State High School Track and Field Championships : Vista’s Jorgensen, Serra’s Patrick Finish First

Although the San Diego area had two bright spots, the black clouds that hung over Hughes Stadium early Saturday afternoon were an ominous sign for many others at the state track and field championships here.

Vista High School’s Kira Jorgensen and Serra’s Lynn Patrick escaped the shadows of the day with individual victories.

Jorgensen easily won the 1,600-meter run in 4:45.98, finishing ahead of Hesperia’s Robbyn Bryant, who clocked 4:46.59. In the 3,200 meters, Jorgensen finished second in 10:30.08. Mary Mendoza of San Jose Presentation won the event in 10:23.04.

Meanwhile, Patrick leaped 5-feet, 10-inches to win the high jump.

But before night had fallen, the meet had lost much of its thunder. To wit:

--Brent Burns of Lafayette Alcalanes, the No. 1 pole vaulter in the country with a best of 17-feet 5 1/2-inches, passed the first three tries to 16-2 . . . and no-heighted. So did Pat Alduenda from Ramona, who came in with the No. 2 mark in the state, making Steve Slocum of Santa Ana Foothill, who had dropped out at 15-6 and was sitting in the stands, the winner.

--The Woodland Hills Taft 400 relay team, which had the best time in the state, dropped the baton on a pass from the second to third leg. Pasadena Muir, with another nice final leg by Corey Ealy, won the race in 40.78, the new No. 1 time.

--The Pomona girls’ relay team, No. 2 in its race, dropped the baton on a first-to-second pass, a move that came very close to burning the Red Devils’ hopes for the team title. It may also have cost Janeene Vickers a chance to become the first person in California history to win six State championships.

The biggest dark cloud, however, was saved for the end. The L.A. Dorsey girls’ team was disqualified in the 1,600 relay when Delena Zimmerman was red-flagged for throwing a baton after the end of the race, a highly controversial and hottly disputed decision that cost the Dons their share of the team title.

Just when people were wondering what was next in a meet that will long be remembered as an organizational and officiating fiasco, when the jury of appeals was busier than the starter, they got an answer--a championship decided by a unsportsmanlike call.

Pomona wasn’t go to complain, however. The Dorsey dispute gave the title back to the Red Devils, who scored all 30 of its points on Vickers wins, with Long Beach Poly next at 28 and the Dons at 22.

That’s the official count, at least. Dorsey Coach Paul Knox, after taking his case to meet officials on the field and in the stands and hoping to include a home-made movie of the finish as evidence, took his team to the victory stand for a picture anyway.

For the fourth time in five years, Hawthorne won the boys’ team championship, with the Cougars’ fifth consecutive win in the 1,600 relay the decider. Their 34 points held off Ealy and Muir (27), while Taft, with wins by Quincy Watts in the 100 and 200, and Simi Valley Royal, with a shotput-discus double by Dave Bultman, each scoring 20.

Clearly--and few things were clear in this two-day meet--Vickers was the standout individual. She won the 100 in 11.76, the 300 low hurdles in 40.96 and the 100 low hurdles in 13.34, the latter the fifth-best mark of all time.

The only thing left for her to conquer was sleep.

“It’s not like I’m going to go home and party,” she said. “I’m going to go home, go to Chuckie Cheese’s and go to sleep.”

Prep Notes What happened to Brent Burns in the pole vault? “I wasn’t jumping that well today,” he said. “That’s pretty much the story. I wasn’t on today, obviously.” . . . Two of the finalists in the boys 100 are heading to USC on football scholarships, second-place Calvin Holmes of Carson and eighth-place Ricky Ervins of Muir.