After just a month of track and field action, there have been several school and personal records broken across the sport’s local landscape. Here’s a quick look at who has helped rewrite the history books thus far in 2023.
Joey Stout - Pitman
The name of quite possibly the most dominant runner from the region may ring a bell, as it’s Joey Stout of Pitman High School. The star running back from the Pride football team has brought his electric speed to the running lanes, already compiling over half a dozen first place finishes through the month of March.
Stout gave running fans a sneak preview of his dominance at the season’s first CCAL meet at Turlock High on March 15. He grabbed first place in the 100-meter dash (10.4) and the 200-meter dash (21.86), both personal bests. The 21.86 time is also a school record.
The senior helped the relay group of Blayne Siebert, Cruzito Garcia and Aric Singh take home first in the 4x100 race (44.24) and the team of Diego Cisneros, Javier Camacho and Julius Camacho take the top spot in the 4x400 competition (3.40.98).
At last week’s County Clash Championships in Hughson, Stout continued to impress, as he earned first in the 100-meter dash (11.23), 200-meter dash (22.39) and once again helped Singh, Siebert and Garcia take the 4x100 run.
Olivia Walker – Turlock
After an appearance at last year’s National Junior Olympics, it shouldn’t be the biggest of surprises that Turlock High’s Olivia Walker is remaining atop the leaderboards.
During the March 15 opening CCAL meet, Walker ran a 27.04 to grab first place in the 200-meter dash, beating the second-place runner by over .5 seconds. The exact same scenario unfolded in the 400-meter dash as she put in a time of 1:01.37. Walker also helped grab first place in the 4x100 relay alongside Shaylan Roy-Williams, Evelyn Ladine and Zoe Lamur.
Walker placed first in the 400-meter at last week’s County Clash, racing to a time of 1:00.54. The group of Walker, Roy-Williams, Ladine and Lamur again took first place with a 4x100 time of 49.8.
While Walker has the speed, it’s been her jumping ability that has rewritten Bulldog history books thus far this season. At the CCAL meet, she set a school record with an even 5-foot high jump.
Jayme Soares – Hilmar
If there is a short distance TVL girls race taking place, Hilmar High’s Jayme Soares has probably won it.
Soares got her league season started at the Merced County Championships on March 10 at Golden Valley High School where she grabbed first in the 100-meter race (13.44) and 200-meter race (27.50). On March 22, she put on a similar performance at the Yellowjackets’ TVL dual against Hughson, getting first place with a 12.86 time in the 100-meter and first with a 26.80 time in the 200-meter. Additionally, the group of Soares, Lilly Brewer, Kyndell Johnston and Brianna Dias won the top spot for the girls 4x100 relay (52.18) while the group of Soares, Dias, Johnston and Brisa Gonzales took first in the 4x400 race (4:32.2).
At Thursday’s triple dual against Livingston, Hughson and Escalon, Soares once again won her short distance races, this time achieving personal records. In the 100-meter dash she sped to first with a 12.79 time, which was also good enough for a school record. And in the 200-meter dash, Soares achieved a 26.62 time. The 4x400 team also grabbed first place over the trio of schools.
Shaylan Roy-Williams – Turlock
Like her teammate, Walker, Shaylan Roy-Williams has seen an abundance of success while both running and jumping.
At the first CCAL meet and at last week’s County Clash, Roy-Williams took home first place in the 200-meter dash and the long jump competition. She earned a 200-meter time of 12.56 at the CCAL meet, which was a personal record and was good enough for third best in school history. She also achieved a 26.39 time at the ‘Clash.
Over in the long jump, Roy-Williams had a 17 feet, 1 inch distance at CCAL and a 18 feet,3.5 inches distance at the County Clash, the latter being a personal record.
Caden Bailey – Hilmar
Hilmar’s Caden Bailey is another gridiron star who has taken the lanes by storm. Like Soares, he has been dominant in short distance competition at TVL events.
During the March 22 TVL dual against Hughson, the star quarterback set a school record in the 100-meter dash with a first-place time of 11.44. Thursday’s triple dual saw similar results, with Bailey cruising to a 100-meter win (11.45) and 200-meter victory (23.44).
At both meets, Bailey also showed off his hops, earning first place finishes at each meet in the triple jump competition. In the Hughson dual, he had a 38 feet, 11 inches triple jump while he outdid himself with a 40 feet, 9 inches jump on Thursday.
