State Track and Field Championships : Carter Wins Shotput; Sea Kings Set County Relay Mark

It was difficult to decide who was most elated Saturday night at the conclusion of the California Interscholastic Federation state track and field meet at Cerritos College in Norwalk.

Was it the girls’ 1,600-meter relay team from Corona del Mar, now the county record holder?

Was it Edison’s Kaleaph Carter, who after finishing runner-up for the past two years finally won a state shotput title?

Or could it have been Garden Grove hurdler Anthony Hale, who just delighted in that fact that he took part in something wonderful?

Whatever their results, many Orange County athletes and coaches came away pleased.

“It’s just a great, great night for us,” Steve Kaczynski, Corona del Mar girls’ coach, said of the Sea King squad that placed third in 3 minutes 48.28 seconds. That time broke the former county record of 3:48.89 set two years ago by Mission Viejo.

Jill Young (58.8), Chickie Moiso (58.2), Laurie Sawin (55.7) and d’Layne Kerr (55.0) combined for the effort that placed them behind winner Hawthorne (3:47.32) and Locke (3:48.19). Corona del Mar finished its season with the seventh-fastest time in the nation.

For Carter, his finish couldn’t have come at a better time.

Two hours after placing second in the discus at 186-feet 2-inches, Carter won the shot with a mark he recorded in Friday’s preliminaries, 64-0 1/2. It ranks him fourth nationally.

Though he didn’t throw 66-feet as he had hoped, Carter, usually a perfectionist, was satisfied with the victory.

“There are really very few feelings better than to be the No. 1 shotputter over thousands in the state,” Carter said. “And to be fourth-best over millions, I’m not disappointed.”

Newport Harbor’s Jim Geerlings knew the feeling. Friday, Geerlings won the Southern Section 1,600-meter run in 4:09.54, the top time in the state and third-best nationally.

Saturday night, Geerlings finished second in 4:11.28, 20 meters behind Reggie Williams of West Sacramento River City. Williams ran a tactical race, leading the pack through 800 meters in 2:06 before outsprinting the field to the finish with 150 meters to go.

“I guess I didn’t know how really good (Williams) was,” Geerlings said. “He ran an excellent race, and there was nothing I could do about it so I’m pleased.”

Corona del Mar’s Jim Robbins finished eighth in 4:23.17.

In the pole vault, Newport Harbor’s R.W. Henson placed second at 15-2, and Edison’s David Noel, the county leader this season at 16-4, took fourth at 14-8. Tom Richards of Santa Barbara San Marcos won the event, marred by swirling headwinds, at 16-0.

“The mark’s not as high as second place should be, but nobody (set a personal best) today so I’m very happy,” Henson said. “Considering the conditions, you got to take what you get.”

In the boys’ 300-meter hurdles, Hale, a converted one- and two-miler, recorded a personal best 37.37 for sixth, despite hitting the last hurdle.

“Honestly, I don’t even remember my race,” he said. “I was overwhelmed just looking around. There were guys in this race I couldn’t believe I was running with. It was the best.”

Danielle Reaves of Esperanza went from seventh to fifth in the girls’ 300-meter hurdles to finish in 44.43. Bishop O’Dowd’s Michelle Decoux won in 42.16.

In the boys’ 3,200-meters, Williams won his second title of the night by outsprinting Walnut’s Scott Hemel down the final stretch to win in 8:59.61.

Santa Ana Valley’s Jimmy Rodriguez placed third (9:10.10), Marina’s Shanon Winkelman was fourth (9:11.87) and Corona del Mar’s Eddie Lavelle was sixth (9:12.53).

All three, along with most of the pack, suffered numerous problems from the crowded conditions of the 28-man field.

Williams, Hempel and Palos Verdes’ David Scudamore set the pace through the race, running the first 1,600 meters in 4:32. With less than a half-mile to go, Rodriguez, 50 meters behind the leaders in fifth, and Winkelman, in seventh, began to surge.

In the final 200 meters, Rodriguez and Winkelman passed Scudamore, and Lavelle passed three others before finishing.

Sheri Bertell of Mission Viejo finished fifth in the 100-meter dash in 24.93. Teammate Lisa Fager placed seventh in the triple jump at 38-4.

Allison Franke of Canyon, the third-best discus thrower in the nation this season at 158-4, placed sixth at 145-6. Bakersfield’s Melissa Weis won the event at 159-7.