Several women from the track and field team advanced to the final round of the Southern California Championship Preliminaries in Bakersfield Saturday.

The Southern California Championship finals will take place this weekend where the Warriors will face-off against the best in the state for an opportunity to compete in the state finals next weekend in Cerritos.

“I’m excited,” Shavonya Decuire, freshman sprinter, said. “I’ve been dreaming about state championships for such a long time.”

The Warriors proved to be successful in the medley events, as they advanced in both the 400-meter and the 1,600-meter events.

Decuire, who competed in both events, said that she was fully aware of the importance of Saturday’s final preliminary, however, she is not fazed by the pressure.

“All we have to do is work hard,” Decuire said. “If we want it, we have to go get it.”

Sophomore distance runner Megan Adams finished in third place in the 3,000-meter steeplechase.

The impressive finish allows her to move on and compete in the finals.

Once again, showing her dominance with the shot put, freshman Na’I Leni continued her stellar performance in the event.

Leni took first place with a throw of 45-6, and even though her throw was almost four feet farther than the second-place throw, Leni said she believes that there is still room to improve.

“I just need to practice, practice, practice,” Leni said. “I am trying to hit 50 feet this week.”

When all is said and done, the women’s team will send athletes who will compete in seven events Saturday in Bakersfield.

Several members of the team said they believe they hold their own fates in their hands when it comes to qualifying and advancing.

Dean Lofgren, track and field coach, said that he was pleased that most of his athletes were able to advance and is confident about how the team will perform.

“We are well represented,” Lofgren said. “We have a good group.”

Led by a superb power shot putter in freshman Jacob Weintraub, the men have an excellent chance of giving strong performances at Bakersfield as well.

This weekend’s meet will determine where athletes will be ranked at the state championships based on how athletes finish in their events.

Weintraub’s duel performance in the shot put and the discus earned him the honor of Conference Athlete-of-Meet.

In his most dominant event, the shot put, Weintraub delivered a throw of 52-3 inches, placing Weintraub second in the event.

“I was just trying to gain confidence for finals,” Weintraub said. “I was surprised I won; I thought I threw badly.”

Knowing that expectations are high, Weintraub is preparing for the next meet by going back and learning the basics.

“I am going back to the fundamentals,” Weintraub said. “Confidence and consistency come along with practice.”

Eric Oliva, a sophomore from Leuzinger High School, had an excellent day throwing the shot put as well. Finishing fourth overall, Oliva delivered a throw of 46-4.

However, like many other competitors, Oliva said he believes there is more in him.

“It (the throw) was all right,” Oliva said. “I want to come out and throw forty nine or fifty feet.”ÿÿÿÿÿÿ

Freshman distance runner Steven Calise showed that the Warriors will be as competive in the running events as well in this weekend’s upcoming meet.

Calise finished third overall in the 1500-meter event with a time of 3:59:39. The medley team finished eighth in the 400-meter relay with a time of 42.47 seconds.

Medley runner Incheon Kim said that it will require a better time in order to compete with the other athletes who will be at the state championships.

“We lost two of our best guys,ÿbut we can still qualify,” Kim said. “We need to match our best time to compete at the highest level.”

The men will send athletes who will compete in nine events Saturday and Lofgren said he hopes the team can continue the stellar performances it had last weekend.

“We qualified mostly everybody,” Lofgren, who along with the rest of the team will make the long drive to Bakersfield.

Despite the distance, the athletes are focused on one thing and one thing only.

“I just want to go out and perform the best I can,” said Oliva.