Martinez Tribune The website of the Martinez Tribune.
By GERARDO RECINOS
Martinez Tribune
The Bulldog track team went over to Walnut Creek’s Northgate High for the season’s last dual meet, this past Wednesday, April 26.
With the season’s end quickly approaching, the Dogs knew there was limited time left to grab some more personal records.
Marissa D’Atri, who has run entirely alone in every dual meet race this year with zero recorded losses, again set the track on fire in the varsity girls 1600 meters.
Previously ranked fourth on the all time Alhambra record board, D’Atri clocked 5 minutes, 10.27 seconds for another easy win and the third-fastest AHS mark ever.
Also rapidly improving, Nicole Tria finished the same race in 5:38.51, a season best.
It is exceedingly rare for Alhambra distance runners to achieve any top 10 marks, but Tria was unfazed. Returning for the girls varsity 3200 meters, she covered the eight laps in a PR of 12:04.90, cutting 15 seconds off her prior time and finishing second to Northgate’s Nichole Markiewicz. As of Tribune deadline, Tria’s time is the tenth-fastest ever from Alhambra.
In the boys 1600-meter race, Northgate’s Michael Wheeler ran a 4:46 for first place, while Bulldogs Robert Viano and Carson Edwards took second and fourth overall.
Viano got some redemption a few events later in the boys 800 meters, winning by a large margin in 2:07.76.
On the sprinters side, Myles Johnson and Zach Smidebush each neared the 12-second barrier in the 100-meter dash, as Johnson (12.06) took third and Smidebush (12.16) fourth.
Ian Palmer and Graham Manning both took to the starting line in the boys 400 meters.
Palmer circled the oval in 54.14 for second place, and Manning was not far back at 56.82 for third.
No one won more events on Wednesday than Christina Cortez, who earned a triple win in the frosh/soph girls 100 (14.10), 200 (29.86) and long jump (13-09.5).
Fellow sprinter and jumper Jenna Coffman brought some much needed assistance to the varsity girls team in her events. Facing some strong Bronco sprinters, she proceeded to set some new personal records in both sprints, going 13.51 in the 100 meter dash and 28.44 in the 200 meters.
Perhaps the Bulldogs were still not tired of winning, because a third all time performance was added in the girls varsity triple jump as Coffman soared to a major PR of 33 feet, 10.5 inches. Her distance is now fifth-farthest on the record board for girls triple jump.
Other Alhambra wins included Kieara Rios (1st place in girls shot put and high jump), and Phoebe Tang (first in girls discus).
Tang also launched the shot 29 feet, 4 inches to end up second to Rios.
Football quarterback Aaron Hern added to his athletic achievements with a significant 11-02 vault in the pole vault competition, the highest Bulldog mark in over 5 years. Finally, Jackson Norried leaped 18-07 for the long jump and 38-02 in triple jump for two more PR’s of his own.
The Bulldogs will battle eleven other teams this Saturday, May 6 at the Diablo Athletic League Championships at Moraga’s Campolindo High School. The top six finalists in each event will qualify for the 2017 NCS Tri-Valley Championships.
