Girls track: Whitfield rising in the discus

Richard Dunn

WALNUT - While Newport Harbor High sophomore Jillianne Whitfield

aims to one day become the school-record holder in the girls discus,

she’s still trying to educate some on what it is exactly that she does in

track and field.

“I know some people who don’t even know what (the discus) is,” said

Whitfield, whose goal is to break Cara Heads’ 1995 school record of 149

feet, 5 inches.

Whitfield, also a field hockey and basketball standout, didn’t reach

her season goal of 130 feet Friday night in the CIF Southern Section

Division II Preliminaries at Mt. San Antonio College.

But she qualified seventh for the CIF Finals next Saturday at Cerritos

College with a toss of 121-11 on her second of three throws (her third

was 120-11).

Whitfield was one of two Newport Harbor girls to advance to the

postseason’s next round, along with triple jumper Elizabeth Clayton, who

qualified fifth with a personal-best 37-0.

“I’m excited about (the CIF Finals),” Whitfield said. “I wanted to

throw farther, but I qualified, so I’m excited. I definitely didn’t want

this to be my last day.”

In last year’s CIF Division II Prelims, Whitfield hit the pole on her

first two throws (out of three) and didn’t qualify, and, on her first

warmup throw Friday, she hit the pole again and got “a little rattled.”

Whitfield, who prefers the discus over the shot put (in which she did

not qualify), composed herself during warmups and fired away in the

three-round competition.

“The discus is something in which you have to be relaxed to do it ...

(but) it doesn’t look relaxing,” said Whitfield, the Co-MVP of the

Tournament of Champions last fall on Harbor’s field hockey team and

5-foot-7 first-team All-Sea View League shooting guard in hoops.

“My goal this year is to break 130 feet, and next year I hope to reach

140 feet and, then, my senior year I hope to reach 150 feet, and after

that the record’s mine.”Clayton, whose pervious best in the triple jump

was 36-6 after reaching 35-11 in the league finals to advance, enjoyed an

outstanding competition, going 36-11 on another jump besides her 37-0.

“She also went farther on another jump, in which she fouled,” Newport

Harbor jumping coach Nowell Kay said. “That’s really encouraging, because

now we know she can go farther.”

The Sailors’ 400 and 1,600 relay teams did not qualify, while Clayton

missed in the 100-yard hurdles (personal-best 16.04). Kiley Hall (1:01.44

in the 400), Kristen McClune (5-0 in the high jump), Valarie Day (51.31

in the 300 hurdles) and Jennifer Ryder (50.17 in the 300 hurdles) did not

advance for the Sailors.