State record-holder Rodrick Pleasant defended his title in the 100m dash in one of the fastest winning times in State Meet history.
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Last in a Series
Rodrick Pleasant, a senior at Serra-Gardena (SS), won the 100-meter-dash in 10.20 (2.0) setting a record in the event at the 103rd CIF-State Track and Field Championships.
Pleasant, the CA record-holder at 100 meters, defended his 100m State Meet title from 2022, breaking the previous record of 10.30 held by both Riley Washington of Southwest (SD), set in 1992, and Kenan Christon of Madison (SD), set in 2019.
Jordan (SS) junior Jordan Washington placed second to Pleasant in 10.30, equalling the previous record. El Cerrito (NC) senior Robert Stitts placed third in 10.31, a PR for the sprinter who was no better than sixth at the North Coast Section final as a junior.
MileSplitCA panel of editors selected the boys 100-meter dash final as the No. 1 race from the 2023 CIF-State Track and Field Championships.
A couple of the comments from our selectors:
That meet record went back to 1992 and not only did Pleasant break it, second place Jordan Washington equaled it.
Just to see Jordan Washington hanging tough with Rodrick Pleasant was phenomenal. Pleasant wins in 10.20 to lower the State Meet record, but Washington doing it in 10.30, which equalled the prior State Meet best (10.30) was just as impressive.
Pleasant went on to win the 200m dash, sweeping both titles for the second year in a row. While he is the 41st and 42nd boys to sweep the 1-2 at the same State Meet, he is only the fourth to do it in consecutive years, joining Randall Carroll of Cathedral (SS), who did it in 2008-09, Remontay McClain of Covina (SS), who went double-double in 2010-11, and Khalfani Muhammad of Notre Dame-Sherman Oaks (SS), who dominated the sprints in 2012-13.
Also, Pleasant is the 11th boy in State Meet history to win four individual titles. Only two have won more: Clarence "Bud" Houser of Oxnard won six individual medals in 1920-22, and Charley Paddock of Pasadena won five in 1916-18. Pleasant is the first to join the exclusive four-title group since Michael Norman of Vista Murrieta (SS) was a 200m-400m double-double winner in 2015-16.
This year's fourth-place finisher, Anthony Flowers of South Torrance (SS), almost didn't make the final. He was initially disqualified for a false start in his preliminary heat on Friday but successfully protested that noise from the crowd sounded like the starter's gun, causing him to jump. Flowers went on to win his heat to auto-qualify and then he ran 10.44 for fourth place in the final.
Junior Jordan Coleman placed seventh in 10.57, adding two valuable points for Granada Hills Charter (LA), which would go on to win the team title by three points.
Pleasant, who is also a four-star-rated defensive back in football with a scholarship to the University of Oregon, ends his CIF track career with
* CA record at 20.14 (1.7) from the 2022 CIF-Southern Section Masters
* Fastest all-conditions time in CA high school history of 10.09 (3.3) from the 2023 CIF-Southern Section Division 4 finals
* Sophomore (10.32), Junior (10.14), and Senior (10.20) class records
* Five races over the past two seasons of 10.20 or faster
* Six races over the past two seasons of 10.39 or faster
* Three races this season at 10.40
Watch the Race
Photos by DeAnna Turner, Raymond Tran, and Dan Tyree
Race Countdown voting by Ryan Blystone, Steve Brand, Albert Caruana, Mark Gardner, and Jeffrey Parenti
