Baker prevails in inaugural prep girls 400-meter hurdles in meet history in personal-best 57.98, repeats in 200 in 23.31, Johnson sweeps discus and shot put at 152-10 and 44-10.75, with Lewis running all-conditions best 100 at 11.21 and capturing long jump with wind-legal 20-1.50; Ventura boys DMR and La Jolla girls 1,600 SMR also impressive

By Pete Marshall for DyeStat

Photos by Chuck Utash

WALNUT, Calif. – In the last significant high school track and field invitational weekend in California this season, several athletes showed they are ready to excel in multiple events in their home states during the postseason.

Avery Lewis, Braelyn Baker and Aja Johnson all won multiple individual invitational events Saturday at the 64th Mt. SAC Relays Presented by Nike.

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Baker, of Washington’s Bear Creek High won the inaugural prep 400-meter hurdles race in meet history in 57.98 seconds, and repeated in the 200 meters in 23.31.

“I just knew I had to run my own race,” Baker said after winning the 200. “I had just recovered from the 400 hurdles. I had never run in an event after running in the 400 hurdles before, so I didn’t know how it was going to go or how my body was going to react. I know I’m capable of running back-to-back events, so I went in with a strong mindset.” 

The events were run about 90 minutes apart. Before the 400 hurdles, she also ran in the invitational 100 meters, finishing fifth in a wind-aided 11.59 seconds.

Lewis, from Friends’ Central High in Pennsylvania, won that 100-meter race in a wind-aided 11.21 seconds, the all-conditions fastest performance in meet history, in addition to prevailing in the long jump with a wind-legal leap of 20 feet, 1.50 inches (6.13m), and finished just behind Baker in the 200 (23.55).

“I think I could have had a better start,” Lewis said after winning the 100. “But my top-end speed took over. I’m really appreciative of that.”

She didn’t have a great start in the long jump either, she said.

“I was just starting to warm up, so my mark was a little iffy in the first three jumps,” Lewis said. “So once I adjusted my mark, I think I executed pretty well. I also changed my spikes, so that might have had something to do with it.”

Johnson, the Sherman Oaks Notre Dame junior, won the shot put (44-10.75/13.68m) and the discus (152-10/46.58m). 

“I’m really grateful I was able to come out because only a few of my team members could come out since (Mission League prelims) is Monday,” Johnson said. “I’m happy that it went the way it did and I  know in the meets to come, I’m going to keep pushing  myself to do better.”

Outstanding girls relay performances were not limited to Ventura setting a new national outdoor record of 11:21.85 in the distance medley relay.

La Jolla, with Olivia Smith, Abigail Plezia, Payton Smith and Chiara Dailey, won the 1,600-meter sprint medley relay with the top time in the country this season, 3:59.78, beating out Long Beach Wilson’s mark of 4:01.90 two weeks ago at the 56th Arcadia Invitational. It was in that race that La Jolla was disqualified for the third exchange.

“We definitely wanted to get out there and prove ourselves,” Olivia Smith said.

Ventura ended up sweeping both distance medley relays, with the boys squad of Micah Grossman, Luke Carnaghe, Blake Harris and Anthony Fast Horse, putting up the fastest time in the nation this season, 9:59.51.

“I went into this a little tired from yesterday, closing that 4xmile,” said Fast Horse, who ran the anchor leg. “All I was telling myself was that I had to fight. I’m going to be the one who wants it the most.”

The meet included some performances that indicate some newcomers will be reckoned with in the postseason.

In the boys throws, it was no surprise that Clovis North’s McKay Madsen won the discus with a mark of 183-3 (55.85m), but it was Marshall Fundamental’s Hagop Marmarian who took home the title in the shot put with a big PR of 60-10 (18.54m). Madsen took third at 58-11.50 (17.97m)..

“Usually I come to these meets throwing 57, 56,” Marmarian said. “Today, I really wanted to focus on my re-wrap and my right foot turning. I finally threw 60. I’ve been waiting all year for this.”

There are some impressive freshman sprinters in the CIF-Southern Section and one of them won the 100: Demare Dezeurn of Bishop Alemany in 10.47.

“I came in here looking to win, looking to PR,” Dezeurn said. “Every day, I’m going to practice, working harder, stay focused and get out of the blocks as fast as I can. All I want is people to know who Demare Dezeurn is.”

Other boys invitational winners included: Granada Hills’ Justin Hart, Jordan Coleman, Kanye Martin and Timothy Wyatt in the 4x100 (40.85), Helix’s Shon Martin (110 hurdles, 13.86), Liberty’s Juan Juarez (800, 1:53.92), Northview’s Dylan Ochoa (400, 47.11), Taconic Hills Central of New York’s Neil Howard III (400 hurdles, 52.18), Roosevelt’s Cayden Roberson (300 hurdles, 37.06), Mt. Miguel’s Brandon Arrington Jr. (200, 20.92), Clovis 4x400 (Logan Cole, Linkin Woolf, Jacob Saldate, Jalen Morales 3:17.86), Carson’s Jerald Martin Evangelista (long jump 23-7.75/7.20m), Birmingham’s DeShawn Banks (high jump, 6-10/2.08m), Poway’s Justin Reichenberg (triple jump, 47-6/14.47m) and Bakersfield Stockdale’s 4x110 shuttle hurdles relay lineup of Samuel De La Rosa, Anthony Acosta, Obinnaya Okezie and Vincent Carnegie clocking 1:00.88.  

Other girls invitational winners included: Calabasas 4x100 and 4x200 lineup of Lahela Ray, Paige Porter, Zoe Ray and Marley Scoggins (46.02 and 1:37.17), San Diego’s Anisa Bowen-Fontenot (100 hurdles, 13.76), Poway’s Tessa Buswell (800, 2:10.26), Las Vegas Centennial’s Iyonna Codd (400, 54.13), Carlsbad’s Morgan Herbst (300 hurdles, 42.52), Long Beach Poly 4x400 (Aliyah Stokes, Aurya Beatty, Kadence Bain, Leila Holland, 3:49.66) and high jump with Jillene Wetteland (5-6/1.67m), plus George Jenkins’ Chelsi WIlliams (triple jump, wind-aided 40-7.50/12.38m).

Long Beach Poly also opened Saturday’s schedule with a victory in the girls 4x100 shuttle hurdles relay, as Anise Becker, Elle Denison, Miyana Gramata-Massey and Morgan King ran 59.71.