Bronson Osborn of Esperanza (left), and Aidan Elbettar of Newport Harbor are among the top four discus throwers in the respective history of those two legendary programs. (Photos: Regan Rhames, Pat Rhames)
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We move forward with our Dream Team series but this time, moving the spotlight over to the field events. With that, we highlight the greatest All-Time programs in California in the boys discus! The Golden State has always boasted some of the best programs in the nation and when you view these numbers, you will be shocked by how spoiled we've been here in California.
This past spring, before the season abruptly ended, Newport Harbor's Aidan Elbettar was one of the few bright spots with his 200-8 launch in the discus. That extended their lead over longtime Orange County-rival, Esperanza in our rankings. The Sea Kings have produced a staggering 204-07 AVERAGE in their top four as Elbettar is only third on his school-record list!
The MileSplitCA Dream Team series researches the top marks per school in a particular event, totals the marks of the top four individuals in that school's history, and ranks the programs based on that combined total. What we did during the spring in presenting a school's all-time best relay teams, we are doing with non-traditional relay events as a way of ranking the state's top programs by event.
Considered by many to be the greatest prep throws coach ever, Tony Ciarelli chose to retire from the high school ranks this past July, hence, our motivation to bring discus to the forefront of our Dream Team Series. Ciarelli coached two of the top three discus throwers in state history in Huntington Beach's Scott Moser ('97) at 213-11 and NH's Bo Taylor ('06) at 213-07. Elbettar was his fourth boy to eclipse the 200-foot plateau. Ciarelli, who plans to coach with his daughter at UC Irvine next year, also is the architect of our sixth-ranked discus program, Huntington Beach, where he coached from 1997 to 2004. In his last 23 seasons, seven of his boys had throws of 190-plus, and he also coached a number of Olympians.
Depthwise, no one compares to the Aztecs of Esperanza! That's a credit to longtime coach Bill Pendleton, who also is retiring.
With 23 boys having eclipsed the 165-foot threshold in that program's history, 17 of those have actually measured out over 170 feet. Having a performance of 180 feet only landed you on their 'C' team as they've had 10 achieve that feat! Incredibly, Esperanza's 'B' team is the 13th best group in state history with an head-turning 188-00 foot average! Their 'C' squad would have still ranked in our Top 40.
Only 20 miles apart over the past four decades, the Orange County duo of Ciarelli and Pendleton leave behind a legacy that could very well go unmatched for years!
Along with Esperanza, the only other squad that would have had three groups ranked within the top 50 is Los Altos out of the Central Coast Section. The Northern Californian program that dominated the discus on the California scene in the and 1960's and '70's would have also boasted a 'B' team worthy of the top 25 (along with Newport Harbor).
It took a 188-04 average to break into the top 10. Kyler Van Grouw's 193-08 performance in late-February pushed his Buchanan program from 15th overall into that 10th slot.
A program's top four had to average 175-11 to break into the Fab 50!
