In the spring of 2021, the North Coast Section made a decision to not contest their section final due to Covid-19. While this decision may have upset many coaches and athletes (and of course parents!), the reason was a valid one as the section transverses multiple counties that all had different protocols that would have made a section final extremely difficult to contest.

Regardless of that missed opportunity, this past season was a mighty successful one for one of the largest sections in California as NCS athletes and teams won two state individual titles and scored a total of twelve podium finishers at the state meet. 

At the North Coast Meet of Champions, Dublin HS proved to be the best overall Track and Field program in the section as they dominated the boys' team competition and finished a very competitive second to Campolindo in the girls' team competition.

The following weekend resulted in outstanding performances for both veteran and rookie competitors as you can see from the following lists which includes all the state medalists.

Podium NCS athletes from the California State Track and Field Meet.

BOYS

400 meters Relay - Pittsburg 5th place

110 meters Hurdles - Adam Wright (Monte Vista) 3rd place

100 meters - Zach Card (Pittsburg) 6th place

1600 meters Relay - Dublin 6th place

High Jump - Chukwunonso Udeh (De La Salle) 2nd place

High Jump - Travis Hightower (Justin-Siena) 5th place

Long Jump - Elias Ajamu Reed (Salesian) 5th place

Pole Vault - Parker Terrill (Piedmont) 4th place

GIRLS

3200 meters - Hanne Thomsen (Montgomery) 1st place

3200 meters - Sophia Nordenholz (Albany) 2nd place

Pole Vault - Jathiyah Muhammad (Dublin) 1st place

Long Jump - Mara Lampsas (California) 2nd place

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NORTH COAST SECTION ATHLETES OF THE YEAR

BOYS

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Sprints/Hurdles

The best overall sprinter in the North Coast Section was Moreau Catholic junior, Bryce Thomas. At the section final, Thomas won both the 400 and 200 meters races. He edged out Campolindo's Mason Fara 48.41 to 48.43 in possibly the best race of the day. He easily outdistanced the field in the 200 meters as he rolled to a 21.93 winning effort. He qualified for the state final in the 400 with a best of 48.23. 

Honorable mention got to Dublin hurdler Anish Kasam who was a double victor at the section final in both hurdle races.

Distances

Alex Lamoureux - College Park, Jr.

This was a tough decision but in the end, College Park junior Alex Lamoureux saved his best race at the California State Track and Field meet. During the season, Lamoureux was nearly undefeated in his best event, the 1600 meters, as his lone loss was a second place at the Granada Distance and Sprint Festival. He won his league, area meet as well as the NCS MOC before taking on the best at the State Prelims where he won his prelims heat in a lifetime best time of 4:11.62.

Jumps/Weight Throws

Jacob Watts - James Logan, Sr.

This is certainly a unique pick as it is extremely rare for a track and field athlete to win the combination of the triple jump and the discus at a section championship meet. This past season, James Logan senior Jacob Watts accomplished that amazing double feat as he carried his team to a 6th place team finish with victories in the triple jump (46-04) and discus (153-08). He improved his triple jump mark to 46-05.75 at the California State Track and Field meet and had a season-best of 170-07 in the discus. 

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GIRLS

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Sprints/Hurdles

Cate Peters - Monte Vista, Jr.

Distances

Hanne Thomsen - Montgomery, Fr.

It's hard to argue with our choice as Montgomery freshman Hanne Thomsen won the California State Track and Field meet 3200 meters race over a much-heralded field while recording her personal best time of 10:06.89. She also recorded the fastest time in the section in the 1600 meters as she rolled to a 4:45.51 time in winning her league final. Oh, by the way, Thomsen's winning time at the state meet surpassed the previous Montgomery HS school record (10:11.11) set by Sara Bei (now Hall).

Honorable mention to Albany senior Sophia Nordenholz who won the section 1600 meters race and finished second behind Thomsen at both the NCS MOC and California State Track and Field meets.

Jumps/Pole Vault

Jathiyah Muhammad - Dublin, So.

The other state champion from the North Coast Section is our jumper of the year. Dublin sophomore Jathiyah Muhammad was the only vaulter at the State Meet clean through 13-9 before three misses at a personal best of 14-01. She is the second Dublin HS athlete to win a state championship along with Mecca McGlaston who won the 100 meters hurdles in 2014. One more interesting note is that her freshman brother Khaliq Muhammad was also the section champion in the pole vault with a jump of 15-7.

Honorable mention to St. Mary's Berkeley senior Julia Alexander who had the best marks in both the long jump and triple jump at 19-0.5 and 37-9.25 respectively. Also, California senior Mara Lampsas finished in 2nd place at the State Meet in the high jump at 5-6.

Weight Throws

Ellie Roan - West County, Sr.

West County (formerly Analy HS) senior Ellie Roan was the dominant thrower in the section as she swept the weight events at the North Coast Section Meet of Champions. She recorded a personal best of 39-9.75 to win the shot put. At the state meet, Roan threw a lifetime best of 133-0 in the discus to qualify for the final. She was also nearly undefeated in both events outside of the Stanford Invitational and the state meet.