Low-tech edition (About)
Home > Sports > Running Blog
Running Home | Weather Forecast | What is Redwood Empire
Track All-Time | Cross Country All-Time
Schedule | Archives | Links
HIGH HOPES: SONOMA HIGH JUMPER MINDI WILEY WANTS IT ALL -- A STATE TITLE AND A LEAP OF 6 FEET Friday, June 3, 2005 By RALPH LEEF When Mindi Wiley cleared the high jump bar at 5-feet, 10-inches at the Oakland Invitational two years ago for Sonoma High School, a college recruiter sidled over to a track coach and asked what school Wiley was attending the following year. Sonoma high-jump coach Linda Patterson still laughs when recalling how the recruiter's jaw dropped when informed that Wiley was a freshman. Now a junior -- and verbally committed to Cal for the 2006-07 school year to play volleyball -- Wiley is a slight favorite to win a state championship Saturday at the track and field finals at Hughes Stadium in Sacramento. The trials are today and the 6-foot-2 athlete enters her third state meet with the best mark -- 5-11 -- among the high jump qualifiers. She tied a 24-year-old North Coast Section meet record last Saturday at Cal's Edwards Stadium with her career-best 5-11. The record jump came on a sprained ankle from playing in a club volleyball tournament that morning. ``Thankfully, it wasn't my plant foot,'' Wiley said on Wednesday. Wiley has the season's best mark heading into the state meet but several other jumpers are also eyeing the title. Jamie Klages of Coronado has jumped 5-10 1/4 , but did it in San Diego April 2 and has not come close to that mark again. Desirae Gonder of Bakersfield's Stockdale High jumped 5-10 on May 18 and is making her third state appearance. She has finished fourth and last year was second. Amber Kaufman of Branham High of San Jose jumped 5-10 in early March but has not done it since. Several other qualifiers have marks of 5-8 and 5-9. Patterson, who has worked with Wiley all three years at Sonoma High, said her jumper is primed to put some pressure on the other competitors. ``It's there ... it's in her,'' Patterson said of Wiley's chances of making a 6-foot jump on Saturday. Wiley finished second in the state championships as a freshman and last year didn't medal when she suffered a hip injury at the state meet. ``Getting injured last year will give me more determination this year,'' Wiley said. ``I feel I got short-changed.'' Wiley is in a class by herself among Redwood Empire high jumpers -- now and for as long as records have been kept. Jackie Hurt of Analy (1989) has the second-best Empire mark in the high jump -- and it is only 5-7. Wiley said she not only wants a state title, but wants to record a 6-foot jump. The meet record is 6-2 by Latrese Johnson of Clovis High School in 1985. ``I've been stuck at 5-10 for two years now,'' Wiley said. ``It's satisfying to get 5-11. Now I am going for more. I can do it, definitely.'' Sonoma High head track coach Sherman Harris is confident Wiley is ready for a strong effort this weekend. ``Mindi knows where she's ranked in the state and feels she belongs there,'' Harris said. ``She went undefeated until the state meet as a freshman but was inconsistent as a sophomore. This year she has been very focused and very consistent.'' Harris and Patterson were concerned last year when Wiley jumped 5-10 early in the season, but then got along with jumps of 5-6 and 5-7. She had a meet-record 5-4 at the Redwood Empire-area meet last month, but that was well below expectations. ``This year Mindi told me she was going to be more serious,'' Patterson said. ``But it's hard when you have nobody to compete against ... no one to push you.'' She'll get that push on Saturday. CIF STATE TRACK & FIELD CHAMPIONSHIP The following Empire athletes will compete in the state track and field meet Friday (trials) and Saturday (finals) at Hughes Stadium, Sacramento. Marks are from last week's North Coast Section meet. The records listed are for Empire athletes at the state meet. Results of the meet will be posted late Friday and Saturday nights at www.pressdemocrat.com/running. GIRLS High Jump Mindi Wiley, Sonoma, 5-11, seeded 1st Kaitlin Sather, Maria Carrillo 5-3 26th 2nd seed: Desirae Gonder, Stockdale 5-10 All-time Empire best: 2nd place Mindi Wiley, Sonoma 5-10 (2003) 400 meters Jenna Lowder, Maria Carrillo 56.85 18th Top seed: Sade Williams, Rancho Cucamonga 52.88 All-time Empire best: 7th place Rose Criss, Analy 56.94 (1997) 800 meters Kristin Sanzari, Maria Carrillo 2:14.11 18th Top seed: Alicia Follmar, Saratoga 2:07.79 All-time Empire best: 4th place Kerri Woolheater, Casa 2:12.59 (1992) 1,600-meter Relay Maria Carrillo 3:55.84 20th Montgomery 3:59.46 25th Top seed: Wilson/LB 3:40.35 All-time Empire best: 17th place, Maria Carrillo, 4:00.51 (2000) 3,200 meters Tamma Carleton, Mendocino 11:12.62 23rd Top seed: Tori Tyler, Gunn 10:31.04 All-time Empire best: 1st place, Sara Bei, Mont., 10:11.11, '98, 01 & Julia Stamps, S.R., 10:15.17 '94, '95, '97 1,600 meters Ashton Lesieur, Casa Grande 5:06.60 23rd Top seed: Alicia Follmar, Saratoga 4:52.66 All-time Empire best: 1st place, Jenny Aldridge, MC, 4:49.63 '00, Sara Bei, Mont., '4:49.21, '98 & Julia Stamps, SR, 4:44.78, '97 200 meters Jenna Lowder, Maria Carrillo 25.38 25th Top seed: Sade Williams, Rancho Cucamonga 23.56 All-time Empire best: 8th Tamika Brown, Fort Bragg 24.88, (1993) BOYS 400 meters Will Crockenberg, Healdsburg 49.17 16th Top seed: David Gettis, Dorsey 46.08 All-time Empire best: 1st Wilburn Talbot, Analy 51.6y (1924) 1,600 meters Tim Quiroga, Healdsburg 4:21.67 19th Top seed: Jared Bell, Harvard/Westlake 4:10.17 All-time Empire best: 1st, Les Schwobeda, Petaluma, 4:40.0 (1922) 1,600-meter Relay Healdsburg 3:22.61 19th Top seed: Dorsey LA 3:12.98 All-time Empire best: ? place, Santa Rosa 3:17.6 (1970) Discus Thomas Wilhelm, Lower Lake 153-0 21st Top seed: Darius Savage, Morse 196-10 All-time Empire best: 1st Weeks, SR (1916) & Merritt, SR (1915) Triple Jump Marshall Olin, Santa Rosa 44-2 1/2 23rd Top seed: Nkosinza Balumbu, Logan 50-2 All-time Empire best: 5th place, Marvin Colter, Piner, 48-4 1/2 (1978) 300 Hurdles Marshall Olin, Santa Rosa 40.06 24th Top seed: David Klech, California 36.81 All-time Empire best: 7th place, Chris Barnsdale, Mont. 38.05 (1996) . STATE MEET When: Today (trials) and Saturday (Finals) Where: Hughes Stadium, Sacramento City College. Times: Today's field events, 2 p.m.; running events 5 p.m. Saturday's field events 3 p.m.; running events 5 p.m.
|
Email story | Print story | Subscribe to paper
|