GOING THE DISTANCE IN CALIFORNIA
Saturday’s 90th CIF State Track and Field Championships in Cerritos
National Federated Records
* Girls 1,600: Christine Babcock (Woodbridge) 4:33.82
* Boys 3,200: German Fernandez (Riverbank) 8:34.23
State-Meet Records
* Girls 3,200: Jordan Hasay (Mission College Prep) 9:52.13
* Boys 1,600: German Fernandez 4:00.29
Boys pole vault: Nico Weiler (Los Gatos) 17-3
* - 2008 national leading marks
More national leading marks
Girls 200: Jessica Davis (Highlands) 23.46
Girls 400: Akawkaw Ndipagbor (Long Beach Poly) 53.35
Boys 400: Joey Hughes (Long Beach Poly) 46.28
Boys 1,600 relay: Dominguez (Kevon Grant, Ma’noah Wesson, Leon Dillihunt, Aaron Hester) 3:09.59.
Triple winners
Girls: Vashti Thomas (Mt. Pleasant) 100 hurdles (13.44), long jump (20-0¼), triple jump (42-0½)
Double winners
Randall Carroll (Cathedral) 100 (10.42), 200 (20.91)
German Fernandez (Riverbank) 1,600 (4:00.29), 3,200 (8:34.23)
Dayshan Ragans (Foothill) shot put (62-10), discus (202-6)
Anna Jelmini (Shafter) shot put (48-3½), discus (169-4)
Team champions
Boys: Dominguez
Girls: Long Beach Poly
Complete two-day results
Click here
More CIF State Track Stories
No doubting Vashti Thomas (Click here).
Distance notebook (Click here).
Rest of the meet notebook (Click here).
By Mitch Stephens
MaxPreps.com
NORWALK, Calif. – It shall undoubtedly go down as the greatest distance day in high school track and field history.
Four races and three individuals produced two national federated records, four meet records, two unprecedented victory laps and probably more long distance-event gasps and standing ovations in the previous 89 California Interscholastic Federation (CIF) state meets combined.
Before 10,712 roaring fans at Cerritos College and a live regional television audience, the sizzling distance brigade of Riverbank senior German Fernandez, Woodbridge senior Christine Babcock, Mission College Prep junior Jordan Hasay and Davis senior Laurynne Chetelat turned senior Vashti Thomas’ historic three-victory performance (see story) into an afterthought.
Not only did the distance group better all-time marks, they helped match a time no one thought possible: the 2007 State Meet, one which produced three national, four state and six state-meet marks.
In all five meet records were set on Saturday and eight new 2008 national-leading marks.
“That was a once in a lifetime experience,” Woodbridge (Irvine) coach George Varvas said. “What a meet. What a moment.”
His Washington-bound standout Babock started the long-distance game of “can you top this?” by winning the 1,600 meters in 4:33.82, breaking her own NFHS record of 4:36.57 set eight days earlier on the same track. Not bad for a long, strong and bashful sort who started her track career as a discus thrower. (See story).
“I thought I went out too fast the first lap (64 seconds) but then just pushed through,” Babcock said.
The angular and fluid Fernandez then ripped off an almost perfectly symmetrical 1,600 with eight consecutive 30-second half-laps, nearly breaking the magical 4-minute barrier with a state-meet mark of 4:00.29.
“After watching (Babcock) I figured it was my turn,” Fernandez said.
A couple hours later, Hasay and Chetelat set out on a magical 3,200 trek that was pulled out by the small but mighty Hasay 9:52.33 to 9:52.51, the first ever double sub-10 race in high school history. Like Babcock in the 1,600, it was the third straight state crown for Hasay, who could never shake the Stanford-bound Chetelat, whose best time as of two weeks ago was 10:15. (See story).
“I wanted to break 10 minutes but never imagined this,” Hasay said. “I couldn’t have done it without (Chetelat).”
Somehow, indomitable robo-runner Fernandez finished off the flurry with the most jaw-dropping performance of all, going 8:34.23, wiping out the previous NFHS 3,200 mark by almost eight seconds.
This, 2½ hours after missing Alan Webb’s NFHS 1,600 mark of 3:59.51 by less than a second. Fernandez covered his last 400 meters in 62 seconds.
Poor 3,200 runner-up Chris Schwartz (Foothill) broke the landmark nine minute barrier (8:58.50) yet lost by 24.27 seconds.
Talk about an exclamation point!
“It was the state meet and my last race,” Fernandez said. “I had to go after it.”
The last two weeks the Oklahoma State-bound Fernandez had pulled off remarkable doubles, last week going 4:07.62 and 8:45.08 after a 4:05.57 and 9:00.17 performance at sub-sectionals.
Repeating those marks would be tough, considering the setting. Always aiming high, Fernandez set goals of 4:02 and 8:40. He even crushed those lofty expectations.
“I thought he’d go under 8:40,” said Riverbank coach John Vizcaino. “But after what he did in the first race, that’s just amazing. People are saying that’s the best double in the nation ever. I can’t imagine anything better.”
And frankly, longtime track and field expert Rich Gonzalez said, Fernandez might just be the best ever to come out California.
That’s saying something.
“We’ve had national champion (distance runners) and future Olympians but German is just at another level,” said Gonzalez, who is also dyestat.com editor and a longtime coach in Southern California. “He recovers faster than anyone has ever seen. It’s unparalleled. He’s just got a gift.”
He’s also has charisma and charm beyond his years. He's developed a rock star following, known as “German’s Army.”
After the 3,200, Fernandez played to the cameras, pointed to the sky and did a victory lap (Babcock did when earlier after her record-performance) slapping hands and giving hugs.
A kid from the stands tore off his bright orange shirt and handed it to Fernandez, who eventually put it on during a post-meet press conference.
The shirt came off the back of Andrew Ariey, a cross country and track runner from Bakersfield High, at least 100 miles south of Riverbank.
Ariey and his two track teammates David Van Matre and Michael McCarthy, both seniors, made the 2.5-hour trek to Norwalk just to watch Fernandez. They each had orange shirts with bold sharpie inscriptions:
“Tank of gas: $100”
“Two meals: $30.
“Watching German make history: PRICELESS!”
Which was a pretty fair description of the entire meet.
“Amazing,” Fernandez said. “Just crazy.”
He was motivated by the female distance runners.
“Hasay. …. What can you say? She’s just unbelievable. They all were. Seeing them race inspired me. It brought a smile to my face to see them race.”
He and about 10,000 others.
E-mail Mitch Stephens at mstephens@maxpreps.com
More CIF State Track Stories
No doubting Vashti Thomas (Click here).
Distance notebook (Click here).
Rest of the meet notebook (Click here).