Canyon's Pyka hits peak at the right time
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She qualifies for State finals in discus with toss of 139 feet, 6 inches.
NORWALK Perhaps no county athlete has seen the fruits of hard work and diligence pay off more than Canyon senior Ashley Pyka.
Pyka qualified for the finals of the discus by tying her county-leading effort of 139 feet, 6 inches at the 90th CIF State Track and Field Championships on Friday evening at Cerritos College.
I have been looking forward to this all season, she said.
That goal might have seemed a bit far-fetched earlier this season, when Pyka admittedly struggled with her distances.
At the beginning of the season, I was throwing 63 feet, she said. Since then, I have just tried to continue working hard and practicing my throws.
The results of that hard work began to pay off at the most important time of the season, as Pyka claimed the Century League title and the CIF-SS Division II title.
She then finished third at last week's Masters with her personal best throw, which she duplicated Friday.
I want to get into the 140 foot range, she said.
Notes
It was a successful day in the boys' shot put for both county competitors. Esperanza senior Blake Poole (60 feet, 93/4 inches) finished second to Los Gatos senior Colin Quirke, who uncorked the state's best throw of the season at 63 feet, 6 inches. Mission Viejo senior Jeff Baca (58 feet, 81/2 inches) advanced to the finals, finishing sixth.
El Toro senior Christina Kim, the county leader in the shot put, finished fourth with a season best throw of 41 feet 61/2½ inches.
Aliso Niguel senior Michael Andraszczyk (1:53.61) finished fourth in his 800 heat and qualified for the finals.
Edison senior Ryan Simioni and Mater Dei junior Matt Cooper each cleared 15 feet in the pole vault to move onto the finals.
In the girls pole vault, Cypress senior Melissa Morris cleared a lifetime-best 11 feet, 9 inches to finish seventh overall and advance to today's championship.
Mater Dei sophomore Brooke Arthur also cleared the same height but finished tied for 10th based on needing more jumps and did not qualify for the finals.
Both county leading relay teams qualified for the finals, as Dana Hills, the county leader in the 400 relay, finished in a season-best time of 41.80 seconds, while Orange Lutheran's 1,600 relay team finished in a time of 3:18.50.
Contact the writer: jeichelberger@ocregister.com
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