By Jimmy Friery
NORWALK, CA – The Vaqueros Track & Field team had a good showing at SoCal Prelims this past weekend at Cerritos College. A few standout performers qualified for the Finals this coming Friday.
"I am so proud of all of our athletes for going out and showing great 'Vaq' resilience," head coach Don Willis said. "They went out and fought for what they wanted. It's just a shame that more didn't make the Finals, but I am happy to have coached them all.
"I am looking forward to seeing the competitive juices flow again this upcoming week, and hope to see dreams made for my athletes. They work so hard over the course of a 5-month season—I hope everything works out for them."
Alisann Tolosa ran a season-best PR of 2:23.69 in the 800m, good enough to qualify for the Finals.
"I went to SoCal Prelims excited and ready to run," Tolosa said. "I wasn't expecting to move on, just wanted to finish the season strong. Grateful to keep my season going, stoked to race again this week."
Similarly, the Men's 4x400m Relay team—consisting of Xavier Gutierrez, Dawson Anderson, Dylan Orquiola, and Ryan Gregory—also qualified for the Finals with a season-best PR of 3:19.97. That time puts them 10th on the all-time SBCC performance list and is the best timed run since 2013. They have a chance to qualify for the 3C2A State meet if they beat 2 teams.
"It will be a tall task," Willis said, "but that's why they work to compete."
"Our 4×4 team is made up of 4 talented individuals who can band together and compete at a high level, which brings a lot of camaraderie," Dawson Anderson said. "Making it to the SoCal Finals was a big win for us and we now have our sights set on competing at State."
Tolosa and the 4x400 Men's relay will compete back at Cerritos on Friday, where a solid performance could secure a spot at the 3C2A State Championships the following weekend at Saddleback.