BOYS DISCUS THROW DREAM TEAM RANKINGS
| School | No. 1 | No. 2 | No. 3 | No. 4 | Overall |
| 1) Newport Harbor (SS) | 213-7 | 209-8 | 200-8 | 190-4 | 814-3 |
| Bo Taylor ('06) | Ethan Cochran ('12) | Aidan Elbettar ('20) | Marty Taylor ('13) | ||
| 2) Esperanza (SS) | 204-4 | 203-5 | 200-9 | 194-2 | 802-8 |
| Bronson Osborn ('16) | Travis Pendleton ('00) | Matt Gray ('04) | Mark Parlin ('91) | ||
| 3) Arroyo Grande (CS) | 209-9 | 202-0 | 189-6 | 185-10 | 787-1 |
| Sean Shields ('01) | Danny Rohr ('05) | Alec Grietens ('04) | Garrett Weinreich ('12) | ||
| 4) Ridgecrest Burroughs (SS) | 207-9 | 203-5 | 194-7 | 180-0 | 785-9 |
| Jayson Kovar ('11) | Eddie Cornell ('04) | Antonio Dobbins ('81) | Tyler Moulton ('16) | ||
| 5) Los Altos (CC) | 201-3 | 200-1 | 195-4 | 187-9 | 784-5 |
| Chris Adams ('70) | Scott Overton ('72) | Bob Stoecker ('62) | Jay Pushkin ('72) | ||
| 6) Huntington Beach (SS) | 213-11 | 195-11 | 191-06 | 183-0 | 784-4 |
| Scott Moser ('97) | Sam Lightbody ('99) | Brian Ruziecki ('02) | Eki Faagai ('04) | ||
| 7) Vacaville (SJ) | 201-6 | 190-8 | 186-9 | 183-2 | 762-1 |
| Ray Burton ('74) | Curt Siscel ('83) | Curtis Bleasedale ('12) | Ron Elm ('85) | ||
| 8) Los Gatos (CC) | 204-10 | 188-11 | 181-10 | 180-1 | 755-8 |
| Nik Kay (200-3) | Colin Quirke ('08) | Gary Bersano ('74) | Bret Mannon ('72) | ||
| 9) Bakersfield (CS) | 210-1 | 183-8 | 181-5 | 179-2 | 754-4 |
| Jeff Buckey ('91) | Jeremy Staat ('94) | Van Mounts ('97) | Frank ('90) | ||
| 10) Buchanan (CS) | 195-1 | 193-8 | 191-7 | 173-0 | 753-04 |
| Jacob Wilson ('16) | Kyler Van Grouw ('20) | Christian Johnson ('19) | Scott Piero ('06) | ||
| 11) Mayfair (SS) | 197-4 | 191-0 | 187-6 | 177-0 | 752-10 |
| Cameron Carter ('06) | David Partin ('90) | Rich Johnson ('76) | Bob Johnson ('72) | ||
| 12) Leland (CC) | 199-10 | 194-2 | 180-7 | 178-2 | 752-9 |
| John Wirtz ('88) | Dave Hickson ('73) | Steve Dudley ('84) | Pat Graham ('77) | ||
| 13) Great Oak (SS) | 198-6 | 187-8 | 185-8 | 178-11 | 750-9 |
| Seth Knowlton ('16) | Nick Ponzio ('13) | Jaime Navarro ('18) | Harrison Gould ('18) | ||
| 14) Shafter (CS) | 200-7 | 197-6 | 178-2 | 172-6 | 748-9 |
| Paul Bender ('80) | Kevin Richardson ('84) | Matthew Bender ('12) | Thomas Richardson ('19) | ||
| 15) Capistrano Valley (SS) | 210-8 | 186-8 | 181-4 | 167-10 | 746-6 |
| Brian Blutreich ('85) | Dan Westerfield ('09) | Phil Fulright ('95) | Craig Rebeck ('87) | ||
| 16) Saugus (SS) | 190-6 | 187-1 | 183-10 | 178-11 | 740-4 |
| Matt Swarbrick ('05) | Daniel Swarbrick ('09) | Alex Dekok ('05) | Damion Jenkins ('88) | ||
| 17) Homestead (CC) | 187-6 | 184-1 | 183-7 | 182-7 | 737-9 |
