Merced Union High School District

Taylor Martin only started running track last year and now the Buhach Colony High senior will be running three events at the CIF State Championship next week. The Thunder star was a frequent visitor to the podium at the Sac-Joaquin Section Masters Meet, qualifying at-large with her fourth-place finish in the 400-meter event and then teaming up with the Buhach Colony dream team to finish third in the 4x100 and second in the 4x400 relay races, qualifying for state in both events.

 

Martin was greeted with hugs from teammates Chisa Wood and Emily Gallegos after she qualified for state in the 400, breaking the school record with a time of 55.40 seconds. Her rapid rise in track didn’t come easy. ”I have done such hard training, such harsh training throughout the year. Playing three sports, it's really hard to just focus on track, but I now can really focus on it and running the 400 has put me in such a good mindset. Making it to state really just showed me how much I've persevered through every sport that I played. It's just an amazing feeling.”

The Masters Meet was a showcase for the Buhach Colony High girls track team as Gallegos won the 300-meter hurdles with a time of 42.97, which has her seeded seventh heading into next week’s CIF State Championships at Buchanan High. Gallegos was determined to get the Sac-Joaquin Section championship and stand atop the podium in first place after finishing second as a freshman in the 300 hurdles last year. 

 

“Finishing second last year really fired me up,” Gallegos said. “I really wanted that hat.” Gallegos is confident in her finish so she knows if she can put herself in good position early in the race she can finish it off. “Usually, that first hurdle gets me, so I’ve worked really hard on  that first hurdle. I've been practicing it so hard. When I hit that curve, if I’m in first at that curve, I know nobody's beating me off the straight. I have the strongest finish, and I know that I’m very, very confident at that point of my race.I don't see anybody that has a finish like me. So definitely when I'm out front there, I saw her shadow, but it made me push harder.”

 

Buhach Colony freshman Alicia Silvas also had an impressive showing in the 300 hurdles, finishing sixth with a time of 46.10. Silvas was the only freshman in the 300 hurdles finals. Silvas, Wood, Gallegos and Martin then reached the podium twice in relays, finishing third in the 4x100 (47.46) and second in the final event of the night, the 4x400 (3:53.28). “I think at section finals (last week), we realized we were top three and we could make it to state,” Wood said. 

Gallegos says the family-like atmosphere in the program has pushed them to run faster each time out. “We’re close, I haven’t seen another team that has the bond that we have,” Gallegos said. “It goes beyond our relay team. Our girls team in general. If you look in the stands, all of our parents are sitting together. I’ve never seen a team that has the support that we have.”

 

Joining the Buhach Colony foursome at state is Atwater High junior thrower Juliana Prado, who uncorked a personal best toss of 131 feet and 2 inches in the discus to finish in third place to earn her berth to the state meet. 

 

Prado came into the Masters meet confident after a strong week of practice. “Honestly, prior to even entering the throwing ring I felt it was going to be a powerful throw,” she said. “I was jumping up and down, thinking back to the last week of intense technical preparation with my coaches, coach Soto and coach Hammar. When I threw the discus, I felt in my technique and power alone it was a good throw. However, when the mark was read aloud, I felt so happy and reassured that all of the grinding at practice was worthwhile.”

Buhach Colony senior Carter Chapman came close to earning a trip to state in the long jump and high jump. Chapman finished fourth in the long jump with a leap of 21-10.75. He finished just behind third-place finisher Hudson Smith of Whitney (22-0.25). Chapman and Atwater sophomore Cole McDonough cleared 6-2 in the high jump. They were just two inches short of the 6-4 needed to finish in third. Falcons teammate Yair Gonzalez broke a 50-year old school record with his time of 9:27.36 in the 3200. Golden Valley High senior Zoe Gonzales finished seventh in the 100 hurdles with a time of 25.25 seconds. El Capitan freshman Lia Garcia Del Castillo placed ninth in the long jump with a mark of 17-1.75.

 

Advancing to state will be a memorable experience for Prado. “Qualifying for state was a huge milestone for me this season,” she said. “Being able to represent my school and town is an honor built by the support of my coaches and community. I can’t wait to continue my season at state in Clovis next week and wear my jersey with pride.”

Shawn Jansen is the MUHSD Program Manager Digital Media. He can be reached at Sjansen@muhsd.org.