Masters: Sacramento-area stars qualify for California state track and field championships
Two burners from the Elk Grove Unified School District took their track and field hopes to Yolo County on Saturday, seeking a spot on the victory stand.
Myles McFarland of the Cosumnes Oaks Wolfpack and Ihe Okoh of the Franklin Wildcats beamed in triumph, the late afternoon sun shining down on them on the Davis High School turf. McFarland was a double winner in the hurdles in the CIF Sac-Joaquin Section Masters meet a year after a race disqualification dashed his day, and Okoh repeated as girls 400-meter champion to extend one of the remarkable quarter-miler careers in Sacramento-area history.
Here’s where things are decidedly different between the seniors whose teams compete in the Delta League and then root for each other in meets like this: McFarland is relatively new to this sport, still feeling his way as he glides over the hurdles at full speed, and Okoh has raced for about as long as she can recall.
Those two storylines were among the highlights in a meet that advanced the top three finishers and a few others who had qualifying marks or times to next week’s CIF State Championships in Clovis. That will cap what has been an entertaining season.
McFarland is an example of a student-athlete who needed to be nudged into this sport, punctuated by his mother’s firm stare and her arms crossed, and then became captivated. Okoh represents every 4.0 student who maximizes her prep experience in athletics and on campus as a leader.
The 6-foot-2 McFarland was a Bee All-Metro football selection as an all-purpose player, but his real calling is track. The section leader in both hurdles events coming in, McFarland won the 110 race in 13.90 seconds, holding off Ricky Green of Inderkum (13.96) and Matthew McHale of Pleasant Grove (14.20). McFarland’s lifetime best is a 13.78.
He later took the 300 hurdles in 38.14 seconds with Alex Oldham of Davis second in 38.4. McFarland embraced his medal, enjoyed his view from the victory stand and expressed appreciation for his path here. Now he’s weighing offers on where he can play football and run track on scholarship. First, he aims to reach the podium in Clovis.
“I didn’t even get into track until my sophomore year,” McFarland said. “Mom said I was being a teenager and acting up and told me to do something, and she said track. So I tried it, and now I’m here.”
Mom was right, and mom (Yvonne Moore) encouraged her son to try hurdles as she enjoyed those races during her Cordova High School days. McFarland said there’s a lesson in all of this, beyond winning races.
“Don’t be afraid to try something new,” he said. “I’d never been on a track before to run, and then I found the love of my life: hurdles. This is just the beginning. I’m really proud.”
‘Greatness in our bloodlines’
Pride is a common word when people talk about Okoh. She is the president of three clubs at Franklin, a school big on athletes making an impact as students. She has always maintained perfect grades and aspires to be a doctor in family medicine.
“I want to help people,” she said.
Running is her release. She cruised home in her one-lap specialty in 55.38 seconds, ahead of Olivia Walker of Turlock (55.41) and Jalyah Davis of River City (56.14). Okoh has been the section leader all season. She is headed to UC Irvine on scholarship.
All of the runners were spent after the 400, but it only took Okoh a moment to collect herself. And then she spoke like an old soul.
“I run for the satisfaction of doing something bigger than me,” Okoh said. “In my family, we have greatness in our bloodlines. i got into the 400 because my coach thought I’d be good at it.”
Good call, coach. That’s Terrance Early, whose smile matched that of his pupil.
“Well, she’s super-duper coachable, and she’s a great runner,” Early said. “I think she can go faster. She can run a 54-high. And she’s going to have to at the state meet. She knows that.”
Okoh ran the second leg for Franklin’s 4x400 relay team, which placed second behind Turlock in 3 minutes, 57.20 seconds. The other Wildcats on that relay were Savannah Berry, Alexis Steward and Senai Rogers. Davis placed third in 3:57.83.
Bill Carr is the hurdles coach at Cosumnes Oaks. He was practically dancing on the infield while saying McFarland is proof that anyone can learn and grow in this sport. The coach is moved to see how far and how fast his hurdler has come.
