Readying a large track team
Senior Xavier Johnson sprints against his teammates.
March 25, 2015
As the team begins to face off in its new league, Diamond Bar track and field has undergone many changes prior to the start of the season. The majority of the track and field coaches are new to the team, including head coaches Sally Jarvis and Joseph Beaudion.
Track and field has also doubled in size, with over 200 participants. This is a contrast to last year’s season, where the size of the track and field team significantly smaller, reducing the usual number of players that were on the team.
“Last year the track and field team was cut in half, so it was harder to do well because people were scrambling since they had to do more events than they usually did,” varsity junior Anabelle Cheng said. “I had to do both the 800 and the 400 and they were really close to each other. I was tired by the time I had to do the 400.”
However, with the abundance of new coaches and a bigger team, Jarvis believes that track and field can do well in the Palomares League even though it will be very competitive.
“We have had a few invitationals and the team did pretty well,” junior Eric Chen said via facebook message. “The coaches are making everyone work hard.”
The team had their first mock track meet at the beginning of the month, where they raced against each other. It participated in the Bishop Amat relays on March 7 and an invitational at Walnut High School on March 14.
Some of the notable scorers at the Bishop Amat relays included senior Austin Warrington who placed 4th in the 100 meters at 11.14 seconds, senior Isaiah Austin who placed 1st in the 110 meters hurdles at 14.88 seconds, and the Diamond Bar relay team placed 4th in the 4×100 meters relay at 52.46 seconds.
“The times were fantastic as a starting point,” Jarvis commented. “The kids are where they should be.”
Their first league meet will be on Friday at South Hills High School, where the Brahmas will compete against Claremont, Bonita, Ayala, Glendora, and South Hills.
“Now that we have some great event coaches and a lot of students, I think this season is going to go very well in regards to personal bests. It’ll go very smoothly because we have such a strong coaching staff and some very involved athletes,” Jarvis said.
