Cuesta Women's Track & Field finished 6th at Coast-Valley Showdown last Friday in Modesto. The Cougars garnered 53 points in the 10-team event. The Cougars claimed only one event champion at the meet but posted three other podium worthy finishes. All State High Jumper Grace Gutierrez led the way with an easy win in her event. She took the High Jump title, while clearing only 5'1", which is well off her Cuesta Record mark of 5'4.5". She was chased by her teammate Rian Huffman, who took the Silver after equaling her season-best leap of 4'11" for the third time this season. On the Track, 2023 State Finalist Elle Casselman appears to be back in form, after an early season injury. Casselman finished 2nd in the 1,500-meters with a time of 5:08.54, while in the Throws Harper Clark took the Bronze in the Discus with a toss of 107-5. Clark also took 4th in the Shot Put with a season-best toss of 33-8.5.
Heptathlete Savannah Shoemaker (pict) qualified for the CCCAA State Championships with a 4th place finish at the CCCAA Regional Multi-Event Finals. She scored a career-high 3,988 points, which moved her into third place all-time at Cuesta behind former CCCAA State Champions Riley Cooks and Julia Turing. Shoemaker only hit a personal-best in the 800-meters (2:31.99), so she has plenty of points to add at the 2024 CCCAA State Championships on May 17 & 18.
Women's Track & Field shall enjoy a bye this week, before enduring Track & Field's final gauntlet-five straight weeks of championship events. The Cougars next meet is the 2024 Western State Conference Preliminary Meet on Friday, April 19.
