Vikings Go to Great Lengths to Raise Bar

Marina pole vaulters Caroline Rebello and Logan Odden usually spend a good portion of their weekday meets just watching and waiting, sitting and listening.

When the bar finally reaches a height worthy of their efforts, it’s usually more than high enough to win.

Rebello and Odden aren’t completely starved for outside competition. They just need to travel some to find it.

Odden cleared 15 feet 7 at the Nike Indoor Classic in Bloomington, Ind., 10 days ago, placing fourth among the hand-picked high school field. He won the high school competition at the L.A. Invitational last month after clearing a personal-best 16-0. Odden was only the third vaulter at the time to clear that height during the indoor high school season.

“The 16-foot jump was a big confidence booster,” Odden said. “I’ve been jumping pretty consistently since then.”

Rebello and Odden were recently accepted into the prestigious Penn Relays in Philadelphia, April 25-29. The 106th annual event is one of the most popular outdoor meets in the country, drawing a three-day meet attendance record of 96,358 last year.

“I’d like to think Orange County is known for its pole vaulting,” said Marina pole vault Coach Kevin Magula, a graduate of Marina and holder of the school’s vault record for nine years. “I’m sure they’ll represent themselves well.”

Based on past winning marks at the Penn Relays, it appears Rebello and Odden have a good chance. The winning boys’ height last year was 15-3 by Joel Carusone of Guilderland (N.Y.) High. The winning girls’ mark was 11-10 by Samantha Shepard of Weston (Mass.) High.

Rebello moved atop the all-time county indoor leaders when she cleared 11-6 to finish fourth at the L.A. Invitational.

She’s currently tied for fourth on the all-time outdoor list (11-6). Though she hasn’t improved that mark since clearing it last season, Magula believes it’s just a matter of time before she catches former teammate Katie Rorem, who cleared a county-leading 12-4 in 1998.

“Her freshman and sophomore years, Caroline had Katie pushing her,” Magula said. “Now, she doesn’t have anyone pushing her every day. She realizes the things she needs to do [to get to that height] and has been working hard on it.”

Odden’s winning mark at the L.A. Invitational is second on the county’s all-time indoor list behind Brethren Christian’s Steve Michels, who cleared 16- 3/4 in 1996.

Odden’s best outdoor mark of 15-7 is tied for 14th on the all-time list, which is led by El Dorado’s Greg Ernst, who went 16-6 in 1978.

Only Michels and Edison’s Nate Fox, who cleared 16-1 in 1996, have gone over 16 feet since 1987.

LOOKING AHEAD

One of the more entertaining Sunset League meets should be the Edison girls at Marina Thursday. Each is capable of sweeping events--the Vikings in the pole vault and Edison in the high jump--but it may come down to depth in the sprints and distances.

Cypress travels to Century for a meet Thursday that will feature the top triple jumper and long jumper in the county. Cypress’ Clarence Moore jumped a county-leading 47-5 in a dual meet earlier this season, the best mark in the county since 1994. Century’s Antonio Thomas went a county-leading 22-3 1/2 last week.

The Surf City Invitational will be held at Huntington Beach High on Saturday.

If you have an item or idea for the track and field report, you can fax us at (714) 966-5663 or e-mail us at dan.arritt@latimes.com