Newport sparkles in Sea View finals
Steve Virgen
Newport Harbor High’s Amy Burlingham and Jillianne Whitfield could be
concentrating on their specialty sport, soccer and basketball,
respectively, but instead they are maintaining their competitive
fire. At the Sea View League track and field finals, Burlingham and
Whitfield put on their game faces and showed what they were all about
Friday at Irvine.
Burlingham won the 200 meters and 400 (58.74), and also helped the
Sailors qualify for the CIF Southern Section Division II
preliminaries in the 400 and 1,600 relays. Newport won the 1,600
relay with Kiley Hall, Amy Klippert, Elda Hernandez and Burlingham.
Whitfield won the discus (124 feet, 9 inches) for the
second-straight year and finished second in the shot put to also
advance to the CIF preliminaries May 16 at Mt. San Antonio College.
Junior Allyson Stoltz, who took second in the pole vault (9 feet),
junior Elizabeth Clayton, runner-up in the triple jump with a
season-best 35-7, sophomore Courtney Marshall, who finished third in
the 1,600 and also advanced to the CIF prelims in the 3,200, and
sophomore Hall, with a personal-best 1:00.53 for third place in the
400, will represent the Newport Harbor girls at the CIF prelims.
Marshall also completed a personal-record 5:15.98, lowering five
seconds off her previous best.
Some times were not available because of a computer problem,
including Burlingham’s time in the 200 and team scores.
On the boys side, senior Alec Urtusuastegui finished second in the
800 (2:01.73) and 1,600 (4:31.36). He won the Sea View League title
in the 3,200 last year. This is the first year he qualified for CIF
in the 1,600. Junior Nick Miller won the 3,200 and his time in the
1,600 was good enough for CIF (4:32.34), but he finished fourth so he
is an alternate. Sophomore Jon Szecsi finished second in the shot
put, while senior Jack Skahen was third in the shot. Both advanced to
CIF.
The Newport Harbor boys had won or shared the Sea View League
championship for the past three years, but that came to an abrupt end
this season, as the Sailors finished out of the running. However,
first-year coach Nowell Kay said the Sailors’ future has promise with
Miller coming back next season and leading the way.
Burlingham, who will play soccer at the University of Texas in the
fall, led the Sailors by qualifying for the CIF prelims in four
events. She will not compete in the 200, instead turning her focus on
breaking the school record in the 400 and contributing to the two
relay teams.
Burlingham trained with the under-19 national team this season and
she also plays for the So Cal Blues soccer club.
Last year, she did not compete in track and field because of her
busy club soccer schedule. Though her spring season is just as busy,
she decided to return. In 2001, Burlingham won the Sea View League
title in the 200 and she also advanced to the CIF prelims in the 100.
“She has been dedicated to the team,” Newport Coach Eric Tweit
said. “It hasn’t been like, ‘I’m a soccer girl doing track.’ Right
now she’s a track girl doing track. We couldn’t ask for anything
more. She has been a positive role model.”
Whitfield has also been maintaining a busy spring schedule. She
competes in club basketball for the Orange County-based Superflow and
on Sundays she plays in an adult field hockey league.
“I’m competitive,” Whitfield said in regard to the reason she
competes in the throws. “I have to come back for more each year to
make sure I stay on top [of the Sea View League].”
Tweit was also impressed with senior Elda Hernandez, who also
helped the Sailors qualify for CIF in both relays.
Overall, Tweit was pleased with the Newport girls’ showing, and he
took pleasure in Clayton’s performance in the triple jump. Clayton
has been dealing with nagging injuries, including shin splints, this
season, yet she is nearing her form as the year winds down.
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