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Lathrop girls shine in WAC Championships
WAC track championships
Lathrop’s Aaron Chung gets the baton from Mariah Joaquin for the anchor leg of the winning 4x100-meter relay in 52.17 seconds. - photo by DAVE CAMPBELL

The Lathrop girls won the Western Athletic Conference Track and Field Championships on Saturday, including an impressive first-fourth sweep in the high jump at Johansen High School’s Dan Gonslaves Stadium with the first-five finishers advancing to the Sac-Joaquin Section Division IV trials on Wednesday, May 13, at Riverbank High School.

Clarisse Gomez won the high jump at 4 feet, 10 inches followed by Erin Chunn (4-8), Gianna Barragan (4-6) and Araya Carson (4-6). The Spartans also dominated the pole vault and long jump with 1-2-4 finishes with Alyvia Galano winning the pole vault (9-0) followed by Gianna Barrigan (second, 8-0) and Clarisse Gomez (fourth, 6-0). Sareah Reed won the long jump (15-6 1/4) followed by Moira Ramones (second, 15-4) and Faith Butler (fourth, 14-8 ¾).

WAC track championships
Lathrop’s Faith Allen (left) finished second in the 100-meter hurdles in 17.62 seconds. Teammate Faith Butler was third (18.10). - photo by DAVE CAMPBELL

Lathrop’s Melia Lewis won the 100 (12.46) and 200 (25.86). Also claiming all-league patches for the Spartans were Morgan Emery (800, 2:23.70), Moira Ramones (triple jump, 34-0 ¾), the 4x100 relay (52.17) and 4x400 relay (4:18.76). Finishing second were Faith Allen (100 hurdles, 17.62), Brianna Valencia (300 hurdles, 51.20) and Ishbir Bisla (triple jump, 28-4). Jazmine Sorrell-Williams (shot put, 29-11), Emery (1,600, 5:26.65), Faith Butler (100 hurdles, 18.10)

And the 4x800 relay (10:30.33) finished third and Aleena Basi (400, 1:03.93) fourth.

WAC track championships
Lathrop’s Treydon Santos leads teammate Jaylen Santos-Howard over the last 110-meter hurdle and finished fifth in 16.85 seconds. Santos-Howard was sixth (17.03). - photo by DAVE CAMPBELL

The Spartans finished second in boys competition and were paced by Avner Faaaliga with gold medals in the shot put (45-10) and discus (140-11). Finishing second were Riley Gier (800, 2:03.25), Pablo Pena (shot put, 45-3) and Maddox Ramos (pole vault, 11-0); third were Gier (1,600, 4:27.85), Treydon Santos (high, jump, 5-8), Jayden Howard (pole vault, 11-0) and 4x400 relay, 3:36.32; fourth were Malachi Gonzales (400, 52.22), Treydon Santos (300 hurdles, 44.68).

WAC track championships
Lathrop’s Avner Faaaliga won the discus by more than 13 feet at 140 feet, 11 inches. - photo by DAVE CAMPBELL

Logan Terry (discus, 125-7), Luis LiBran (triple jump, 39-10 1/4) and the 4x800 relay (8:39.86) and fifth Kainalu Tabellija (long jump, 18-2 ¼; triple jump, 39-9), Gier (3,200, 9:56.41), Santos (110 hurdles, 16.85) and Karambir Bisla (300 hurdles, 44.98).

The frosh-soph Lathrop girls dominated the relays dominated the relays with first-place finishes by the 4x100 relay (53.74), 4x400 (4:40.12) and 4x800 (12:10.60) Esmeralda Sanchez (100, 13.64), Suzanna Liu (800, 2:48.98), Chloe Panelo (pole vault, 6-0) and Kaliyah Urrutia (triple jump, 29-3 ¼) also won gold medals.

Christian Okeze (pole vault, 8-0) and Dario Joseph (triple jump, 38-10 3/4) finished first for the Spartans frosh-soph boys.

Qualifying for Masters will be a little different this year. Those who advance from the Division IV trials will advance to the finals on Saturday, May 16, at Sacramento City College’s Hughes Stadium, with all five divisions competing independently for division titles, but only the top nine combined marks will advance to the Masters. The 4x800 relay and 3,200 will not compete at the Divisional finals, the top nine marks submitted from the trials in those events will advance directly to the Masters finals at Folsom High School on Saturday, May 23.