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Pitman girls track look to claim CCC title
PHS track pic2
Pitmans Sean Donnelly prepares to hurl the discus on Wednesday. - photo by FRANKIE TOVAR / The Journal

 

The girls of Pitman High’s track team are now one step away from claiming the Central California Conference championship after their 10 point victory, 73-63, over Atwater High on Wednesday. Freshman Lauren Cariaso helped lead the Pride’s ladies (3-0-1 CCC) to their victory in the rain with three first place finishes in the 100m, 4x100m relay, and triple jump events.

“She’s been working very hard,” Pitman’s head coach Thad Moren said. “She will definitely continue to develop into a very good track athlete for us.”

Joining Cariaso in the 4x100m relay victory was Jasmine Roberson, Allysa Gonzales, and Kelsey Derr. Roberson claimed another first place finish in the 200m race, as did Derr in the long jump. Other notable performances included Erica Sickert’s first place effort in the shot put event, Rashal Pritchard’s first place throw in the discus event, and Lindsey Phillips’ first place finish in the pole vault event.

Pitman competed in the rain for the majority of Wednesday’s meet, making its first place finished that much more difficult and impressive.

“You have to have really good technique to survive the rain,” Moren said. “You have to remember the other team is in the rain too, so it affects everybody the same.”

Pitman’s boys (1-1-2 CCC) fell short of a victory against Atwater as the Falcons walked away from Joe Debely Stadium with a team score of 84-51. The Pride’s loss wasn’t because of the rain, however, but rather the result of keeping their younger athletes in the junior varsity competitions for experience sake.

“When we looked at what we had and what they had we had a feeling it might turn out the way it did,” Moren said.

Atwater’s speed and numbers helped its boys dominate a majority of the track events, specifically the sprints. Pitman’s Aaron Mayfield managed a first place finish in the 800m, going neck and neck with Atwater’s Joshua DeLeon. Mayfield recorded a personal record of 2.03.46 in the race against DeLeon, both of which are the top two 800m runners in the CCC.

The team of Ted Baza, Brent Nelle, Mario Garcia, and Brandon Augusto also claimed a first place victory in the 4x100 relay. Skyler Sexton claimed two first place finishes in the long jump and triple jump and Sean Donnelly once again earned a first place finish in the discus event.

Donnelly and Sexton will be joined by Pritchard, Sickert, and Cariaso today at the Sacramento Meet of Champions Invitational. Pitman’s next league meet will be against Merced High on Wednesday, where a girl’s victory would solidify Pitman’s place as the 2012 CCC track champions.