| Joseph Ilaoa ('14) | Scott Covey ('70) | William Tsai ('06) | Ralph Snow ('68) | ||
| 18) Clovis (CS) | 221-5 | 177-7 | 172-7 | 164-8 | 736-3 |
| Jonah Wilson ('17) | William O'Neal ('01) | Neko Gomes ('08) | Ayden Merrihew ('20) | ||
| 19) El Toro (SS) | 197-0 | 185-9 | 179-6 | 171-1 | 733-6 |
| Nick Robinson ('06) | Jake Fraser ('11) | Sullivan Parker ('10) | Brad Bolton ('10) | ||
| 20) San Clemente (SS) | 197-0 | 185-9 | 179-6 | 171-1 | 733-2 |
| Quaid Vuncannon ('12) | Kelsey Benoit ('14) | Rocky Fenton ('14) | Jim Doehring ('80) | ||
| 21) Ventura (SS) | 194-1 | 183-0 | 181-10 | 172-1 | 731-0 |
| Carlos Aviles ('18) | Ryan Rosales ('09) | Eric Beilke ('13) | Charles Vernoy ('16) | ||
| 22) Jesuit (SJ) | 194-11 | 178-9 | 178-5 | 176-10 | 728-11 |
| John Badovinac ('97) | Josh Hines ('10) | Stephen Boals ('11) | Jeremy Hines ('10) | ||
| 23) Cupertino (CC) | 190-0 | 186-2 | 176-10 | 175-10 | 728-10 |
| Pete Thompson ('85) | Jamie Presser ('88) | Ralph Horn ('75) | Greg Horn ('79) | ||
| 24) Mission Viejo (SS) | 187-2 | 185-2 | 182-7 | 170-4 | 725-3 |
| Scott Hudson ('80) | Greg Aikenhead ('84) | Christian LaValle ('18) | Rich Brown ('87) | ||
| 25) Dana Hills (SS) | 192-1 | 179-9 | 176-3 | 176-2 | 724-3 |
| Andy Marrone ('90) | Max McKhann ('18) | Randy Hein ('95) | Justin Stafford ('14) | ||
| 26) El Capitan (SD) | 199-9 | 191-3 | 169-3 | 163-3 | 723-6 |
| Dan Ames ('99) | Brian Boggess ('86) | Travis Asch ('00) | Cody Gocke ('03) | ||
| 27) Murrieta Valley (SS) | 188-10 | 184-4 | 183-8 | 166-1 | 722-11 |
| Jason Rider ('01) | Josh Rider ('00) | Matt Lahti ('06) | Warden Bowen ('93) | ||
| 28) Bellarmine Prep (CC) | 187-1 | 180-4 | 178-0 | 176-8 | 722-1 |
| Marshil Godsil ('15) | Steve Powell ('07) | Bruce Naglee ('65) | Brad Bowers ('90) | ||
| 29) Pittsburg (NC) | 203-8 | 183-1 | 178-9 | 156-0 | 721-6 |
| Iffy Joyner ('17) | John Maka ('19) | Namontte Grisby ('16) | Corey Gilbert ('15) | ||
| 30) Paramount (SS) | 201-4 | 175-6 | 172-3 | 171-10 | 720-11 |
| Ma'a Brown ('11) | Curtis Johnson ('06) | Clinton Anderson ('15) | Jeneum Toalepai ('14) | ||
| 31) Placentia Valencia (SS) | 190-1 | 179-3 | 176-11 | 173-4 | 719-7 |
| Nick Coghill ('15) | Dave Winters ('84) | Steve Bruce ('78) | Alex Covarrubias ('72) | ||
| 32) Fremont (CC) | 181-7 | 181-6 | 177-8 | 177-5 | 718-2 |
| Bill Green ('78) | Kim McGowan ('73) | Bruce Wilhelm ('63) | Bill Perry ('75) | ||
| 33) El Modena (SS) | 197-6 | 179-8 | 171-6 | 168-8 | 717-4 |
| Zfad Khozam ('85) | Dylan Storey ('03) | Dale Gordon ('69) | Alex Butler ('04) | ||
