Who was the top boys track and field athlete in the Class of 2023?
Below are four stellar candidates looking for your votes. These candidates all put up amazing performances to win State Meet titles and rank among the best in the U.S.
MileSplitCA Athletes of the Year candidates are selected based off criteria to include performances at the State Meet, section championships, and rankings within the class in CA and nationally.
This poll is open until Thursday at 5 p.m.
MileSplitCA Senior Boys AOTY Candidates
Athletes are listed alphabetically
Buchanan (CS)
Hilton is one of only 19 boys in California high school track and field history to clear at least 17-1 in the pole vault. He did that to win the Central Section Division 1 title for the second year in a row. A runner-up for the State Meet title in '22, Hilton became the State champion this spring with a clearance of 16-6. His 17-1 PR ranked tied for U.S. No. 7 and he is one of only eight boys nationwide to reach that height this season. He won the pole vault at 11 meets during the spring, including Arcadia, where he cleared 16-9, and West Coast Relays where he cleared 16-6.
Serra-Gardena (SS)
Where do you start with Rodrick? The California state record-holder in the 100-meter dash won both the 100m and 200m at the CIF-State Meet for the second year in a row, setting a meet record in the 100m (10.20/2.0). His 10.09 (3.3) at Southern Section Division 4 Finals is the fastest all-conditions 100m in California high school history. That mark ranks U.S. No. 2 or all-conditions. His 10.14 (1.3) to win Southern Section Masters to equal his state record time from 2022, ranks tied for U.S. No. 3 wind-legal. Rodrick ran a season-best 20.53 (1.7) to win the CIF-SS D-4 title (U.S. No. 5 wind-legal). He ran 20.67 (1.5) to win his second-consecutive 200m State title.
JSerra (SS)
The University of Oklahoma-bound senior joined an elite group to capture both the shot put and discus state championships in the same season. An event he admittingly did not gear up for as a junior, he exploded onto the national scene in the shot put in 2023 as his 65-10 effort ranked eighth in the nation. In the post-season, Brendon cranked out a 205-3 to move him up to fourth in the United States. He joins the elites of Southern Section throwing lore as he is now only the third athlete to measure out over 205 feet in the discus and over 65 feet in the shot put, joining Brian Blutreich (Capistrano Valley, 1985) and Cade Moran (Murrieta Mesa, 2022).
Granada Hills Charter (LA)
Dijon almost single-handedly carried Granada Hills Charter to its first-ever CIF-State Track and Field team championship by having a role in scoring 34 of the team's 36 points while competing in four events. Dijon, a University of Utah-bound football/track star, won the 400-meter title in a 2023 CA-best time of 45.77, was second in the 200m in 20.95, ran on a leg of the State championship-winning 4x100 relay (40.39), and his 45.90 anchor split on the 4x-400m relay moved GHC from sixth place to third place earning the necessary points to secure the team title. His 400m time ranks U.S. No. 3 and CA No. 10 all-time. In the LA City Section Finals, Stanley won the 200 and 400 events each year from 2021-23. GHC's season-best 4x100m relay time of 40.28 to win at Arcadia ranks U.S. No. 5 and tied for CA No. 3 all-time.
WHO YA GOT?
