Corley’s Leaps Put Her Among Elite

Kenya Corley of Antelope Valley High has proved as versatile on the track and on the field this spring as she was on the basketball court last winter.

Corley, a junior, will compete tonight in the girls’ long jump and high jump in the Southern Section Masters Meet at Cerritos College. She averaged 13.4 points, 8.6 rebounds, 4.4 assists and 3.6 blocked shots in basketball.

“I think she’s better in track than she is in basketball,” Antelope Valley Coach Chris Broskoff said. “But she loves basketball. I’d love to see what she could do in track if she didn’t play basketball all the time.”

Corley has produced some superb performances in her first track season.

She won the long jump and high jump and placed second in the 100 meters in the Golden League finals earlier this month, and Saturday placed first in the Division I long jump and second in the high jump in the section divisional championships at Veterans Stadium in Long Beach.

Her school record of 19 feet 2 3/4 inches in the long jump moved her to seventh on the all-time region list and left her crying for joy.

Broskoff contends that Corley doesn’t realize how talented she is.

“If I can get her to lift some weights to improve her leg strength next year, I think she could be a 20-foot long jumper and a 5-10 high jumper,” Broskoff said.

Corley, who has a best of 5-4 in the high jump, is one of several regional leaders who will compete in the meet, which starts with field events at 5:30 p.m. and continues with running events at 7.

Senior Kim Mortensen of Thousand Oaks, sophomore Miguel Fletcher of Alemany, junior Michelle Perry of Quartz Hill and senior DaJuan Hawkins of Newbury Park are some of the others.

Mortensen is favored to win the girls’ 3,200 after clocking a national-leading 10 minutes 3.11 seconds to win the Division I title last week.

Fletcher sped to times of 10.54 in the 100 and 21.06 in the 200--despite running into a head wind--to win Division III titles. Tonight he’ll meet Pasadena Muir junior sensation Obea Moore in the 200.

Perry will compete in the 100 high hurdles, 300 lows and in the long jump. She won both hurdle races in the Division I meet and placed fifth in the long jump.

Hawkins, the Marmonte League champion in the high jump, long jump and triple jump, will compete in those events.

The top five finishers in each event qualify for the State championships at Cerritos on May 31 and June 1.