Track & Field: Newport Harbor’s Smith excels

MISSION VIEJO – Cole Smith has always considered it an honor to compete on the exclusive stage of invitationals.

The Newport Harbor High thrower gets honored more often than not these days.

Smith was named the field athlete of the meet after sweeping the throwing events in the Trabuco Hills Invitational on Saturday.

The senior delivered winning marks of 61 feet, 8 inches in the shot put and 166 feet, 9 inches in the discus.

“It’s a really humbling experience to have this amount of success,” Smith said. “I have to thank my coach (Tony Ciarelli) for that success.

“It’s even better when you have your teammates with you because they can fire you up as well.”

Smith had the company of fellow Sailors Cole O’Neil and Spencer Blake, who reached the finals in both events.

He was also challenged by Marina’s Kyle Tsu, who eclipsed 60 feet in the shot put for the first time with a personal record of 61 feet, 4 inches.

“It just felt really good because I saw (Smith) at 61,” Tsu said of his new lifetime best. “That just motivated me. I was hitting 56, or something like that, so I just wanted to make it a competition.”

After the shot put, Tsu jumped out in front of Smith in the preliminary round of the discus. Josh Johnson of Valley View in Moreno Valley was in the lead.

Smith roared back with his victorious heave in the final three throws to cap his day.

“It’s always fun to throw with someone who is throwing just as far or a little further,” Smith said of dueling Tsu. “It’s always going to push you to try to get that little extra, fix your technique, and extend it a little further. It’s so awesome competing with (Tsu). It helps.”

The 1,600 meters was a sight to see. Newport Harbor’s Mark Field ran in the top five the whole race, and he was in the lead as the runners came around the final turn.

Ayala’s Steven Khan won the race in 4:17, behind a big kick on the front straightaway.

The race for second was even better. Field (4:18.802) edged out Pacifica’s Jacob Smith, who attempted to clip the Newport Harbor senior at the finish line with a sprinter-like lean forward.

“I’ve actually gotten in the habit of doing that,” Smith said of the maneuver. “I’ve actually won a couple of invites with that. When it comes down to two people being neck-and-neck, sometimes it takes that extra lean to get the victory.

“I got it at Laguna Beach this year in the 1,600, and I got it last year in the 3,200 at Beach Cities.”

The photo finish was decided by four one-thousandths of a second, with Field achieving the second position.

Smith led much of the race. When the runners bunched together in the last lap, Field felt it was his time to make a move.

“It got tight on the back stretch, and I just decided that I might as well go for it,” Field said.

Alexis Garcia was five seconds off the pace in the boys’ 3,200. He finished third with a time of 9:28.

Northwood’s Erika Adler ran away with the girls’ 3,200 title, completing the race in 11 minutes flat. Pacific Coast League competitor Raquel Powers (Corona del Mar) came across third in 11:17, and Sunset League cross-country champion Mia Matsunami (Newport Harbor) was fourth in 11:20.

The local quartet continued to rank among the leading pole vaulters, as all four placed in the top five of the boys’ competition.

Sage Hill’s Alex Escalera (second, 15-9) led the pack. Newport’s Ryan Fegan (third, 15-3), Edison’s Michael Chadwick (fourth, 14-9), and Marina’s Michael Magula (fifth, 14-9J) rounded out the top five.

The top spot belonged to Tate Curran of Redondo Union, who jumped 16 feet, 3 inches. The state leader (17-0.75, third in the nation) is the oldest son of UCLA men’s and women’s pole vaulting coach Anthony Curran.

Edison’s Aiden Garnett and Amanda Herrington posted third-overall showings in their events. Garnett cleared 6 feet, 4 inches in the high jump, while Herrington ran the 100 high hurdles in 15.52 seconds.

Sage Hill’s Miles McCord placed fifth in the long jump at 21 feet, 2 1/4 inches.

Joseph Anderson of Upland upended the 20-year-old meet record of Tustin’s Dominique DaGrammont in the 300 hurdles (37.50). The senior ran 37.47 seconds. He was named the track athlete of the meet after winning both hurdles races.

