Pin-Oh My Goodness! Shot Put Record Slayed

By Brandon Petersen

Olivia Pino brought all the swagger to the shot put ring Saturday at Soka University, where the Westcliff track & field team competed in the last indoor meet of the season. 

It was her first competition of the year, and she carried herself confidently with a subtle smile. 

And for good reason. 

Pino shattered the Westcliff school record in the event, her best toss reaching 32-feet, 1-inch (9.78m), to set the new mark all Warrior women will pursue from here on out. 

"Her throw was nothing less than her every day best," Westcliff head coach Ty Blanchard said. "I knew today would be a huge day for Olivia — I watch her day in and day out become not just a leader on the women's side of track & field, but a Warrior, as she challenges herself to be great every time she steps into the ring and throws. 

"It was well deserved, but keep watching her, because this is just the beginning for Olivia."

Pino seemed to spark the best in her teammates as well. 

Both Natalie Ziegler and Abby Strong had wonderful days in the ring as well. 

Strong's best toss marked out at 27-feet, 1.25-inches (8.26M), and Ziegler reached 24-feet, 11.25-inches (7.60M) on her best throw. 

Pino finished the event eighth overall and first in her heat. 

HIGH JUMP

Abelardo Rendon had a sizable crowd watching him Saturday at Soka, and for good reason. Rendon captured gold in his first two meets of the season, and was working Saturday toward his ultimate goal of 2.01M, which would send Westcliff's star high-jumper to nationals at the end of the season. 

Rendon topped out Saturday at 1.78M, finishing third overall — a great mark for most, but for Rendon, it was an off-day. 

"It was a learning experience," he said. "Third. Not bad. But I could've been up there. My steps just didn't feel good. But I'll learn from it. Next week, just have to do better. 

"I'm just going to forget about this meet, and keep working hard."

Despite the off-day Saturday, Rendon is having a spectacular season.

"This season is better than it has ever been before," he said. "We've been working really, really hard at practice. Coach Ty is pushing us really hard and it's showing. Not just for me, but for the whole team as well. 

"We are getting personal bests at every single meet. Little by little, we are climbing that ladder and getting better."

Rendon says his goal this season is nothing short of nationals. 

"We have six, seven meets left and I'm eight centimeters from nationals right now," Rendon said. "Three more inches. Just got to keep working, getting stronger, and keep getting better — that's it."

Blanchard says that Rendon has the work ethic to reach nationals, but he must maintain his focus moving forward.

Here are Coach Blanchard's thoughts on Rendon's Soka Meet:

"Abel is a spectacular athlete with tremendous potential. His efforts each and every day amaze me. Over the week, we saw the eagerness and readiness to be on the national podium take the best of us as we did not perform to standards. But as Abel continues to stay on course and follow the training and guidance, he will become victorious in reaching his goal of nationals. It was the excitement that blocked his vision of having a successful day and that is final, we just have to remember to finish the day next time before celebrating at the big dance."

Alexandro Villegas competed well in both the long and triple jumps.

Villegas turned in a long jump of 16-feet, 8.50-inches, and a triple jump of 37-feet, 8.50-inches. 

TRACK EVENTS

Westcliff's sprinters had a great day Saturday as many took down personal records. 

On the women's side, Lauren Coppla killed the 60M, finishing in 8.54 seconds. Evette Mendoza was right behind her with a finish of 8.69 seconds. Pino finished at 9.28 and Ziegler clocked in at 9.43. 

Mendoza hit the top mark in the 200 at 29.23 seconds, and Haley Garcia was next, finishing at 29.76 seconds. Coppla and Nicole Moore finished next, coming in with marks of 30.06 and 30.70 seconds, respectively. 

Garcia and Moore both ran the 200 as well, clocking in at 1:07.04 for Garcia and 1:09.02 for Moore. 

Alex Juarez took on the 800 and finished with a mark of 3:31.69, and Coppla, Garcia, Mendoza and Moore competed in the 4x400, finishing with a time of 4:40.41. 

On the men's side, Harrison Horner showed out in the 60, turning in a nice finish of 7.24 seconds, finishing 27th out of 78 sprinters. 

Horner was even better in the 200, finishing 21st overall with a mark of 23.06 seconds. 

Rendon also competed in the 200 and turned in a mark of 26.09 seconds. 

Here are Coach Blanchard's thoughts on how his sprinters performed:

"My sprinters executed and had one of the best meets so far from every angle. The women ran the perfect race every time they stepped in the blocks and on that track. Their reward for that were either personal records or breaking not just their own records but some of them breaking their own teammates' records that were set just the meet before. That is what it is all about. Competition and striving for greatness. They make me so proud and I cannot stress enough that this program is on the rise and will be making some noise these next few years."

JONAS KOTURENKA

Koturenka runs the intermediate events for the Warriors, and had an eye-popping performance last week in Santa Barbara. 

At Soka, Koturenka followed it up with another outstanding day. 

He finished 10th overall in the 400, turning in a finish of 50.95 seconds. 

And in the 800, Koturenka shined once again, this time finishing third overall with a mark of 2:00.28. 

"He is an athlete who has a beautiful drive and unreal passion for the sport," Blanchard said. "Although sometimes the element of surprise comes about, he manages to continue to figure it out and dominate. 

"Jonas still has some work to do, but he knows when to leave it all on the track and finish where he starts."

UP NEXT

Now that the indoor season is in the books, the Warriors will move to the outdoor season. 

Up first, Westcliff travels up the 405 for the Long Beach Open.

The event is scheduled for Saturday, March 4th and will kick off at 9 a.m.

The Warriors will next compete in Irvine, Saturday, March 25th for the Team 4 Titus and Ely meet. 

The Cal Pac Championships will be held Thursday, April 27th back at Soka.