PREP TRACK ROUNDUP : Foothill’s Bain Pole Vaults 14-6 at Brea Invitational

Foothill senior John Bain finally got the breakthrough he was looking for in the pole vault at the Brea-Olinda Invitational track and field meet Saturday.

On the periphery of being one of the county’s finest vaulters all last season, Bain connected on a lifetime and season county-best 14 feet 6 inches to win the event.

“Finally I’m getting to the point here I need to be,” he said.

Bain, who narrowly missed three tries at 15-0, added: “I just want to get that 15-footer out of the way now so I can go on toward 16 feet.”

Bain was one of three Knights to win individual events, following in the footsteps of teammates Ethan Taub and Tony Garcia.

Taub, the defending county champion in the 400 meters, edged Cypress senior Jimmy Hutsell in the featured 400, 49.1 seconds to 49.3, breaking the meet record he set a year ago.

Taub also anchored the winning 800 relay but strained a hamstring while anchoring the 400 relay. The senior is expected to be sidelined two weeks and hinted that his sprint relay days are over.

Garcia, a Times Orange County first-team selection last season, won the 110 high hurdles, in 14.8, off his county-leading 14.4 earlier in the week. He also brought home the Knight shuttle hurdle relay, which won in 1:02.2.

Cypress sprinter Greg Cleave held off a late-charging Don Oliver of Foothill to win the 100; both were timed in 11.2. Cleave also ran legs on the winning 400 (44.6) and sprint medley (1:37.4) relays.

Other highlights:

--Corona del Mar junior Tracy Clark ran away from the pack with one lap remaining to win the girls’ 1,600 in 5:26.2.

--Foothill junior Tara Oettinger ran 12.4 to win the girls’ 100, then chased down Corona del Mar in the 800 relay to help the Knights win the event.

--Los Amigos’ Spring Trammell posted one of the county’s farthest throws in the girls’ discus, winning the event in 114-11.

--Brea-Olinda senior Carl Daucher won the boys’ 1,600 in 4:34.2.

--Cypress junior Jeremy Becker won the boys’ triple jump with a seasonal best of 44-0.

In the Irvine Invitational track and field meet:

Young, Caulkins star--Gary Young of Woodbridge and Carrie Caulkins of Esperanza were named athletes of the meet.

Young won the 100 and 200 in wind-aided times of 10.8 and 21.8 seconds and ran on the winning 400 relay (44.5), which held off Saddleback (44.8).

The two schools also ran 1-2 in the 1,600 relay, with Woodbridge hanging on 3:29.7 to 3:30.1.

Caulkins won the girls’ 1,600 (5:17.8) and 3,200 (11:52) and also ran a leg on the winning 1,600 relay (4:09.5). Meisha Wilson-Duval of Woodbridge was another double individual winner in the 100 (12.5) and 200 (26.2) and also ran on the winning 400 relay (51.0).

Esperanza’s Kristy Kierulff won the high jump at 5-9, an inch under her best.