A jumper has to have rhythm while competing on the field.
High jumper Amir Fisher wasn’t able to find that rhythm last Saturday as the jumper ahead of him got hurt himself. Despite being off key, Fisher cleared 6-6, which tied him for second place, qualifying him for the state championships Saturday.
The men’s track and field team, which had four qualifiers make it to the Southern California Championships Saturday, will be sending two qualifiers onto the state championships Saturday at Bakersfield.
“I wasn’t as warm as I should have been when I jumped again,” Fisher said. “I lost my rhythm.”
“He had cleared all his jumps until he got to six-foot eight. But at six-foot eight, the guy before him hurt himself,” assistant coach Kevin Hughley said. “That might have had been the reason that he didn’t get six-foot eight.”
Carter Matthew from Santa Ana jumped 7-0 and won.
“I’m not happy with my performance because I don’t like second place,” Fisher said.
Hughley said that he believes Fisher can jump seven feet.
“If the day is right for him and he does everything correctly, he can jump seven feet,” Hughley said.
Fisher said that he is ready for the state championships.
“I’m looking at it as just a regular meet, but it’s a little bit more exciting at the same time,” Fisher said. “I am going to get some rest, relax, and get ready to jump.”
Another qualifier was Harold Young, the leading shot put thrower in the state.
Young placed second both in the shot put and discus, throwing 56-9 in the shot put and 181-2 in the discus.
“It was OK,” Young said. “I could have done better.”
Slowik Robert from Moorpark won both events. In the shot put, Robert threw just two inches farther than Young and snatched first place.
“It was a good battle in the shot put,” Young said. “He performed well.”
Robert is as tall as Young but a little bit stronger. He holds the record at 198 feet in the discus, about 10 feet farther than Young’s best mark of 186. When the competition gets underway Saturday, Robert and Young figure to have the best chance to advance, considering that the best mark from Northern California stands at 177-3.
“I have a few more days to practice,” Young said. “Hopefully, I can set a personal record for both the shot put and discus.”
In the discus, Darryl Guerin threw a 42-1 and finished 11th, ending his season.
Andre Rochelle, the third best javelin thrower in Southern California, could not make it on to the championships. Rochelle finished 11th with a throw of 150-6 in the javelin and took seventh in the shot put with a mark of 134-9.
“Nothing was going right for me that day,” Rochelle said. “It was not my day.”
Rochelle’s best javelin mark is 171-8. However, his throw fell 20 feet short of that.
“I’m disappointed because I didn’t make it to the championships,” Rochelle said. “Overall, I had a good season and feel good about it.”
The Warriors scored 24 points at last weekend’s meet and are ranked 14th in Southern California.
Long Beach City is currently leading Southern California with 84 points. Lofgren said Long Beach had a successful recruiting year this season due to its strong connection with USC and other universities.
“Long Beach will be adding more points at the state championships,” coach Dean Lofgren said.
The Warriors finished fourth in the state last year, but are down this year.
“It’s sad that we don’t have more qualifiers,” Lofgren said. “However, the two guys that we do have are going to do very well.”
Lofgren said that he believes there is a chance Young and Fisher might score enough points to push them up into the top 10.
“With just two guys at the state meet, it will be very good for us to be in the top ten,” Lofgren said.
