COSTA MESA – Bethan Knights was in let’s-go-for-it mode.
“I felt good out there,” she said, “and I wanted to do a good time.”
Good was great. Knights, a senior at Northwood, ran a CIF-Southern Section Division 3 record 10:20.82 in her heat of the 3,200 meters at the Division 3 prelims Saturday at Estancia High.
She tore up a record set 33 years ago; Vicki Cook, running for Alemany of Mission Hills, set the division record of 10:24.91 in the 1981 CIF-SS championship meet. Knights already has the the county record in the event, having gone 9:59.20 last month at the Orange County Championships.
Knights took a large lead early Saturday. She was lapping others on the final circuit. Nobody was close to her, so Knights pushed herself.
“It was nice to be able to coach myself to that time with no competition around me,” she said. “I know with competition I can go even faster.”
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She likely will get that competition at the CIF-SS championship meet Saturday at Cerritos College.
In prelims running events, heat winners advance to the CIF-SS finals as do the athletes with the next-fastest times for a field of nine qualifiers per running event. In field events, the top nine finishers advance to the CIF-SS finals.
There was a strong breeze all day, with winds up to 4.2 meters a second aiding the sprinters.
Knights also was sharp in the 1600, in which she had the leading time of 4:59.83.
Brea Olinda sophomore Austin Tamagno looked at ease in the 1,600. He had the best time in that one, at 4:19.80.
El Modena’s Sydney Gidabuday ran at a stroll-like pace when he topped everyone with a 9:11.77 in the 3200.
JSerra senior Dante Pettis qualified in four events – as part of the Lions’ 400 relay team and in the long jump, the triple jump and the 200. He plans on competing in all four at Cerritos College.
Is there one event he feels especially good at, or another in which he feels needs some work?
“I never feel safe in any of them,” Pettis said. “The triple jump, that’s where I need to pick it up.”
But Pettis had only done the triple jump in a meet twice before and he does not have a coach for the specialty.
Santa Margarita’s Austin Tinsley, still progressing as he comes back from an injury, qualified for the CIF-SS finals in the 110 and 300 hurdles. His wind-aided 14.73 in the 110s and 39.09 in the 300s the day’s second-best times in both.
“This was a step forward from where I was,” Tinsley said. “I’m back now.”
Santa Margarita’s 1,600 relay team was the fastest at Estancia with a finish of 3:22.79.
Esperanza’s Bronson Osborn continued his remarkable freshman season. His toss of 172-8 was best in the discus. Esperanza senior Andrew Truong had the day’s best mark in the shot put, 59-11.25.
Three county athletes were among the five who cleared 10-6 in the pole vault: Kate Thomas, a freshman, and Kaitlyn Merritt of Santa Margarita; and Orange Lutheran’s Kari McCollum.
Contact the writer: sfryer@ocregister.com
