Swanson Jumps 7-0, Best in State

Dave Swanson of Alemany High jumped 7-0 on his third attempt to tie the best mark in the state this season and win the high jump Friday at the Del Rey League finals.

Alemany, which finished second in the Del Rey League dual-meet season, qualified 10 individuals and a relay team for the Southern Section 2-A preliminaries next week.

Swanson, a junior, had not jumped higher than 6-8 this season. His best was 6-4 last season. Loyola’s Mark Tilson, who won the Southern Section’s 2-A championship last season with a jump of 6-4, was second at 6-10.

After winning the competition, Swanson missed on three attempts at 7-3, which would have broken Alemany’s school record of 7-3. His body cleared the bar on his first attempt, but he knocked it off with the back of his right calf.

Swanson attributed his performance to a lack of practice this week.

“I wanted to make sure I was well rested,” Swanson said. “If you practice the day before a meet, you don’t do as well.”

Said Alemany Coach Randy Smith: “I’ve never seen him so intense.”

Smith did not have the same kind words for senior Dan Pinto who, Smith said, cost Alemany a chance to finish among the top three teams in 2-A. Pinto was the 2-A champion in the pole vault last season at 14-6, but failed to qualify for the preliminaries next week with a disappointing performance.

Pinto passed on the opening height of 13-0 and again at 13-6. He then missed his three attempts at 14-0.

“It’s just unreal,” Smith said. “He opened too high. It’s a given that you open at 13. I don’t know why he did it. He didn’t tell me about it and he didn’t tell his vaulting coach.

“It hurts our chances a lot at the championships. I was expecting 10 points right away for winning the pole vault. I think we can finish in the top five, but not the top three, which I thought we were capable of.”

Loyola, which played host to the meet, has finished first and third in 2-A the last two seasons. It appears to be a strong contender for this year’s championship after qualifying 14 individuals and both relay teams for the preliminaries.