“Myles understands it so much more now,” Carr said. “Great kid, great story. I’ve coached for 40-plus years, and to have a young man like this ... wow. He’s mastered it, but he can get better and he knows that.”
More Masters moments
▪ Christian Brothers started a big day for the girls by winning the 4x100 relay in 47.33 seconds. The relay team featured Devin Greer, Syniah Beverley, Malia Van Den Bogert and Sydnie Watkins. Inderkum placed third at 47.91.
▪ Watkins won the 100 hurdles in 14.14 seconds, just nipping Brooke White of River City. Beverley was third in 14.42.
▪ Freshman Norah Feldt of Davis won the girls 1,600 in a lifetime-best 4:56.10 seconds, holding off another terrific miler in St. Francis senior Grace Dunham (5:03.17).
▪ League rivals delivered a fierce boys 1,600 with Jonah Reynolds of Jesuit winning in 4:10.89, Jefferson Wright of Davis taking second in 4:12.02 and Drake Hoferer of Jesuit third in 4:12.02.
▪ Ian Anglin won the boys 400 in 48.52 and ran the opening leg on the Bulldogs’ 4x400 relay team, which placed second behind St. Mary’s of Stockton in 3:21.08.
▪ Nathan Bloom of Dixon won the shot put with a 57-foot, quarter-inch effort, beating Tyler Lange of Oak Ridge (56-2.75). Bloom’s father, Andy Bloom, was an Olympic shot putter in 2000.
▪ Alysiana Winston of Twelve Bridges placed second in the girls 200 in 24.44 and was third in the 100 in 11.71.
▪ Shanye Harris of Edison of Stockton won the girls 100 in 11.57, breaking the Masters meet record held by Grant’s Monica Taylor (11.59) for 41 years. Harris later took the 200 in 24.16.
▪ Kylie Nasca of Granite Bay won the girls 800 in 2:16.02 in a tight race with Khloe Delatorre of Vacaville placing second in 2:16.28, Ava Kopec of Whitney third in 2:16.42 and Veronica White of Christian Brothers fourth in 2:16.95.
▪ Alani Baker of Woodland Christian won the girls triple jump at 35 feet, 5 inches.
▪ Josh Chu of Ponderosa won the 3,200 in 9:07.25.
▪ Landon Beckman of Folsom won the discus at 143-03.
▪ Zenalla Hatcher-Simmons of Del Campo won the girls shot put at 43-4 ½ and was second in the discus at 121-7.
▪ Chloe Metz-Thompson of Nevada Union won the pole vault with a 12-6 effort with Madeleine Juhler of Pioneer taking second at 11-9 and Grave Slone of Rockin third at 11-6.
▪ Nina Souto of Whitney was second in the girls 300 hurdles in 44.79.
▪ Cosumnes Oaks was second in the boys 4x100 relay in 41.63 and Twelve Bridges third in 41.81.
▪ Jordan Agbettor of Cosumnes Oaks was second in the 100 in 10.61 with Blayne Siebert from Pitman of Turlock winning in 10.47. Anthony Gallagher of Twelve Bridges was third in 10.69.
▪ Alysiana Winston of Twelve Bridges placed second in the girls 200 in 24.44 and was third in the 100 in 11.71.
▪ Jeffrey Overgaard from Lincoln of Stockton won the 800 in 1:52.26 with Kirby Kellen of Bella Vista second in 1:53.75, Kyle Jakary third in 1:55.46 and Lucas Alberts of Jesuit fourth in 1:55.95.
▪ Karissa Chamberlain of Whitney was second in the girls 3,200 in 10:58.45 and Emily Allison of Granite Bay took third in 10:59.53.
▪ Mitchell Quentin of Antelope and Sean Joyner of Center placed second and third in the high jump with 6-6 efforts.
▪ For complete results, visit timerhub.com.
This story was originally published May 19, 2024 at 1:33 PM.