On May 7th at Dublin High School, Amador Valley’s Track and Field team competed in the EBAL finals. Although their final scores were not perfect, many athletes advanced to the NCS-Tri Valley Meet.

“Overall I thought it was a solid meet. Even though we didn’t get the score we would have liked, we had many individual and relay PR (personal record) performances, like our boys 4×4,” said Sprints Captain Timothy Lester (‘22). 

Amador Valley seniors ran well for their team, scoring the majority of points. Some notable personal records for Amador athletes included seniors Timothy Lester in 100m, Kiana Lum in the long jump and triple jump, Luke Atkinson in the Long Jump, and Mason Romant in the 800m. Fortunately, this was not their last track meet, as many advanced to the NCS-Tri Valley Championships.

“I’m excited to be competing this weekend because I love running with my teammates and making memories, and it shows the effort and dedication we have put in to advance to NCS,” said Sprinter Byrce Osaki (‘22). 

Including the numerous athletes who advanced to NCS, both the girl and boys 4x100m and 4x400m teams advanced. In particular, the boy’s 4x400m team improved their season’s best by 6 seconds to finish second in the event in 3:29. 

“I was super excited to see that all our relays are advancing because it means that not only do we have some fast individuals but a depth of people willing to step up to compete,” said Hurdler and Jumper Sara Vannoni (‘23).

There are three leagues that make up the NCS-Tri Valley area. The EBAL, which Amador is a part of, and the DAL along with the BVAL. For each event, the top 6 finishers from EBAL, the top 6 finishers from the DAL, and the top 4 finishers from the BVAL automatically qualify for the NCS-Tri Valley meet. Also, the next best 8 performances in each event from those leagues move on to the meet. In the NCS-Tri Valley Meet, the top 6 finishers along with any athletes who meet the state standard for their event qualify for the NCS Meet of Champions event the following week.

“I’m running 4 events this weekend (the 100m, 200m, 4x100m, and 4x400m), and I have been battling injuries all season along with not even getting a postseason last year, so it’s great to go out there and compete to qualify even farther,” said Lester. 

Although the season is over for many, the year was full of athletes gaining new personal records in their events while working to build a more tight-knit community that had been missing since the pandemic hit. 

“One thing that makes this team special is the amazing coaching staff we have. I feel very grateful for all the expertise and support from Coach Ozzie, Coach Barney, and Coach Pico, as they have really allowed me to grow as an athlete. The team would not be as motivated or successful without their presence,” said Vannoni.