As Liberty Charter High School continues to make Alpine its new home, the Lions are quickly making the San Diego Section playoffs their new playground.
Liberty Charter received the No. 1 seed in both of this year’s Division V baseball and softball playoffs.
But the Lions’ biggest splash so far this spring had to come on the track and field oval. Senior Micah Sanchez, the section’s runner of the year during the fall cross country season, won gold medals in the Division III boys 1600- and 3200-meter races while helping lead the Lions to a strong fifth-place finish among the 30 teams in the division at last Saturday’s finals at Mt. Carmel High School. Sanchez dominated the two distance races with times of 4:11.64 in the 1600 run and 9:10.66 in the 3200 run. Both times were personal bests and qualified him for this weekend’s state championship meet in Clovis.
His specialty event remains the longer distance in which he engineered a dramatic come from- behind effort to take first place among runners in all three divisions competing in the event. Sanchez finished ahead of Mt. Carmel senior Tom Bell (9:13.64) and Westview junior Adrian Welton (9:15.80) as the top three runners with the best times to automatically qualify for the state meet.
“I wanted to get a 4:20 first mile, then wait for the group to split from there to the top four,” Sanchez explained. “I wanted to stay in second behind them, then the last 50 meters to surge.”
His strategy worked out to perfection.
Liberty Charter junior teammate Ivan Guzman accompanied Sanchez in the 3200 race, placing second among Division III runners in 9:33.56.
The top six place-finishers in each event received medals. Junior Joel Bray (2:03.96) finished sixth among the nine runners Division III runners in the 800 meters to also walk off the field with a deserving medal.
Just qualifying to compete was half of the story, however.
The 4×800 relay made its debut this year. That’s four runners zipping around the track for two laps each. The boys race featured 21 schools and 84 runners making it look more like a marathon.
The Liberty Charter team of freshman Caleb Acosta, Bray, freshman Marcos Heers and sophomore Luke Mapes finished seventh among the nine Division III teams with a time of 8:54.80.
“It was really tiring and stressful but fun,” Heers said. “I liked it,” Mapes said. “I felt it was competitive.”
“It was chaotic but a lot of fun,” Bray said. “I love being out there with my team.”
“I love the team bonding effect,” Acosta said.
On the girls side, the Lady Lions finished 14th deep among the 29 teams in the division standings.
Liberty Charter sophomore Haley Svendsen roared to the finish line with silver medals in both the 100 low hurdles (16.18) and 300 low hurdles (47.63), both personal record times.
“I love it, it’s so much fun and exciting,” Svendsen said. “I love running in races against those who I’ve run with in invitationals.”
EASTERN EXPOSURE
Overall, it was a banner day for East County athletes at this year’s CIF finals. All the excitement added up to Division I team titles for Steele Canyon in the girls field and Helix Charter in the boys field.
The CIF championship is the second in school history for the Lady Cougars girls team — the first being in 2009 in Division II — and matches the two CIF titles the boys team won in 2008 (Division I) and 2009 (Division II).
“Our girls team in considerably strong and our boys team continues to compete above where they should be,” Cougars coach Charles Tyler said in giving an overview of this year’s 2023 team.
“It was just a phenomenal job by a phenomenal group of girls. We’re excited.”
Tyler said 22 girls qualified to compete, placing student athletes in 14 of the 17 events.
The Lady Cougars won Division I titles in six events: 4×100 relay, 100 and 200-meter dashes (freshman Ily Barclay), 400 dash (junior Nicoletta Burkhardt), shot put (senior Kennedi Jones) and triple jump (senior Amari Vaughn).
Barclay, the Grossmont Hills Track Athlete of the Year, timed 12.05 seconds in the 100 dash and 25.06 in the 200 dash while Burkhardt timed 55.13 in the 400 dash. Jones recorded a mark of 39 feet, 1.5 inches in the shot put while Vaughn, the GHL Field Athlete of the Year, jumped 37-4.
Jones also won a silver medal as the second-place finisher in the discus throw (126-2).
Junior Lillian Cook earned Division I bronze medals in both the 100 low hurdles (15.25) and 300 low hurdles (45.02).
The ladies from Steele opened the meet by setting a school record (47.58) in the 4×100-meter relay. Junior Jahmyia Richardson, Barclay and juniors Brionna Dickens and Burkhardt each ran legs.
Rancho Bernardo finished second in 48.29.
The new school record was not a surprise to any of the baton- bearers.
“We expected it,” Dickens said flatly. “We wanted to break the record at this meet, and we did,” Burkhardt added excitedly.
Overall, Cook collected four medals (bronze in the two hurdles events and fifth place in both the long jump and triple jump) while Barclay (gold in the 4×100 relay and 100 and 200 dashes) and Burkhardt (gold in both the 4×100 relay and 400 dash, fifth place in the 200 dash) both left the track with three medals apiece.
There were more golden moments.
Valhalla senior A.J. Cornthwaite won the Division I gold medal in the boys long jump (23-2.25), a PR.
“It was really exciting,” the Norseman jumper said of his state-qualifying mark.
“I knew I could get 23 feet; it was just waiting for the right moment. I’m really excited. I’m the only one from my school to qualify for state.”
Santana junior Ryan Richter claimed the gold medal in the Division II 110-meter high hurdles with a time of 15.06.
Also among Division II placefinishers, Santana senior Jenna Fields, the Grossmont Valley League Female Field Athlete of the Year, won gold medals in both the girls long jump (17-10) and triple jump (37-3.5). West Hills junior Alexis Leath won a silver medal in the girls 100 dash (12.32).
El Capitan junior Jonathan Biffle eared a silver medal in the Division II boys 300 intermediate hurdles (39.49) and a bronze medal in the 110 high hurdles (15.28).
West Hills junior Joshua Carson finished runner-up in the Division II boys discus throw (149-10).
Overall, Cook collected four medals (bronze in the two hurdles events and fifth place in both the long jump and triple jump) while Barclay (gold in the 4×100 relay and 100 and 200 dashes) and Burkhardt (gold in both the 4×100 relay and 400 dash, fifth place in the 200 dash) both left the track with three medals apiece.
