Mustangs run well at El Camino track finals
By Dick Sparrer
It was a great night for Milpitas. But you won't catch Homestead coach Eddie Ruiz complaining too much.
It was the night of the track finals in the El Camino Division of the Santa Clara Valley Athletic League on May 1 at De Anza College, and Milpitas ran to team titles in the boys and girls varsity divisions.
But Homestead ran well, too--well enough to win a few events and finish among the leaders in two of the four divisions contested.
Homestead rambled to a second in the boys varsity division and was also second in the girls junior varsity competition.
Leading the way for the Mustangs in varsity were individual league champions Anthony Capizzi, William Faules, Ben Verstegen and Britteny Reynolds.
Capizzi starred for the Mustangs, winning both the weight events, and Faules and Verstegen traded wins in the hurdle events. Reynolds soared to a victory in the long jump and added a second in the 200.
Kelly Bushnell of Fremont joined the list of varsity winners with a first in the girls discus.
Capizzi leads Homestead
Capizzi, Faules and Verstegen led Homestead to a second-place finish in the boys varsity team standings. Milpitas ran up 110 points to win the division, with Homestead a close second at 105.
Capizzi was one of just three double winners in the boys varsity division. Dominic Chen of Milpitas won the 200-meter dash and 400, Will Kraemer of Saratoga took the 1,600 meters and the 3,200, and Capizzi was a champ in the shot put and discus.
The powerful Homestead senior heaved the shot put 46-4 for a win, and he tossed the discus 125-10 for another victory.
Faules and Verstegen alternated wins for Homestead in the hurdle events. Faules took the 110-meter high hurdles in 14.85, with Verstegen second in 15.48, and Verstegen took the 300 intermediates in 39.29, with Faules second in 39.58.
Pat Rugo raced to a second in the 100 in 11.27, with Steven Nichols third in 11:32 for the Mustangs, and Rugo was also third in the 200 in 23.10. The two also helped Homestead to a second in the 4x400 relay in 3:33.05 and a third in the 4x100 relay in 44.24.
Nichols added seconds in both the long jump at 20-1.75 and the triple jump at 41-10.
Matt Johnson chipped in with a sixth in the shot put at 41-7.5.
Matt Barkley and Antonio Taylor topped a list of six placers for Fremont in the boys varsity finals.
Barkley put the shot 44-1 for a third-place finish for Fremont, and Taylor ran 51.71 to finish third in the 400.
Fremont's Austin Sardella was fourth in the 800 in 2:06.04, and he added sevenths in both the 3,200 in 10:49.64 and the 1,600 in 4:42.70.
Richard Barries was fifth in the 200 in 23.31, Donnell Forks was sixth in the high jump at 5-2, and Mike Marr was seventh in the 110 high hurdles in 18.82.
Reynolds, Bushnell star
Milpitas and Saratoga ran away from the field in the girls varsity division, but Reynolds led the way for the Mustangs.
Reynolds led a solid Homestead showing with a first and a second for the Mustangs. The junior won the long jump with a 16-5 effort, and she was second in the 200 in 27.53. She also helped Homestead to a third in the 4x100 relay in 53.28.
Sandra Kiel came through with a second and a third for the Mustangs in the weight events. Kiel was second in the shot put at 32-7 and third in the discus at 81-10, with Marian Alcid sixth at 74-11.
Cynthia Nguyen was fifth in the long jump at 14-4.5 for the Mustangs, and Mariko Caster was fifth in the 400 in 1:05.66.
Bushnell was the Fremont leader in the meet. The freshman weight star won the discus with a toss of 105-0, and she was fourth in the shot put at 30-4. Teammate Michelle Heick was fifth at 29-9.
LaToya Banks raced to a fourth in the 100 in 13.42 for the Firebirds and added a fifth in the 200 in 28.03.
F-S, JV
In the younger divisions, Homestead was second in the girls junior varsity class.
In the girls JV meet, Sarah Moussa, Jennifer Hiramoto, Jillian Luu and Allie Garnett each won events to lead Homestead to a team second.
Moussa took the discus with a 79-5 toss, Hiramoto won the 100 hurdles in 17.81 and took the 100-meter dash in 13.70, Luu romped to a win in the 400 in 1:08.71, and Garnett won the triple jump at 27-10.5. Homestead also won the 4x100 relay in 54.79.
Danielle Crawford was second in the shot put and third in the discus for the Mustangs. Grace Dunford was second in the 100 hurdles and Kei Hill was third in the long jump.
Fremont's Jonna Orenda was tops in the shot put with a 23-10 effort and Melody So took the 800 in 2:47.14.
Alanna Baumert supported with a second in the 400 for Fremont.
Steven Haight was second in the shot put for Homestead in boys frosh-soph competition.
Samotar Mohamed nailed a third in the 400 for Fremont and Devin Diaz was third in the high jump.
Sunnyvale, California Since 1994
