LOS GATOS — Mountain View junior Hannah Rutherford set two meet records Saturday at the Central Coast Section Top 8 meet at Los Gatos High.
Rutherford won the 400 meters in a sizzling 53.77 seconds, shattering the previous meet record of 55.29, set by Leigh’s Hawa Kamara in 2018. Rutherford came back to win the 200 in 23.88, breaking a 35-year-old meet record of 24.17, set by Carlmont’s Annette Coleman in 1989.
Both winning times were personal bests by a significant margin for the Mountain View standout.
Her 400 time is the fourth-fastest in CCS history
“I never could have imagined this,” Rutherford said after the 400. “My fastest time this year was 55.05, so I just wanted to maybe PR and get under 55. The weight training I’ve started doing has really helped.”
Her 200 time ranks No. 8 on the all-time CCS list.
Hannah Rutherford of Mountain View sets a meet record of 53.77 seconds in the 400 meter at the Central Coast Section Top 8 meet, Saturday, April 20, 2024, at Los Gatos High School in Los Gatos, Calif. (Karl Mondon/Bay Area News Group)
Archbishop Mitty’s Laniah Simpson was the top points earner in the meet, winning both hurdles races as well as placing second in the 100, to lead the Monarchs to the girls team title.
She won the 100 hurdles in 14.50. Los Altos sophomore Daniela Hughes took second (14.68), followed by Mitty’s Taylor Oden and Tiana Osuna.
“My goal this year is to run 14.0.maybe 13.9,” Simpson said. “I’ve been training real hard. It’s nice having both my teammates right next to me because they push me to run faster.”
Hughes nosed out Simpson in the 100 with a winning time of 12.31.
Prospect’s Kylie Hoorvaert is the lone girl from the CCS to crack 2:10 in the 800 this season, clocking a time of 2:09.91 at Arcadia. She ran the 1,600 Saturday and pushed the pace, leading until the final straightaway when Palo Alto’s Kinga Czajkowska kicked past her to win in 4:51.03. Hoornaert’s time was 4:51.43. A terrific race by both runners.
Czajkowska was asked if she felt she could run faster.
“I really hope I do,” she said. “I’ve been ramping up my training, my cross training, and have set really big goals for myself . And I hope I can hit them.”
Monta Vista sophomore Lelani Laruelle won the high jump at 5-8, which equals the best mark in the state thus far this season. Not bad for a girl in just her third year of high jumping. Her best as a freshman was 5-2.
“I want to get better and improve my form and maybe reach 5-10,” she said. “My coaches and my friends have been a big help.”
St. Ignatius sophomore Ellie McCuskey-Hay won the long jump (18-8 ¾) and anchored the winning 4×100 relay team, but scratched from the 100 and 200.
Other winners in the girls meet included Los Gatos’ Taylor Chesarek in the 3,200 (11:03.30), Suraya Newman of St. Ignatius in the triple jump (36-6), Savannah Filios of St. Francis in the shot put (36-2 ¼) and Silver Creek’s Brielle Mosley in the discus (136-2). Los Gatos won the 4×400 relay (3:57.1) and St. Francis took the 4×800 relay (9:52.72)).
Kinga Czajkowska of Palo Alto beats Kylie Hoornaert of Prospect to the finish line in the 1600 meter at the Central Coast Section Top 8 meet, Saturday, April 20, 2024, at Los Gatos High School in Los Gatos, Calif. (Karl Mondon/Bay Area News Group)
In the boys portion of the meet, Bellarmine’s James Buellesbach won the 110 high hurdles in a personal best and CCS-leading 14.09, helping the Bells to the boys team title. Buellesbach took second in the high hurdles last year as a junior at the CCS finals.
“The school record at my school is 13.91, I’ve had my sights set on that all year,” he said.
Pioneer junior Carson Hedlund opened some eyes earlier this season, running the 1,600 in 4:07.36 at Arcadia. He won the 800 Saturday in a thrilling battle down the home stretch with Carmel’s Mack Aldi. Hedlund ran 1:54.14 to Aldi’s 1:54.16.
“Like every race I tried to stay calm, focused in the moment,” Hedlund said. “I knew he was going to try to slingshot me on the outside, which is what I would’ve tried to do. He ran a great race. With 50 or 60 left he pulled up on my shoulder. I was lucky I had that extra gear.”
Los Altos’ Nathaniel Guillory was a double winner in the 100 (10.64) and 200 (21.30).
“I’ve been lifting every day and it’s just a matter of executing at that point,” Guillory said. “The work has been put in, now it’s just a matter of staying positive.”
Tyson Bonilla, better known as the quarterback of the Wilcox football team, won the long jump at 22-5 ½. He has a CCS-best of 23-6 this year.
“End of the season I’m hoping to break the 24-foot mark,” Bonilla said. “If I can do 24 I might get some interest from D-I, D-II schools. If not I’ll play football at (College of) San Mateo.”
Tyson Bonilla of Wilcox wins the long jump at the Central Coast Section Top 8 meet, Saturday, April 20, 2024, at Los Gatos High School in Los Gatos, Calif. (Karl Mondon/Bay Area News Group)
Benjamin Bouie of Crystal Springs Uplands won the boys 1,600 (4:11.16). He had a small lead heading into the final lap and then turned it on, pulling away.
“Being able to find the gears, to kick off a fast pace when you’re hurting, that’s what I’ve been working on, and it came together in this race,” Bouie said.
Other winning performances in the boys meet were turned in by Monta Vista’s Denny Dong, who leaned at the finish to win the 400 in 48.82, just ahead of St. Francis’ Sean Walsh (48.85), Thomas Zang of St. Ignatius in the 300 hurdles (38.53), Tarik Baker of Crystal Springs Uplands in the 3,200 (9:28.99), Bellarmine’s Kenneth Tucker in the triple jump (45-7 ¾), Serra’s Luke Lewis in the shot put (55-5 ¼), Branham’s Kazu Kimura, in the high jump at 6-6, as well as placing third in the long jump, and Gunn’s Owen Koehler in the discus (159-6). Mitty won the 4×100 relay (41.92) and Bellarmine took the 4×400 (3:24.82).
Denny Dong of Monta Vista, right, smiles after hearing he beat out Sean Walsh of St. Francis, left by three-hundredth of a second in the 400 meter at the Central Coast Section Top 8 meet, Saturday, April 20, 2024, at Los Gatos High School in Los Gatos, Calif. (Karl Mondon/Bay Area News Group)
Denny Dong of Monta Vista, left, edges out Sean Walsh of St. Francis by three-hundredth of a second in the 400 meter at the Central Coast Section Top 8 meet, Saturday, April 20, 2024, at Los Gatos High School in Los Gatos, Calif. (Karl Mondon/Bay Area News Group)
Kylie Hoornaert of Prospect sets the pace in the 1600 meter ahead of Anna Salter of Crystal and eventual race winner Kinga Czajkowska of Palo Alto at the Central Coast Section Top 8 meet, Saturday, April 20, 2024, at Los Gatos High School in Los Gatos, Calif. (Karl Mondon/Bay Area News Group)
Kinga Czajkowska of Palo Alto wins the 1600 meter at the Central Coast Section Top 8 meet, Saturday, April 20, 2024, at Los Gatos High School in Los Gatos, Calif. (Karl Mondon/Bay Area News Group)
Jeovanni Henley of Serra cruises to victory in his seeded 400 meter race at the Central Coast Section Top 8 meet, Saturday, April 20, 2024, at Los Gatos High School in Los Gatos, Calif. (Karl Mondon/Bay Area News Group)