| 33) Sunnyvale (CC) | 185-1 | 181-6 | 177-9 | 173-0 | 717-4 |
| Steve Struble ('78) | Ron Comer ('76) | Steve Bowen ('70) | Joe Sorenson ('78) | ||
| 35) St. Ignatius (CC) | 195-6 | 175-1 | 173-11 | 172-7 | 717-1 |
| Chris Demartini ('94) | Ivan Zasimczuk ('92) | Peter Demartini ('76) | Dave Gherardi ('72) | ||
| 36) University (SS) | 185-10 | 182-2 | 174-0 | 173-5 | 715-5 |
| Sepehe Sharifi ('95) | Ken Mills ('79) | John Ortman ('78) | Af Hsghi E ('90) | ||
| 37) Liberty (CS) | 195-5 | 187-9 | 175-11 | 156-3 | 715-4 |
| Daniel Viveros ('19) | Corbin Chronister ('16) | Cody Temple ('11) | Keith Arnold ('03) | ||
| 38) Montgomery (NC) | 181-6 | 180-9 | 179-1 | 173-9 | 715-1 |
| Bryson Trask ('19) | Larry Plinski ('82) | Chris Day ('91) | Jeff Faulk ('73) | ||
| 39) Simi Valley (SS) | 188-6 | 180-1 | 175-5 | 170-10 | 714-10 |
| Dexter Stephens ('18) | Chad Donosky ('90) | Jonathan Hart ('13) | Travis Miller ('13) | ||
| 40) Rancho Bernardo (SD) | 183-0 | 180-2 | 177-7 | 171-10 | 712-7 |
| Nicj Allotta ('03) | Tyler Ellis ('03) | Chris Boniwell ('07) | Julian Allotta ('09) | ||
| 41) Del Mar (CC) | 189-1 | 178-8 | 171-8 | 171-4 | 710-9 |
| Tim Sutro ('81) | Sean Griffin ('91) | Jim Slottery ('77) | Dave Nagengast ('78) | ||
| 42) El Camino (SD) | 188-10 | 178-2 | 171-10 | 171-5 | 710-3 |
| Mark Weber ('07) | Jamal Newman ('13) | Tanner Miller ('16) | Ronnie McFadden ('03) | ||
| 43) Helix (SD) | 185-7 | 182-9 | 172-0 | 168-9 | 709-1 |
| Mark Bailey ('79) | Kris Lettow ('76) | Travis Watkins ('00) | Kordell Hampton ('14) | ||
| 44) Fallbrook (SD) | 200-8 | 183-3 | 170-6 | 154-5 | 708-10 |
| Brent Noon ('90) | Mike Tull ('06) | Ray Lian ('08) | Dan Thompson ('01) | ||
| 45) Woodland (SJ) | 182-10 | 181-6 | 176-10 | 165-6 | 706-8 |
| Aaron Tombleson ('04) | Ed Wangler ('98) | Joey Baer ('05) | John Newell ('00) | ||
| 46) St. Francis (CC) | 184-6 | 174-3 | 174-3 | 173-5 | 706-7 |
| Cody Bickham ('12) | Greg Winkler ('87) | Nick Scheuerman ('04) | Chris Chisam ('02) | ||
| 47) Ramona (SD) | 185-11 | 179-7 | 178-3 | 162-4 | 706-1 |
| Connor Anderson ('16) | Logan Peterson ('10) | Tony Sotelo ('96) | Ty Homesley ('05) | ||
| 48) La Quinta (SS) | 200-3 | 181-0 | 165-6 | 158-10 | 705-7 |
| Jarered Morgan ('02) | Omar Valenzuela ('15) | Brandon Sedlevzek ('15) | Westley Siebdrath ('15) | ||
| 49) Trabuco Hills (SS) | 191-11 | 174-0 | 172-10 | 166-5 | 705-2 |
| Chad Peare ('93) | Joshua Scherer ('10) | Mike Zupancic ('08) | Mitch Dixon ('13) | ||
| 50) Los Osos (SS) | 192-8 | 186-7 | 165-7 | 159-0 | 703-10 |
| Michael Pertusati ('15) | Tyler Merkley ('15) | Craig Merkley ('09) | Eric Guerrero ('17) |