Santa Margarita Wins Title

Matt Blasdel’s victory in the 300-meter intermediate hurdles just about summed up the day for the Santa Margarita boys’ team at the Southern Section track and field championships at Veterans Stadium.

Blasdel ran the 12th-fastest time in the nation this season, finishing in 37.13 seconds Saturday and leading his team to its first section title.

Santa Margarita, the Sea View League and Orange County runner-up, won the Division II title with 42 points. Moreno Valley Canyon Springs finished second with 29.

“I was thinking, coming into this race, that it was going to take in the 37s to win,” said Blasdel, a senior who will attend Gonzaga on a soccer scholarship in the fall. “I knew somebody was going to do it, I’m just glad it was me.”

Servite senior John Hall ran 37.81 to take second in the 300 intermediate hurdles, just ahead of Dominique DeGrammont of Tustin (37.84) and Phil Oh of Irvine (38.52). All four athletes advanced to Friday’s Masters Meet at Cerritos College.

DeGrammont won the 110 high hurdles earlier in the day, finishing in 14.30 to best runner-up Blasdel, who was timed in 14.91.

Santa Margarita’s day started off as well as it ended, as the 400 relay team of Matt Baier, Billy Newman, Matt Nickels and Tim Fitzgerald took first in the Division II final, advancing with a time of 42.35. Garden Grove also advanced by finishing third in Division III with a time of 42.04, the fastest in the county this spring.

Edison senior Brodie Riederich won the Division I shotput with his effort of 54-3 3/4 inches. Division III winner Dan Noll of El Toro (54-1 3/4), also advanced with Riederich to the Masters Meet.

Scott Moser of Huntington Beach had the top throw of the day in the discus, winning the Division I title with a personal best 177-6. Sam McMullen of Calvary Chapel won the Division IV discus title with his toss of 162-7.

Foothill standout Ben Cater was a late addition, jumping as the alternate in the Division II long jump. The senior finished fourth in the event, leaping a county-best mark of 22-10 wind-aided to advance.

Notes

Jess Strutzel of Huntington Beach finished fourth in the Division I 800 meters in 1:55.48, a time fast enough to advance. Garden Grove standout Kevin Griswold finished second in the Division III 100 (10.83) and 200 meters (21.34). Esperanza senior Pat Swanson qualified in both the 110 high hurdles (14.64) and 300 meter intermediate hurdles (38.80) from Division I. Greg Fausto of Los Amigos finished third in the intermediate hurdles with a lifetime best of 39.50. El Toro thrower Taso Tsirtsis finished second in the Division II discus with an effort of 153-9.