SOUTHERN SECTION TRACK AND FIELD / DIVISION I PRELIMINARIES : Dollar Dances Her Way Into Finals

After dancing the night away the previous night, San Clemente’s Nancy Dollar ran away from the field Saturday, qualifying for the finals in the 1,600- and 3,200-meter races at the Division I track and field preliminaries at Long Beach City College.

Dollar, who returned home from her prom at 1:30 a.m., came to the preliminaries just wanting to get it over. After winning her heat in the 1,600 (5:11.33) with the fourth-fastest time overall, Dollar wanted to “get out of here, lay down, get something to eat and rest. I just need to rest my legs.”

Four hours later, rested and recovered, she won the 3,200 in 11:06.25.

The top nine finishers in each event advance to the finals Saturday at Long Beach City College.

Also qualifying in both distance events was Capistrano Valley’s Megan Mayes, who finished the 1,600 in 5:13.99 and the 3,200 in 11:15.79.

In the 800, Edison’s Julie Koudelka sprinted to an early lead and posted the fastest time of the day in the event (2:17.23).

“I kept looking behind me to see if anyone was there,” said Koudelka, a senior who will attend UCLA and concentrate on soccer, not track.

The Fountain Valley girls’ relay team posted a county best and the third-fastest 1,600 time in (4:00.05). They also advanced in the 400 relay, finishing in 49.73.

Other Orange County highlights:

--Long Beach Poly, the nation’s leading 400 relay team, dropped the baton on the first pass and Mission Viejo went on to victory (50.67) and a berth in the finals.

--Fountain Valley’s Marlene Lange qualified in both hurdle events, finishing the 100 in 15.26 and posting the second-fastest time in the 300 (44.82).

--Three athletes qualified in the girls’ triple jump. Kerry O’Bric of Edison jumped 36 feet 9 1/2 inches, a season personal best, giving her a second-place finish. Mission Viejo’s Erica Dickson finished third at 36-5 and El Toro’s Diedra Segura leaped 35-1 1/2.

--Edison’s Marie Philman advanced in the discus with her third-place finish (123-6) and also made the finals in the shotput (38-8 1/4).