Carlmont’s track-and-field team has traditionally been a hotbed for distance runners. This year, the balance seems to have swung to brand new territory.
The Scots’ hurdlers showed up big time Saturday at the Lynbrook Invitational in San Jose, winning three of the four varsity finals in the discipline. Junior Kiana Chen topped the podium in both the girls’ 100 and 400 hurdles. Senior Sean Chopoff took first place in the boys’ 400 hurdles. In the boys’ 110 hurdles, Chopoff took sixth place with Bellarmine junior Harrison Webb claiming first.
Carlmont head coach Josh Schaefer is already thinking big picture, touting Chen as a postseason contender.
“We’ve always known that was her strong suit, but she’s really shined this year,” Schaefer said.
It will be a tall order as Menlo-Atherton senior Sara Nordlund is the class of the Peninsula Athletic League field. Nordlund claimed the PAL title in the girls’ 100 last season, and took second place running neck-and-neck with Burlingame’s Avah Reichow. Reichow took the championship in 45.17 seconds, while Nordlund took second in 46 flat. Chen settled for third in 49.61.
Chen’s best time in the 300 hurdles this season is 47.44, recorded March 22, at the Firebird Relays, for the second-best time in PAL this year. Nordlund has the PAL’s fastest time, by a nose, at 47.41, run March 15, at the Saint Francis Invitational. The girls’ 100 hurdles standings are similar, with Nordlund the fastest at 15.99, and Chen a few ticks behind with her winning time Saturday at Lynbrook of 16.12, a personal record.
The two are slated to face off this coming Saturday at the Stanford Invitational in a likely preview of the PAL Championships.
“It’s really going to make for a great PAL championship, to be honest,” Schaefer said.
Carlmont hasn’t won an individual PAL championship in the hurdles since 2014, when Franklin Rice three-peated in the boys’ 300 hurdles. For the girls, you have to go back to 2002 when Mary Meyman won the girls’ 100 hurdles championship.
Chen’s winning time Saturday in the 400 hurdles was a personal record 1:07.37, which calibrates to a time between 1 flat and 1:01, Schaefer said.
Chopoff’s winning time in the boys’ 400 hurdles was 57.85.
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“At 6-6, the guy’s a beast,” Schaefer said. “So when he runs over those 400 hurdles, it’s like ... that’s not even fair.”
Carlmont did have a strong showing distance wise, as well. Junior Daniela Cuadros topped the podium in the girls’ 3,200 with a time of 11:15.38, a personal record and the top time in the PAL this season.
The Scots also took third place in the boys’ 4x400 relay, with sophomore Simon Gehrke, and juniors Connor Schaefer, Landon Schaefer and Andrew Dent running it in 3:31.09. Mountain View took first in the event, while Bellarmine took second. The Carlmont boys’ 4x400 relay team claimed the PAL championship last season.
Carlmont had four relay teams qualify for the Stanford Invitational — the girls’ distance medley relay; the boys’ 4x100; the boys’ 4x400; and the boys’ DMR. All told, 14 Scots will compete in nine events at Stanford. Last year, only one Carlmont runner qualified for the annual meet, junior Katie Peacock, in the girls’ 1,600.
“We got four relays into Stanford,” Schaefer said. “That’s kind of my thing, because it shows the depth of the team.”
Other Lynbrook results ...
San Mateo senior Emmanuel Fitzgerald took first place in the boys’ shot put with a top throw of 49 feet, 7 1/2 inches.
Menlo senior Raul Sandoval took first place in the boys’ 400 in 49.36; Carlmont’s Dent took third in the event in 50.77.
In the boys’ 4x100 relay, Serra took second place with the team of Chris Yoon, Jusiah Vinson, Aidan Labrador and Joevanni Henley logging a time of 42.92; Valley Christian took first place in 42.51.
In the team standings, the Carlmont girls placed seventh in the field of 30 teams to rank as the county’s top placer with 39 1/2 points. Mountain View placed first (71 1/2), Los Gatos second (65) and St. Ignatius third (57). The Carlmont boys placed eighth in a field of 31 teams as the county’s top placer with 32.2 points. Serra (22) placed ninth. Los Gatos took first place (69), St. Ignatius was second (63.2) and Valley Christian third (52).
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