The track and field season finished up recently with the Blossom Valley Athletic League finals on May 10 at Santa Teresa High and the Central Coast Section prelims and finals at Gilroy High on May 17 and May 24.
One local athlete, Gilroy shot putter Kaiden Gonzales, advanced one step further. Gonzales finished third in the shot put at the CCS Finals with a school-record throw of 58-0.5 and got an invite to the CIF State Meet in Clovis the next weekend.
“Stakes were really high at CCS Finals,” Gonzales said. “It was the fourth or fifth throw where I hit the 58-0.5. You’re striving for finishing in the top three, because that guarantees you get to State. There was a jolt of energy. It was the last time I’d throw at Gilroy and I wanted to end it with a bang.”
That throw edged Logan Brantley of Aptos, who finished fourth, a smidge back at 58-0. Finishing outside the top three but beating the qualifying distance could still garner one an at-large berth. But top three was the desired place on the podium.
Gonzales then headed to Buchanan High in Clovis to compete with the best in California. He was the sole student-athlete from either of the two Gilroy schools to compete at that meet. In the prelims, the senior threw 54-8 and finished No. 15 in the entire state of California. That mark was just short of what was needed to advance to the top 12, who competed in the finals the next day.
“It wasn’t the greatest of days for my throws,” Gonzales said. “But I was very grateful for what the Lord has blessed me with. And it’s just amazing and a great feeling to have my name in the Gilroy record books.”
Gonzales’ stellar season included breaking the 54-year old school record in the shot four times. The previous mark was 56-11.25 by Sal Flores in 1971, an incredible 54 years ago. In fact, no other thrower had placed in the school’s top 10 in the shot since 2005. Until Gonzales came around.
His best toss before the season was just 54-3. Gonzales then broke the school record this spring in a dual meet versus Sobrato, at the CCS Top Eight meet, at the Sacramento Meet of Champions, and again at the CCS Finals.
Other top performers at the CCS Finals from the city of Gilroy included one other Mustang and three from Christopher.
Gilroy’s Juel Martinez leaped 21-2.25 in the boys long jump to nab eighth place at the CCS Finals.
For Christopher, basketball/track star Shiloh Vallejos threw the shot 38-10 for sixth place. Other Cougars who did well were Kordell Crocker, who jumped 21-11 for fifth in the boys long jump, and freshman Isabelle Schreyer, who cleared 5-0 for ninth in the high jump.
During a stellar season, Vallejos had a best throw of 40-2.5 at the BVAL Finals. That mark is now the school record, beating the previous record by almost four feet. Vallejos entered the year with a best of only 34 feet and made nearly a 20% improvement during the season. She credited Kaiden Gonzales and Gilroy High throws coach Fortune Gonzales, Kaiden’s father, for coaching and mentorship that greatly aided her improvement this past season.
“I had the privilege of working with these two for the second half of the season and I definitely think it was a huge factor in my success,” Vallejos said. “Learning from their knowledge and experience in throws, I was able to not only further my knowledge but also my distance in shot put. Even though we are from different schools, they welcomed me and helped me develop as an athlete and as a person.”
Several other Gilroy and Christopher athletes had excellent seasons, with highlights coming in the BVAL Championships, and several competing in the CCS Prelims though not qualifying for the CCS Finals a week later.
At the BVAL Finals meet, Gonzales shined with a first in the shot put at 57-0 and a second in the discus at 148-10. Martinez finished third in the long jump at 21-3 and ninth in the 100 in 11.37. Freshman Omarri Neville came in eleventh in the 100 in 11.42.
With those two speedsters on the 4×100 relay team, the Mustangs placed sixth in 44.14. Martinez ran leadoff, Jaime Gonzalez was second, Niko Sanchez took the baton next, and Neville ran home on the anchor leg.
Another high-flying Mustang was Cody Robbins, who tied for third in the high jump at 5-8.
The Gilroy girls were paced by Alexis Mydell, seventh in the 100 hurdles in 17.10, and Janey Rodriguez Cruz in ninth place in the discus at 94-6.
A host of Cougars excelled in the BVAL meet. Crocker led the boys’ efforts with a 21-4.5 leap for second place in the long jump. Avery Montejano was fourth in the 300 hurdles in 41.56 and 10th in the 400 at 51.43. Dylan Wharton came in fifth in the 300 hurdles in 42.01 and sixth in the 100 hurdles in 16.24. Jagger Booth ran 22.76 in the 200 meters for sixth place.
Vallejos came through with the top performance for the Christopher girls, winning the shot put event with a throw of 40-02.5, a victory by 4-8.75 feet. Chioma Okeke also had a superb day, with two excellent second-place runs, a 26.20 in the 200 and a 59.05 in the 400. Christopher was strong in the discus with Malerie Middleton in second at 109-0 and Victoria Gonzales-O’Donoghue third at 103-6. Gonzales-O’Donoghue also notched a No. 12 in the 100 hurdles in 17.57.
Schreyer cleared 5-0 in the high jump for second place. CHS volleyball star Finley Corona came through at 4-8 for seventh. Kalani Brown nabbed a 12th in the shot at 29-2.5. Juliet Tassio topped 8-8 in the pole vault for sixth place.
