ATHLETES OF THE YEAR
BOYS
Daniel Viveros had a record-setting year in the shot put (Kirby Lee/Image of Sport)
CALEB FOSTER (Clovis North/Jr) and DANIEL VIVEROS (Bakersfield Liberty/Sr.)
FOSTER -- Capped his epic junior season with two first-place and two second-place medals at the State Meet, almost single-handedly leading Clovis North to the boys team title. Foster won the long jump and triple jump, placed second in the 110 hurdles and earned a runner-up medal as part of the 4x100 relay team. His 110 hurdles PR from the State Meet of 13.67 (0.8) ranks CA No. 3 and U.S. No. 7. His winning long jump mark from the Arcadia Invitational of 25-01.50 (1.2) ranks CA No. 1 and tied for U.S. No. 6. He won the State Meet title with a best of 25-00.00 (2.3) as he went undefeated in nine meets in the long jump. Although he only competed in the triple jump four times, he peaked at 49-09.50 (2.8) to win the State Title. That mark ranked CA No. 1 and U.S. No. 9.
VIVEROS -- Followed an impressive junior season where he won the State Meet title in the shot put and reached the finals in the discus throw with an even more impressive senior season. Viveros again won the State Meet title in the shot put (68-10.50) and not only made the final again in the discus throw, but this time he medaled, placing fifth (176-09). Along the way, he had some of the farthest shot put marks in state history. His season-best 71-03 from the CIF-Central Section South Area Championships on May 8 ranks as CA and U.S. No. 1 in 2019 and CA No. 4 all-time. Viveros had another 70-footer at that meet and then had two more 70-foot throws in a post-CIF meet in Idaho. Over the last two seasons, Viveros won 32 consecutive shot put competitions outdoors, including consecutive Central Section Masters titles. His 195-05 discus PR from the April 11 Patriot Games ranks CA No. 2 and U.S. No. 11. Signed with Ole Miss.
Meagen Lowe won two medals at the State Meet, leading the team champions. (Dan Tyree photo)
JOCELYNN BUDWIG (Fowler/Sr.) and MEAGEN LOWE (Clovis Buchanan/Sr.) and
BUDWIG -- Won the State Meet title in both weight throws, including the shot put title for the second year in a row. She is a four-time State Meet qualifier in both throws, a seven-time finalist and six-time medalist. At the 2019 State Meet, despite battling a balky hamstring, Budwig's winning effort in the shot put of 49-02.75 is a personal record that ranks No. 24 in CA history and No. 5 in Central Section history. Her winning throw in the discus of 171-10 was a season best that is a top-20 distance in CA history. She ranks No. 3 U.S. in the shot and No. 2 U.S. in the discus. Her 174-02 PR from State Prelims as a junior ranks No. 16 all time. Budwig is a four-time CS champion in the discus throw who also won the shot put in 2018 and placed second the other three years. This season, she won 16 of 17 meets in the shot put and all 16 meets in the discus throw. In addition to sweeping the throws at State, she also did that at prominent invitationals Stanford, Arcadia and Mt. SAC. Signed with Auburn.
LOWE -- Placed second in the 1600 and third in the 3200 at the State Meet to help lead Buchanan to the team title. Lowe is a four-time State Meet qualifier in the distances and three-time Central Section Masters champion and four-time runner-up. Her 1600 personal record of 4:43.61 for second at the State Meet ranks CA No. 2 and U.S. No. 7 for 2019 and CA No. 28 all-time. Her 10:18.97 for third in the 3200 behind teammate Corie Smith was her second-fastest eight-lap time of her career. Her PR of 10:12.78 for third at Arcadia ranks CA No. 2, U.S. No. 11 and CA No. 27 all-time. Lowe also cranked out a 2:12.59 PR for 800 meters, a race she won 21 times over her four years at Buchanan, including four consecutive years at the Tri-River Athletic Conference (TRAC) Finals. Lowe's PR in the mile of 4:46.85 ranks U.S. No. 9. Signed with Oregon State.