Orange Coast College

Several Pirate tracksters advance to state meet

Saturday, May 13, 2006

WALNUT - Several Orange Coast College track and field standouts will be making the trek to Bakersfield for the state championships following their performances at the SoCal Finals on Friday at Mt. San Antonio College.
The top four competitors in lane events qualified for the state meet, while in distance races (1,500 meters and longer) as well as field events, the top six qualify. The state meet will take place on May 19-20 at Bakersfield College.
On the men's side, Cameron Clavin claimed the school's lone SoCal championship on Friday, winning the discus throw with a mark of 162 feet, 9 inches, edging out Moorpark's Eki Faagai's throw of 162-6.
OCC put on a clinic in the javelin throw as four Pirate competitors -- Chris Burbach, Scott Burbach, Lance Gonzalez and Clavin -- qualified for state with their performances.
Chris Burbach finished second with a throw of 200-11, while Scott Burbach (third, 191-11), Lance Gonzales and Clavin (tied for fifth, 186-9) all cracked the top-six.
Gonzales also showed his talents in the high jump, finishing tied for third with a mark of 6-6.
Other state-bound Pirates include Drew Woods in the 800 meters (fourth, 1 minute, 54.71 seconds) and Ignacio Perez in the long jump (sixth, 22-5 3/4).
As a team, the OCC men finished sixth overall with 49 points. Long Beach City College won the meet with 117 points.
On the women's side, Gabriela Santana was OCC's top performer, qualifying in both the 1,500 (4:43.68) and 5,000 (18:15.48), finishing second in both events.
Teammate Jewel Butler will join Santana in the 1,500 after she qualified for state with a fourth-place time of 4:50.53.
In the 3,000 steeplechase, Araceli Huerta finished fifth with a time of 12:09.9 to earn a trip to Bakersfield.
The Pirate women finished eighth overall with a team score of 35 points. Cerritos College won the competition with 117 points.