Evan Noonan of Dana Hills already had a great junior year before Saturday’s CIF State Track and Field Championships finals in Clovis.
Noonan was the Orange County boys cross country athlete of the year, and was the CIF Southern Section Division 2 champion this spring in the 1,600 and 3,200 meters.
On Saturday night he won the 3,200 in a time of 8 minutes and 43.12 seconds in the state finals at Buchanan High School. Noonan turned in his usual strong finish, covering the final 400 meters in 57.2 seconds.
The time was third-best in the 3,200 in California this season.
ALISO NIGUEL’s MASSEY THIRD IN SHOT PUT
Aliso Niguel sophomore Jaslene Massey finished third in the shot put Saturday with a throw of 44 feet, 7½ inches.
She won the CIF-SS Division 1 championship two weeks ago with a throw of 42-2 and at the CIF-SS Masters Meet on May 18 she had her season-best throw of 46-0.
Massey had to fight through a head cold Saturday.
“I wasn’t able to practice for the last four days,” she said Saturday night. “So that was a bit nerve-wracking before the meet. But I was able to do a shake out, to get my footwork and spin down.”
Massey also competed in the high jump and long jump this season and was the starting middle blocker on the Aliso Niguel girls volleyball team. She said she intends to continue doing all of that as a junior next school year.
PACIFICA’S LEWIS TOP 4 IN SHOT PUT & DISCUS
Pacifica senior Zach Lewis was third in the shot put at 60 feet even and fourth in the discus with a personal-record of 184-5.
Lewis said he was pleased and disappointed simultaneously.
“I’m happy with the discus,” he said. “I tweaked my elbow a little bit at Masters, so I was unable to practice for state. My technique (in the shot put) was unrefined and all over the place.”
Lewis’ goal in the shot put was 63-6, but the injury and down time made that difficult.
“I think I would have had it in me,” he said.
OC NOTES
Brea Olinda sophomore Julia Teven finished third in the high jump. Her clearance of 5-7 is the top mark in Orange County this season. …
Juniors Devin Bragg of Los Alamitos and Brandon Gorski of Mater Dei both won two medals, Bragg earned his in the 100 and 200 and Gorski in the high jump and long jump.
Bragg, also a football standout, was fifth in the 100 with a wind-legal 10.57, just off of his wind-legal season best of 10.50. He finished eighth in the 200 at 21.97, well off his season-best of 21.31.
Gorski’s long jump mark of 22-10.75 got him eighth place; the top nine finishers in each event earned medals. Gorski’s best clearance of 6-7 in the high jump was good for sixth place. …
Justine Wilson continues to be a rising star in county track and field. The Rosary sophomore placed sixth in the 400 with her time of 55.95. This season she had Orange County’s leading times in the 400 (55.14) and 200 (24.18). …
Portola’s Rider Cooper capped an outstanding senior season by finishing fifth in the 400 at 47.70. He is the county leader in that event ((47.37) with his winning time from the CIF Southern Section Division 1 finals. Cooper also won the CIF-SS Division 1 200 with a season-best 21.21. …
Newport Harbor junior Keaton Robar, the county leader in the 800, finished third in the 800 Saturday at 2:07.40, .which just missed her 2024 best of 2:07.01. …
JSerra senior Georgia Jeanneret led for much of the 800 but was outsprinted over the final 100 meters to finish sixth at 2:09.09. Jeanneret’s high school career concludes with two state medals, two CIF-SS championships in the 800 and contributions to the Lions’ winning relay teams. …
Beckman senior Ibzan Felix appeared to be faltering halfway through the final lap of the boys 1,600, being passed by a few runners. On the final turn, Felix found the energy required to finish third in 4:10.33, three seconds shy of his season best. …
San Clemente repeated as boys 4X800 relay champions. The Tritons won it last year, the first year that the 4X800 was included in the state meet. …
In one of the closer races of the day, Woodbridge’s Luzila Ashley-Castillo won the mixed 200 wheelchair race. She won with a time of 38.90 seconds, just ahead of the 38.98 by Rancho Verde’s Angel Guzman. …
Carson Fox of Los Alamitos finished second in the parasport shot put on Friday with his day’s best of 37 feet, 2.25 inches. Fox,, a senior who lost his left leg to cancer his freshman year, has played long snapper in the Los Alamitos football program. …
Mission Viejo’s Nicholas Card finished third in the parasport 400 meter para race Friday and third in the parasport 200 on Saturday. …
Roxy Meyer, a senior at Dana Hills, was fifth in the triple jump with a mark of 39 feet, 2 inches. …
Ventura junior Sadie Englehardt won the 1,600, as expected. She did so with a state meet-record time of 4 minutes, 32.6 seconds, which is the best time in the nation this season. Englehardt took the lead early and pulled away from the competition steadily throughout the race.
Check later for SCNG’s photos from Saturday’s events.