Trio on Fast Track at Northridge Meet

The first big weekend of the high school track and field season gets out of the blocks on Saturday when Justin Fargas of Sherman Oaks Notre Dame, Miguel Fletcher of Mission Hills Alemany and Darrell Rideaux of Long Beach Poly meet in the 100 meters in the Northridge-Alemany Relays at Cal State Northridge.

That trio finished 1-2-3 in the state championships last year after an injury slowed favored Sultan McCullough of Pasadena Muir to ninth.

McCullough, who posted the fastest high school time in the nation last year in the 200 at 20.62 seconds, is entered in the 400 at Northridge and is also expected to run on the Mustangs’ defending state champion 400-meter relay team.

Saturday’s meet will mark the first of what is expected to be several races between the Michigan-bound Fargas and the USC-bound Fletcher this season.

The Mission League rivals split eight races between them in the 100 last year and that number could double this season because Fargas has dropped the triple jump in favor of the 200.

Fletcher finished third in the 200 in last year’s state meet.

“It seems like a happy rivalry,” Notre Dame Coach Joe McNab said. “It’s not bitter at all.

“It’s just two good guys racing, which is nice.”

Although the boys’ 100 will take center stage at Northridge on Saturday, several other sprint events will include top performers.

Bunmi Ogunleye of Long Beach Poly will run in the girls’ 400 and Eboni Grayson of Woodland Hills Taft of the L.A. City Section is entered in the 100 and 200.

Ogunleye placed second in the 400 in last year’s state championships. She also won the long jump for the state-champion Jackrabbits, but soreness in her joints will keep her out of that event Saturday.

Grayson placed fourth in the 200 and eighth in the 100 in the state meet. She also ran legs on 400 and 1,600 relay teams that finished fifth and third, respectively.

Saturday’s meet will start with field events at 9 a.m. and running events at 9:15. The boys’ 100 is scheduled for 12:40 p.m.