Central Section Masters Preview

Girls Preview

As much as the boys' meet is a showcase for the throws, the girls' competition features some elite distance talent. That's particularly true of the Buchanan duo of 10th-grader Meagen Lowe and freshman Corie Smith, who cruised to 5:03 marks last weekend to claim the top 2 seeds in the 1600. Smith has run 4:56 this season, with Lowe posting a season best of 4:59. If anyone is going to keep the two Bears honest, it will be senior Cagnei Duncan (Liberty Bakersfield), who gave the pair a very good race at the West Coast Relays and appears poised to break 5 for the first time. Smith and Lowe also hold the top 2 spots in the 3200, and they are 2 of the three entrants who have been under 11. Smith has been particularly strong at this distance: her 10:28 ranks among the top 8 in the state this season. Blayney Dolan (Clovis North) is the other girl with a sub-11 on her record this Spring. In the 800, Mikaela Romanini (Bakersfield) holds the top seed; it will be interesting to see if she competes in the 400 prior to this race and risks tiring herself out. If she does, Kaitlyn Davenport (Stockdale) may be able to take the title away, as their season bests are 2:16 and 2:17, respectively.

Aaliyah Wilson is poised to be a one-woman wrecking crew for Stockdale this weekend, and if she doesn't advance to the state meet in both individual events it will be a shocking upset. She is absolutely dominant in the hurdles within this section, having clocked a CA #4 13.72 already this spring (which makes her the top non-senior in the state, by the way). No other girl in the Central Section even broke 15 last weekend, although Amanda Herrington does have a windy 14.76 on her resume. Her margin in the 100 is not as great, but she is still the heavy favorite over Zara Anthony in that event.

Danae Manibog switched uniforms this season, and her new digs seem to suit her: after transferring from Buchanan to Clovis North, the senior has improved almost 2 seconds in the 400 to become the title favorite.  Kyra Bailey (Tulare Union) will have something to say about it, having clocked 56.45. Manibog is also the #1 seed in the 200, where her season best is 24.61. Bailey and Anthony are both close enough to threaten her for the win. The 300 Hurdles will be hotly contested, with the top 8 seeds all posting times between 46.25 and 47.02 last weekend. Freshman Kaia Bonnette-Williams (Central) leads the section on the season, having posted a 45.35 a few weeks ago. Three other girls have been under 46 this spring, although none of them ran faster than top seed Madison Bower (Strathmore) in their area meets.

There will be a top-flight pair of throwers on the girls' side, too, when Alicia Viveros (Liberty Bakersfield) and Jocelynn Budwig (Fowler) square off on Saturday. Both have put the shot a little over 45 feet, which puts them neck-and-neck in that event. Budwig is the favorite in the discus, having thrown a CA#3 mark of 169' 10", whereas Viveros is in the lower 150's. There will be a third contender in the discus, too: Cari Acosta (Buchanan) has a season best of 155' 2". Brooke Tjerrild (Clovis North) has nearly a foot advantage over her nearest competition in the pole vault, as her 13' 4" PR is 10 inches above the season best of Elizabeth Funk (Clovis West).

Like her teammate in the sprints & hurdles, Stockdale's Iesha Hamm is a versatile contender in several field events. She is seeded 2nd in the long jump, although she is 4th-best in the section on the season; Asia Mallory (Desert) leads the vent both ways you slice it. Mallory also has the favorite's position in the triple jump, where her 39' 1" is over a foot better than second-seeded Justice Smith (Highland Bakersfield). Meanwhile, Hamm is the heavy favorite in the high jump - she is entered at 5' 9", a full 6 inches better than anyone else jumped last weekend. For the season Hamm has cleared 5' 10", and if Chinenye Agina (Sanger) jumps close to her season best of 5' 9" Hamm will need all of that to win.

The relays should also be pretty intense, with several closely-seeded teams providing excellent competition. Clovis North has the top seed in the 4x100 and also the best time on the season, at 48.07. Although Redwood is seeded 6th based on area meet results, they have clocked 48.18 this season and can definitely win the race; Buchanan and Central have also been under 48.60 this spring. As for the 4x4, there are five teams that have run between 3:55 and 4 minutes this Spring, including three that clocked 3:58 or 3:59 last weekend. Central has the advantage when comparing season bests, but Bakersfield will have the best lane position.