Burroughs’ Valles heads into Masters Meet with great expectations
Christian Valles has been there before, but now he’s one of the competitors.
Valles, a junior at Burroughs High, went along as a spectator and teammate of girls’ pole vaulter Sarah Prystupa during the 2016 track and field season when she advanced to the Masters Meet and eventually to the state finals, where she placed sixth.
“I went to all the meets with Sarah,” Valles said. “I got to see what they were all about and I know what to expect. It was a good experience for me and it showed me what I had to do to hopefully do the same thing that she did.”
Valles will get a chance to experience the Masters Meet first-hand when he takes part in the boys’ pole vault competition Friday at Arcadia High, the same venue the junior won his second straight Pacific League championship. The event will begin after the conclusion of the girls’ pole vault, which is set to start at 3:30 p.m.
The Burroughs athlete is the lone local competitor in the Masters Meet. Burbank High senior girls’ pole vaulter Mikaela Teixeira was a second alternate following the Division I finals, but Bulldogs Coach Darin Wolf said it is unlikely she will be granted a spot.
Valles earned a spot in Friday’s meet by qualifying out of Saturday’s CIF Southern Section Finals at Cerritos College. The junior was one of four vaulters to tie for fifth overall among the four divisions with a mark of 15-feet that equaled a personal best.
The top six finishers in the event or any vaulter reaching the standard of 15-0 Friday will automatically qualify for the CIF State Track and Field preliminaries at Clovis’ Buchanan High on June 2. The state championships will be held the following day.
“In the Masters Meet, it really doesn’t matter to me if I win it or what place I finish at,” Valles said. “I know if I can get 15-0 I will make it to the state meet. I’ve gone 15-0 a couple of times and I know I can do it. It’s just a matter of me being focused and competing at my best.
“I know a lot of the guys who I’m going against and I know most of the best vaulters are from the Southern Section. So really, I know what I’m up against.”
Burroughs pole vault coach Mike McHorney said Valles’ even temperament and unflappable resolve is a benefit to the athlete in high-pressure situations.
“He is actually very relaxed and I think that helps him a lot,” McHorney said. “For a guy of his age, he usually takes everything in stride and he doesn’t really get worked up over things.
“In one of the meets awhile ago, the only meet in which he no-heighted, after he missed, he looked over at me and turned his palms up like, ‘Oh well.’”
Valles enters Friday’s meet in a four-way tie for fifth, with Redondo Union senior Tate Curran as the event’s top qualifier at 16-7.
Valles is the second Burroughs pole vaulter in as many years and third in four years to advance to the Masters Meet. He is striving to become the third in four seasons to also earn a spot in the CIF State Track and Field Championships. Matt Schwartz placed seventh in the boys’ event in the 2014 state competition.
“Just to be among those great pole vaulters is an honor,” said Valles, who is currently No. 4 on the Indians’ all-time list. “The pole vault tradition at Burroughs is pretty amazing, I’m just glad to be a part of it.”
Twitter: @jefftsports