BOYS’ TRACK AND FIELD

Trabuco Hills Invitational

At Trabuco Hills High

Individuals

100 – 1. Renfroe (Gahr) 10.80; 2. Bowens (Long Beach Poly) 10.81; 3. Spearman (Crossroads) 10.89; 4. Wilson (Hamilton) 10.931; 5. Harper (Redlands East Valley) 10.937

200 – 1. Renfroe (Gahr) 21.90; 2. Cuero (Trabuco Hills) 22.06; 3. Styffe (Trabuco Hills) 22.08; 4. Harper (Redlands East Valley) 22.27; 5. Shakir (Gahr) 22.39

400 – 1. Phillippy (Aliso Niguel) 48.17; 2. Griggs (ML King) 49.35; 3. Ray (San Juan Hills) 49.46; 4. Pica (Valencia) 49.52; 5. Randall (Hamilton) 49.74

800 – 1. Comeaux (Redondo Union) 1:55.78; 2. Nevarez (Cathedral City) 1:57.56; 3. Warner (Linfield) 1:58.38; 4. Darden (Aliso Niguel) 1:58.38; 5. Adel (Woodbridge) 1:59.01

1,600 – 1. Khan (Ayala) 4:17; 2. Field (Newport Harbor) 4:18.802; 3. Smith (Pacifica) 4:18.806; 4. Opsahl (Redlands East Valley) 4:18; 5. Monroy (Maranatha Christian) 4:19

3,200 – 1. Arias (Ayala) 9:23; 2. Garcia (Salesian) 9:25; 3. Garcia (Newport Harbor) 9:28; 4. Suarez (Santa Ana) 9:32; 5. O’Neill (Trabuco Hills) 9:34

110HH – 1. Anderson (Upland) 14.08; 2. Oles (Long Beach Poly) 14.561; 3. Williams (Mission Viejo) 14.563; 4. Roberson (Upland) 14.83; 5. Moreno (Anaheim) 15.44

300IH – 1. Anderson (Upland) 37.47; 2. Williams (Mission Viejo) 38.02; 3. Roberson (Upland) 38.55; 4. Moreno (Anaheim) 39.20; 5. Hill (Mission Viejo) 40.0

400 relay – 1. Upland 41.93; 2. Gahr 42.05; 3. Etiwanda 43.35; 4. Redlands East Valley 43.37; 5. Jordan 43.64

1,600 relay – 1. Long Beach Poly 3:20.77; 2. Valencia 3:25.89; 3. Etiwanda 3:26.35; 4. Glendora 3:27.81; 5. Woodbridge 3:30.0

HJ – 1. Lee (Trabuco Hills) 6-10; 2. Crosby (Gahr) 6-4; 3. A. Garnett (Edison) 6-4; 4. Ross (Trabuco Hills) 6-0; 5. Amesse (Aliso Niguel) 5-10

LJ – 1. Hemphill (Upland) 22-8.25; 2. Jones (Long Beach Poly) 22-8; 3. Green (Cathedral City) 22-7; 4. Douglas (Long Beach Poly) 21-10.5; 5. M. McCord (Sage Hill) 21-2.25

TJ – 1. Jones (Long Beach Poly) 45-9; 2. Jackson (Redondo Union) 42-4; 3. Berney (Valencia/V) 42-2; 4. Hemphill (Upland) 42-1; 5. Sanchez (Ontario) 41-10

PV – 1. Curran (Redondo Union) 16-3; 2. Escalera (Sage Hill) 15-9; 3. Fegan (Newport Harbor) 15-3; 4. Chadwick (Edison) 14-9; 5. Magula (Marina) 14-9J

SP – 1. Smith (Newport Harbor) 61-8; 2. Tsu (Marina) 61-4; 3. Johnson (Valley View) 56-11.5; 4. Silva (Northwood) 51-3.5; 5. Perreira (Valencia) 49-10

DT – 1. Smith (Newport Harbor) 166-9; 2. Johnson (Valley View) 165-2; 3. Tsu (Marina) 161-9; 4. Axelson (Woodbridge) 154-4; 5. Perez (Valencia) 146-9

