Dos Pueblos, San Marcos, and Santa Barbara Athletes Square Off at Channel League Tri-Meet

With spring break behind them, track and field athletes from Dos Pueblos, San Marcos, and Santa Barbara high schools competed at Peabody Stadium in a Channel League tri-meet on Wednesday as they round into form for the final stretch of the season.

For Santa Barbara High, Anne Knecht and Davis Flanagin were two of the top individual performers. Knecht took first place in the 400 meters and 3200 meters races with times of 61.50 and 11:49.59, respectively.

“In the two miles, I just wanted to have fun, first and foremost. Get out the first mile, see how I felt in the last 800; if I could kick, I could kick,” Knecht said. “I ended up cruising the next to last lap and letting it all go in the last 400 [meters].”

Flanagin exploded to victory in the 100-meter dash with a time of 11.11. He also won the long and triple jumps with marks of 22’0.5″ and 42’11.75″.

In the boys’ 200 meters, Dylan Briner of San Marcos took first place with a time of 22.97. On the girls’ side, Ava Carter of San Marcos was dominant in the sprints, winning the 100 meters with a time of 12.79 and the 200 meters with a time of 26.79.

“Our girls’ varsity won both the meets today against Santa Barbara and Dos Pueblos,” said San Marcos coach Marilyn Hantgin. “This meet is always really fun for us with all three local schools, and it’s really good competition.”

Makenzie Fauver was another standout for San Marcos, as she won the high jump and 300-meter hurdles and took second place in the triple jump.

Sophomore Carter Battle had another excellent day for Santa Barbara with a first-place high jump mark of 5’9″. He finished second in the long jump with a PR of 19’7″ and placed third in the 400 meters with a time of 53.62. Conor Dolan of Dos Pueblos won the boys’ 400 meters with a time of 52.06 and Jonas Strand from San Marcos came in second with a time of 52.30.

In the throwing events, Clara Tracewell of San Marcos won both the shot put and discus with marks of 34’5″ and 99’3″, respectively. On the boys’ side, Joseph Lechuga of Santa Barbara won the discus with 121’09”, and Lucas Chin of San Marcos won the shot put with a throw of 48’9″. 

The most exciting race of the day was the final event, the boys’ 4×400 relay, where the Dos Pueblos team of Andrew Brennan, Andrew Gentry, Dylan Orquiola and Conor Dolan edged out San Marcos and Santa Barbara with a time of 3:35.91.