Boys track and field: Rojas sets pace in 1,600

Richard Dunn

LONG BEACH - The 1,600 meters can tricky, but pacesetter Humberto

Rojas of Estancia High seems to have mastered the four-lap run.

Rojas, a junior, pulled away from the field to win his heat and

qualified No. 2 in the 1,600 to highlight Newport-Mesa District boys

track and field athletes Saturday in the CIF Southern Section Division

III Preliminaries at Long Beach City College.

Rojas, who entered the prelims with the fourth-best qualifying time

(4:28.14), clocked a 4:23.40 and hopes to improve his personal best

(4:17) next Saturday in the CIF Division III Finals at Cerritos College.

“It was just like a workout today. I just wanted to try to qualify,”

said Rojas, who earned a fourth-place medal in the 1,600 last year in the

CIF Finals and placed sixth in the Masters Meet, but missed qualifying

for the state meet by a second and has set his sights on state this year.

“That’s the goal, to get to state,” added Rojas, who stayed with the

pack in the first lap Saturday, then tried to set the pace in the second

lap, before pulling away in the third and winning easily.

“If you go out too fast in the first lap, you’ll have nothing left for

the second lap and you’ll only be trying to recover in the third and

fourth,” Rojas said.

“I’m not really comfortable that I’ll go to (the CIF Finals) and win

it. It will be a battle up front, but the last 100 meters I’ll try to win

it.”

Rojas, who established his personal best this year in the Orange

County Championships at Trabuco Hills, where he finished third, dropped

the 800 before the CIF prelims because of a nagging sore right hip. “It

kind of pops,” Rojas said. “It kind of hurts.”

Rojas also ran on Estancia’s 1,600 relay, as did Mike Casillas, who

filled in only moments after running (and qualifying ninth) in the 3,200

(9:52.17).

Corona del Mar’s Chris Ringstrom was a surprise qualifier in the 200

(22.85), considered he didn’t start running the event until about a month

ago. Ringstrom was the eighth qualifier in the event.

Other boys who competed but did not advance included CdM shot putters

Joe Barber (20th at 43 feet, 9 inches) and Justin Wald (27th at 41-8

3/4); discus throwers Barber (12th at 137-8) and Wald (17th at 121-11); 110 high hurdlers Chris Carpenter of CdM (16th in 15.95) and Jason Johnston (32nd in 16.83); Johnston in the long jump (19-10); and 3,200

runners Alex Cahuantes of Estancia (19th in 10:21.77) and Irwin Salas of

Costa Mesa (31st in 10:41.27).