GIRLS’ TRACK AND FIELD

Trabuco Hills Invitational

At Trabuco Hills High

Individuals

100 – 1. Roberts (Carson) 11.67; 2. Miles (Carson) 11.84; 3. Allain (La Sierra) 12.146; 4. Hicks (Upland) 12.148; 5. Scott (Redlands East Valley) 12.27

200 – 1. Roberts (Carson) 23.88; 2. Augustine (Long Beach Poly) 24.19; 3. Miles (Carson) 24.47; 4. Drysch (Santa Margarita) 24.84; 5. Wright (Carson) 24.98

400 – 1. Wright (Carson) 56.16; 2. Drysch (Santa Margarita) 56.68; 3. Reynolds (Glendora) 56.77; 4. Darden (Aliso Niguel) 56.922; 5. Malec (Woodbridge) 56.927

800 – 1. Hessler (Mission Viejo) 2:15.15; 2. Oefelein (Woodbridge) 2:15.95; 3. Johnson (Mission Viejo) 2:16.48; 4. McDonough (San Clemente) 2:18.66; 5. Calcagnie (Mission Viejo) 2:18.90

1,600 – 1. Herberg (Capistrano Valley) 4:52; 2. Bautista (Capistrano Valley) 5:01; 3. Ruelas (Bishop Amat) 5:02.46; 4. Johnson (Mission Viejo) 5:02.88; 5. Hill (Etiwanda) 5:07

3,200 – 1. Adler (Northwood) 11:00; 2. Wallace (Sage Creek) 11:14; 3. Powers (Corona del Mar) 11:17; 4. Matsunami (Newport Harbor) 11:20.37; 5. Tran (Ayala) 11:21

100HH – 1. Hicks (Upland) 14.50; 2. Smith (Mission Hills) 14.64; 3. Herrington (Edison) 15.52; 4. January (Upland) 15.67; 5. Garner (Woodbridge) 15.69

300IH – 1. Merritt (Santa Margarita) 44.98; 2. Sha. Reynolds (Glendora) 45.59; 3. January (Upland) 46.04; 4. Shy. Reynolds (Glendora) 46.55; 5. Garner (Woodbridge) 47.09

400 relay – 1. Carson 46.44; 2. Long Beach Poly 47.15; 3. Redondo Union 48.33; 4. Hamilton 49.13; 5. Etiwanda 49.14

1,600 relay – 1. Woodbridge 3:59.41; 2. Mission Viejo 4:02.14; 3. Mission Hills 4:12.69; 4. Redondo Union 4:19.44

HJ – 1. Smith (Mission Hills) 5-2; 2. Round (South Pasadena) 5-0; 3. Bevan (Trabuco Hills) 5-0; 4. Urrutia (San Juan Hills) 4-10; 5. Aguilar (Katella) 4-8

LJ – 1. Smith (Long Beach Poly) 19-6; 2. Fulton (Muir) 19-2.5; 3. Smith (Mission Hills) 18-9; 4. Lyon (Woodbridge) 18-2.5; 5. Weeks (Santa Margarita) 18-1.5

TJ – 1. Fulton (Muir) 39-5; 2. Weeks (Santa Margarita) 38-11; 3. Cheshier (Valencia) 38-9; 4. Garner (Woodbridge) 38-6; 5. Ikejiofor (Downey) 36-3

PV – 1. Thomas (Santa Margarita) 12-3; 2. Heri (Redondo Union) 12-3; 3. Flynn (Aliso Niguel) 11-9; 4. Gerardo (Santa Margarita) 11-3; 5. Anderson (Chino Hills) 11-3

SP – 1. Green (El Toro) 39-7; 2. Hartmann (Mission Viejo) 37-2.75; 3. Symonette (Trabuco Hills) 36-9.25; 4. Patton (Long Beach Poly) 36-2.5; 5. Nguyen (Oxford Academy) 36-1.25

DT – 1. Anderson (California) 121-2; 2. Hartmann (Mission Viejo) 117-4; 3. Legardye (Etiwanda) 115-2; 4. Green (El Toro) 111-9; 5. Pedro (Trabuco Hills) 110-2

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