Track season heats up at the Chico Track and Field Invitational,
Jackson Hein, Elizabeth Merrill, Caden Rowe, Chris Hall all double winners

Saturday April 8, 2022
By Justin Couchot/Chico Enterprise-Record, with significant editing by Tom Cushman

CHICO - While skies were not sunny, winds were calm and temperatures quite pleasant for this year's running of the 2023 Chico Track and Field Invitational a much-needed respite in the weather considering how cool and unsettled this track season has been so far. This year's event saw 27 schools from four sections (including one from Nevada) competing in 16 different boys and girls events in both varsity and frosh/soph divisions.

Shasta emerged victorious in the girls competition with 71 points thanks to high finishes by a few key athletes. Notably Elizabeth Merrill, Jaedyn Lynn, Faith Ferguson and Talyn Hanly as they collectively scored 82% of the team points by individually winning four events and were runner-up in another. in addition, two of them (Hanly, Lynn) played a big part in their second place finish in the 4 x 100m relay. A more balanced team effort (only one individual winner) allowed Foothill (66 1/4 pts)to slip by Pleasant Valley (65) for second. Rounding out the top five Yuba City took fourth (53) qwhile River Valley placed fifth (44).

Foothill with 100 points won the team title in the varsity boys competition quite convincingly with victories in 6 events (both hurdles, the long jump, triple jump and both relays) leaving Pleasant Valley (62 1/3) a distant second despite 3 event victories (200, 800, 1600). Chico was next (50)-2 victories (3200, 4x800 relay) followed by Yuba City (36) in fourth and West Valley (34) in fifth.

In the frosh/soph girls competition Pleasant Valley top the team competion with 110.9 points with 16-of-16 events completed (98.9) ahead of Chico (90.2) and Foothill (58.5).

Foothill also topped the frosh/soph boys competition with 134 points ahead of Pleasnt Valley (127) and Chico (76.5).

Pleasant Valley's Jackson Hein continued his dominant sophomore season with a couple wins on the day. In the 800m, he came home with a PR and section best time (1:56.45) beating out Foothill's Logan Borg who also ran PR by stopping the clock at 1:57. Bella Vista's Kellen Kirby (2:00.30), after contending for the lead with 200m to go, settled for third. Earlier in the meet Hein won the 1600m in 4:33.34, a time well off this personal best but fast enough for the win over Providence Christian's Kyle Cleek (4:35.78) and his older brother Austin (4:37.65).

The Chico High team of Diego Gonzalez-Carbajal, Charles Brennan, Matt Anderson and Carter Murphy won the 4 x 800m relay in 8:41.95, fourteen seconds clear of the runner-up team from University Prep. The event is a new addition to track & field this season and will be contested at the state meet. The varsity girls 4 x 800 relay was a tighter affair won by River Valley (10:29.95) over Chico (10:33.56).

Yuba City's Alias Bazemore won the boys 100 (11.34) and was leading the 200m until a very late surge by PV's Parker Williams caught him (and West Valley's Ian Reynolds) at the line. Before this dramatic and exceptionally close win in the 200m, it had been a dissipointing meet for Williams as he finished fifth in the 100m and he never touched the baton in the 4 x 100m due to a failed exchange by the Vikings during their first handoff.

Foothill's Caden Rowe was another double winner on the day, taking both the 110m high hurdles (15.88) and the 300m intermediate hurdles (40.51) as was his teammate Chris Hall, who won the long jump (21'-00) and triple jump (41-08). In addition, both had a part in the winning relay teams with Hall running a leg on the short relay and Rowe on the longer one.

Chico High throwers went 1-2 in the boys shot put competition with a mere quarter inch separating first from second. Both recorded personal bests on the day with Christopher Bramon mark of 46' 0.75? just edging Magnus Nielsen toss of 46' 0.5?. Durham's Matt Larsen was not too far back in third with a personal best mark of his own at 44' 3.25?. Shasta's Trenton Kingston won the boys discus with a personal best mark of 142-06, almost 10 feet up on the runner-up finish of North Tahoe's Daniel Joslin (133-00).

Nobody could be more exhausted than Chico's Charlie Brennan who won the 3200m after running a leg on the winning 4 x 800 relay and a fourth-place finish in the 1600m (4:41.27). CORE Butte's Khaulee Brumbaugh won the boys high jump with a personal best and section leading mark of 6' 2?. Other winners among boys were West Valley's Nolan Flashner taking the 400m with a personal best time of 51.91.

Orland Angie Shykerynec, who has committed to throwing the hammer at Cal Berkeley in the fall, was one of the throwers to watch in the field events. Shykerynec finished second in the girls shot put despite putting up a season-best mark of 36 feet, 11 inches. Yuba City's Anjali Davis eeked out the win by tossing the shot a ¼ inch further. Shykerynec finished third in the discus, one of five competitors eclipsing 100 feet on the day. Shasta's Faith Ferguson won with a throw of 110' 0.5"

Las Plumas' Kylie Atteberry won the girls 100 meter race in 12.97, the lone victory of the meet for the Thunderbirds. Atteberry held off a fast-closing Emma Gaddy to finish second in the 200m, a race won by Jewel Perry. Previously University Prep's Gaddy had won the 400 with a personal best time of 58.82 seconds pulling away from Shasta's Talyn Hanly (59.56) and Lincoln's Jewel Perry (59.86), with all breaking 60 seconds for the first time. PV's Holly Alchin prevailed in a close girls 800 (2:29.68) with less than a second separating first from third.

Lincoln's Autumn LaMontagne won the 100-meter hurdles (18.36) and 300m hurdles (48.85). The team from Yuba City won the girls 400 relay in 50.60 seconds, while a cross-town rival River Valley won the girls 3,200 relay in 10:29.95. Chico High's team of Kim Navarrete, Claire Edwards, Dot Clemente and Lillian Jeffords finished second in 10:33.56. Yuba City also won the 4x400m relay, running a seasonal best of 4:12.78 with Chico (4:19.85) again left in the runner-up position.

In the girls high jump Davis' Michelle King and Shasta's Jaedyn Lynn tied first at 4' 10?. Four jumpers tied for third at 4' 8? including Chico High's Brooklyn Duggins. Foothill's Theresa Barlow won the girls triple jump with a mark of 33-06.5, followed by Pleasant Valley's Kayla Johnson (31-10.5).

The NorCal Small Schools Invitational will be held next Friday (April 14) at Chico High School. Pleasant Valley hosts Chico High on April 19 in a dual Eastern Athletic League meet then on to a couple more invitational before contending for the EAL League Championships that will be held May 5 at Pleasant Valley High School. The CIF Northern Section Division I Championships will be held May 12 at Foothill High School and the CIF NSCIF Finals will be held May 19 at West Valley High School.