Morningside Ready to Flex Its Track Might : Preps: Monarch girls and boys expect to make strong showings when Southern Section preliminaries begin today.

The road to the state high school track-and-field championship starts with the Southern Section preliminaries today and Saturday at three sites.

Once again, the Morningside girls’ and boys’ teams are expected to figure prominently in the title chase.

Coach Ron Tatum said the Monarch girls’ team may not be as deep as they were last year when they won the state title, but they enter the 2-A Division prelims at 4 p.m. today at Trabuco Hills High in Mission Viejo in the proper frame of mind.

“I feel we’re going in fairly well,” he said. “In terms of last year, we may not be as strong overall as a group. But we’re fairly healthy.”

Losing athletes because of injury may be the only thing that could slow down the Monarchs. They are especially strong in the sprints and hurdles, led by Santisha Arnold, Tai-Ne Gibson and Sonoma Nickson. Another standout is Shirena Harris in the long and triple jumps.

Arnold, who won the 100- and 200-meter dashes in the 2-A final last season and is ranked among the state leaders in the 200, won the 200 and finished second in the 100 at the Ocean League final last week. She also anchors the school’s 400-meter relay team, which is ranked No. 1 in the nation.

Gibson, who finished second to Arnold in the 100 and 200 at the 2-A final as a freshman last year, won the 100 and finished second in the 200 at the league final.

Nickson, who won the 2-A title in the 100 hurdles last season, tuned up for the prelims by winning the 100 and 300 hurdles at the league meet.

Harris, ranked among the top performers in the state in the triple jump, won the long and triple jumps in the league final.

Despite their success in 1991, Tatum says the Monarchs will not feel any pressure to repeat.

“I hope there’s not any extra pressure on us,” he said. “We just try to take each challenge as it comes and that’s it.”

Although they haven’t received as much attention, the Morningside boys also appear to rank among the teams to beat in 2-A. The Monarchs are led by Travion Harris in the sprints and Edward Turner in the 400-meter run and long jump.

Turner, who won the 2-A title in the long jump last season, warmed up for the prelims by winning the 400 and the long jump at the league final. Harris won the 100 and 200.

Tatum said the Monarch boys have their best opportunity to challenge for a 2-A title since winning three consecutive championships from 1986-88.

“We’re still waiting for this group to jell and be as one, but we do have some athletes,” he said. “We don’t have a lot (of depth), but if we have enough qualifiers, we can be right there.”

After Morningside, the South Bay’s best hope for a title may rest with perennial boys’ power Hawthorne in 4-A.

The 4-A prelims are at noon Saturday at UC Riverside.

Cougar Coach Kye Courtney said there are a handful of teams that appear to have a chance to win the title.

“It’s very hard to gauge until after Saturday because all the other (league) meets were held in different places,” he said. “It’s difficult to assess, but we feel that the boys are going to be able to score 45 points. The problem is, so is everyone else.”

Courtney said the favorites might be Muir and Fontana.

“I’d say any of five teams could come out in front,” he said. “There’s going to be four or five teams within five points of each other.”

Hawthorne will rely heavily on hurdler Demond Smith, who ranks among the best in the state in the 110 hurdles and the 300 hurdles. Smith, who won the 4-A title in the 300 hurdles last season, won the 110 and 300 at the Bay League final last week.

The Cougars, behind Corey McCoy, should also rank among the leaders in the 100 and 200 dashes. They will also be strong in the 400 with Damon Oliver and in the relays.

“We’re going to just do what we have to do, try to get our 45 points and then sit back and hope,” Courtney said. “I know Muir’s probably got it doped out, and they’ve got themselves ahead by 15 points. But a lot of things can happen, and they know who will be waiting if they make a mistake.”

Morningside and Hawthorne are the South Bay’s top threats to win division titles, but several other schools also have strong contingents competing in the prelims.

Peninsula, Hawthorne’s league rival, expects a strong showing in the distance events. The Panthers’ leaders are Brian Steip in the 800 meters, Goss Lindsey in the 1,600 and Dan Minami in the 3,200.

Steip is ranked among the state leaders with a best of 1 minute 54.10 seconds in the 800, and Lindsey is among the leaders in the 1,600 with a time of 4:15.74.

In the girls’ division, the Panthers are paced by distance runner Maya Muneno in the 1,600 and 3,200.

The Torrance girls, who finished third in the 2-A meet last year, expect another strong finish behind sprinter Wendy McCamish, high jumper Kim Blankenship and hurdler Fiona Mason. McCamish ranks among the Southern Section leaders with a best of 56.61 seconds in the 400 meters, and Blankenship has a best of 5-foot-8 in the high jump.

Bishop Montgomery has a strong competitor in Nicole Haynes in the 300 hurdles and long jump.