was spurred on by the knowledge that he’s nearing the end of his high school career.
“I think the senior reality has set in and he’s realizing that if he’s going to do it, he has to do it now,” Raymond said. “Hopefully, he’s got one more race in him.”
Joining Wong at Friday’s finals will be junior Cobbie Jones, who overcame hamstring discomfort to qualify first overall in the 800, clocking a 2:13.32. Jones won her heat and qualified ahead of rivals Libby Jenke (Menlo), Alicia Follmar (Saratoga) and Christine Whalen (Mitty).
Jones is looking for a repeat trip to the state finals after qualifying by time in the 800 last season. She set a new school record in the event at last year’s state finals.
Making it to state would cap a phenomenal season for Jones, who has set a new school record in the 330 hurdles and clocked the second fastest time in the 400 – not her usual events – while maintaining her usual excellence in the 800 and 1,600.
Meanwhile, LO’s Brandon Powell missed qualifying for the CCS finals in the 110 hurdles after making it as a junior last season. Powell finished in 12th place in 15.44.
Last season, Powell just missed making the state finals after finishing fourth in the section finale of the event, and was expected to make a strong bid this season. But a shoulder injury suffered in practice last week hampered his preparation, Raymond said.
Acorn senior Jesus Atanacio still has an outside shot at qualifying for the finals after taking 11th in the 800 in a PR 2:00.04. He is the third alternate in the event, which means that if three athletes who finished with faster times than he did can’t compete, he would run in their place.
Other PR performances for LO included junior Lisa Herrera, who took 15th in the 3,200 in 11:56.75, and the 4×400 relay team of Jones, Mattie Smith, Regina Bawdon and Marissa Weseloh, which cut seven seconds off their PR in the event with a 4:19.05 (good for 21st place overall).
Acorn senior Tanya Tenorio also competed in the shot put, taking 23rd with a toss of 31-08.
Other area athletes qualifying for the section finals included Hollister-San Benito’s Amanda Boyd (1,600 and 3,200), Jesse Rice (400), Todd Merrigan (pole vault), Chuck Thompson (100), Jeff Weltz (200), Christina Osborne (discus), and the boys 4×100 and 4×400 relay teams, and Gilroy’s Bobby Best (discus).
