Tift, May Get Newport Harbor Off to a Good Start

If Saturday’s Sunkist Invitational is any indication, Newport Harbor’s track and field teams will be forces this season.

It began with the meet’s first event, when senior Wade Tift thoroughly dominated the shotput with a mark of 59 feet 1 inch.

Tift, who has signed a letter of intent with UCLA, posted three fair throws in four attempts, and any of them would have been enough to beat second-place finisher Jeremy Stout of Bakersfield (57-1).

Newport Harbor junior Misty May toyed with her competition in the same manner, winning the girls’ high jump with a leap of 5-8, second best in the nation so far this indoor season.

“I thought I would have to jump at least 5-10 to win today,” said May, the Times Orange County girls’ volleyball player of the year.

Sailor Tina Bowman cleared 5-6 to tie for second with defending State champion Tracey Lawyer of Carpinteria Cate.

Foothill senior Ethan Taub, defending county champion and a State finalist last year in the 400 meters, posted the second-fastest time of the day while winning his heat in the 500 yards in 59.2 seconds.

Taub was beaten only by Michael Granville of Bell Gardens, who ran 57.7 to break the sophomore national record and equal the fifth-fastest prep performance ever.

“My leg was giving me a little trouble out there,” said Taub, who broke his leg in the third game of the football season.

Cypress senior Jimmy Hutsell finished fourth in the 500, running 59.5 for second in Granville’s heat.

Taub also came back to lead off Foothill’s mile relay, which won its heat in the day’s fastest time, 3:27.6.

Other Orange County highlights:

--Tustin’s Reggie Curry produced one of the farthest indoor jumps in recent county history, covering 47-3 1/4 for fourth.

--Woodbridge senior Gary Young, defending county champion in the 100 and 200 meters, finished third in the 50-meter dash in 5.93 seconds, behind the national junior record 5.69 of Moreno Valley Canyon Springs junior Bryan Howard.

--The El Toro girls and Newport Harbor boys won their respective two-mile relays.

Track Notes

Buena Park senior Carrie Garritson found herself trailing ninth-grader Julia Stamps of Santa Rosa Rincon Junior High and Sarah Brandy of Ashland, Ore., in the girls’ two-mile. Garritson’s 11:06.3 was fifth-fastest in the nation this year but well behind Stamps (10:30.2) and Brandy (10:33.3). . . . Edison junior Jason Bader was fourth in the discus with a toss of 154-8 . . . Villa Park senior Phil Sitner was third in the rated mile in 4:29.8 . . . Capistrano Valley junior Adalberto Sanchez was sixth in the boys’ two-mile in 9:48.2 . . . Katie Mook, a Foothill junior, won her heat in the 50-meter hurdles in 7.79 . . . Woodbridge junior Meisha Wilson-Duval was fifth in the 50-meter dash in 6.73.