Mission League track finals on Thursday will feature lots of speed
Maybe Tom Cruise will head to Sherman Oaks Notre Dame on Thursday for the Mission League track and field finals, because he was the one who said in his 1986 film, “Top Gun,” that he felt “the need for speed.”
There will be no shortage of speed in the 100 meters, where there are so many runners who have run under 11 seconds this season that a second 100 meters final could be staged if necessary. Loyola’s Zion Phelps had the top time at 10.39. Notre Dame’s Quincy Hearn is at 10:52. Loyola’s Jayden Davis ran 10.57. And there’s a Harvard-Westlake freshman, Calvin Portley, who ran 10.69 in Monday’s preliminaries.
The 4×100 relay should also be exceptional, a match for Notre Dame and Loyola. The Notre Dame quartet of Nikko Petronicolos, Quincy Hearn, Beckham Borquez and Emmanuel Pullins ran 40.76. Loyola has a time of 40.73.
Borquez is also a top hurdler and defending state champion JJ Harel of Notre Dame will compete in the high jump. Loyola’s Ejam Yohannes is one of the favorites to win a state title in the 400.
League finals are scheduled all week, with the Trinity League finals Friday at 6 p.m. at JSerra.
The Southern Section preliminaries are next weekend, followed by finals on May 16 at Moorpark High.
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