Track standouts head for CCS finals Track standouts head for CCS finals (May 28, 2004)

Los Altos' Miller leaves pack gasping in 300m hurdles

By Colleen Corcoran

For many, CCS semifinals was the last hurrah. For the chosen few -- the qualifiers -- it was the third leg of a longer race.

On a hot afternoon laced with the scent of a synthetic track, a constant line of runners expanded and contracted along the inner rings past the improbable acrobatics taking place in the sand pits and over the bars. The stadium-worthy crowd at San Jose City College on May 22 was larger and louder than track and field has seen all season.

"It's kind of a rebirth of track and field right now," said St. Francis high jump coach Bill Maston. "I mean, historically, you're starting to see a lot of long-standing track records being broken again. And that's just an indication that we're going through a phase where we're seeing a lot of people who are interested in track because it's kind of an individual sport as well as a team sport, especially with the young ladies."

Young lady Allie Miller of Los Altos has been responsible for the obliteration of a good number of records throughout the season. The final four events that she qualified in were the 100 and 300-meter hurdles, the high jump and the triple jump.

With bared teeth and Princess Leia buns on the sides of her head, the blue flash that was Miller walked on the track, won her race and walked off without a wasted step. She finished first in the 300-meter hurdles by at least 50 meters in 45.24 seconds, and placed second behind Mt. Pleasant's Galina Becker in the 100 meter hurdles.

Of her 5-4 high jump, Miller said, "I didn't jump my best. ...You never really know what's gonna happen. I jumped 5-8 last week and today I jumped 5-4, so it's kind of on and off. ...You can't have a good day every day but at least I qualified."

Miller also placed fourth in the triple jump with a mark of 37-5 to qualify for finals along with Dawn Maxey of Mountain View, who placed eighth with 35-3.5.

CCS pole vault section leader Taylor Francis of St. Francis earned a spot in the finals with a mark of 10-6.

"I just came to qualify today," she said. "I cleared 10-6 so that guarantees me a spot in top eight so I go to finals. Now I get to go home." Francis is ranked seventh in state with an earlier 12-0 mark.

Lancer Casey Roche -- the highest-ranked freshman pole vaulter in the state -- qualified with a leading mark of 14-6. Doug Roche and Kyle Chronis, also from St. Francis, advanced to the finals with jumps of 13-6.

"I didn't do all that well in the long jump and the high jump," said Roche of the two events he failed to qualify in. "But my best event is the pole vault."

St. Francis sophomore Kyle Mills-Bunje qualified in the long jump (21-11.5) and the high jump (6-0), as well as in the triple jump (45-8.5).

"What's unique about [Roche and Mills-Bunje] is that Kyle's only a sophomore and Casey's a freshman," said coach Maston. "Those are unbelievable marks for that age group. ... Those are very uncommon kids. Some of it's great coaching, great parents, great schools, great competing schools too."

Los Altos' Andrew Van Straaten led in the high jump with a mark of 6-2 while teammate Jeff Clark qualified in the triple jump at 44-11.25.

Competing in a field that included phenom Alex Dunn of San Lorenzo Valley and Jeremy Mineau of Menlo-Atherton, two of the state's finest milers and two milers, Ben Sitler of St. Francis earned a fourth-place qualifying time of 9:31.19 seconds in the 3200-meter run. Lancer Kevin Chaves (9:34.97 seconds) will join Sitler on May 28 for CCS finals where the top eight athletes in each event will return in another valiant attempt to defy gravity and time.

E-mail Colleen Corcoran at sports@mv-voice.com

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