June 27, 2005
Taylor Finishes 4th in Heat

The lone West Valley representative at this years Junior Nationals got some great experience in one of the biggest meets of the year. Freshman Shyrod Taylor ran in the Junior 200m at the Outdoor Junior National Track & Field Championships in the qualifying rounds on Friday. The Viking finished 4th in his heat with a time of 22.37 but missed one of the 9 qualifying spots into the final.

For complete results CLICK HERE.

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June 13, 2005
Taylor to Compete at Junior Nationals

Freshman Shyrod Taylor ran a qualifying mark in the 200m and will compete at this year's Junior National Championships. The Home Depot center in Carson, CA will host both the Junior Nationals as well as the Senior National Outdoor Championships June 23-26. For more information about the Jr Nat'l Meet CLICK HERE.

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June 9, 2005
Seven Vikings Will Continue at the 4-Year Level

Seven West Valley track & field athletes will now move on to the next level to finish their degrees and compete at some of the top Universities in the State starting in the Fall of 2005.

Congratulations and good luck to these hard working student-athletes. Stay tuned for a complete list of where all your former Vikings moved on to.

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May 15, 2005
West Valley Finishes Season at State Championships

Sacramento - The top community college athletes from around the state went head to head at American River College for the 2005 California State Championships. The two day event found many Viking athletes capping off a very successful season among some of the finest athletes in California. - Complete Results -

The women's 4x100m relay team (Ashley Mamola, Whitney Cole, Christine Nguyen, Emma Asiyo) ended the season with a new best of 50.69 for 9th place.

Nguyen would soon return to finish 8th and 9th in the hurdle events with times of 15.93 and 68.95. Sophomore Billy Hall also placed ninth in the 400m IH stopping the clock at 56.52.

Freshman Chris Bencomo finished 6th in the men's Pole Vault competition with a 14 foot clearance into the head wind.

Heather Laptalo and Taff Dirks finished 9th and 11th, respectively in the 5000 meter final (19:31 and 16:41, respectively).

The women's 4x400m relay (Cole, Nguyen, Shelby Burrus, Asiyo) just missed their season best with a final time of 4:08.35. The men's 4x400m relay team (Durrell Roberts, Bencomo, Shyrod Taylor, Mohammed Zahriya) sealed the day with their 7th place finish in 3:18.81.

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May 14, 2005
Laptalo Finishes 7th in 10k at State Meet
First Woman From Northern California

Sacramento - Day one of the California State Championships took place last night and the only West Valley athlete competing was Heather Laptalo (right) in the 10,000m final. Laptalo (ranked 8th before the race) finished as the top NorCal runner in 7th place with a time of 41:18. Orange Coast's Ludi Valdez won the race with a time of 39:24. Laptalo will return again tonight for the 5000m final.

Today's events begin at 3:30 with the last event being run at 8:10pm. The Vikings competiting, and their rankings, are:

For live results of the State Championships CLICK HERE.

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May 7, 2005
Billy Hall Places 3rd in 400m Intermediate Hurdles
Relay Teams Shine at NorCal Finals

Modesto - Great weather and a stadium filled with track fans greeted Northern California's top athletes for day two of the NorCal Finals. West Valley College only qualified a handful of athletes for this meet, but fortunately everybody will be finishing their season at the State Championships.

The highlight of the day came from sophomore Billy Hall with his 3rd place finish in the 400mIH. The former Live Oak HS hurdler was ranked 5th going into the race, but his solid PR and agressive attitude brought the young Viking to the award stand as he stopped the clock at 55.09.

Four other Vikings competed in individual events, but each one just missed their bid by one position. Christine Nguyen finished 5th in both hurdle races with new PR's of 15.59 and 67.22, moving her to 5th and 9th on our All-Time List, respectively. After viewing the SoCal results, Nguyen's time in the 100m hurdles was good enough to earn her a spot on the line next week. Shyrod Taylor also placed 5th with a personal best time of 21.48, and just missed qualifying by 0.02 seconds. Shelby Burrus finished 7th in her 1500m race with a new best of 5:03.32. And Taff Dirks also just missed qualifying as he again lowered his time to 4:09.04 for 7th place.

The three Viking relay squads each qualified to compete at next weeks State Meet. The women's 4x400m relay team ran to an impressive 2nd place finish with a new best time of 4:05.89 (Whitney Cole, Nguyen, Burrus, and Emma Asiyo). The men's 4x400m relay team also had a huge race with a new season best of 3:17.60 to finish 3rd (Durrell Roberts, Chris Bencomo, Taylor, and Mohammed Zahriya). The women's 4x100m team also will advance on as they finished 4th with a time of 50.78 (Ashley Mamola, Cole, Nguyen, Asiyo).

At the conclusion of the meet, the coaches made their scratches and sophomore Taff Dirks will indeed get his shot at competing at next week's State Meet in the 5000m.

Next week's State Championships will be held at American River College in Sacramento. Friday night will be the finals of the 10k for Heather Laptalo. On Saturday the remainder of events will be contested. More to come later this week. For meet information and a schedule of events, CLICK HERE.

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May 6 , 2005
Bencomo and Laptalo Are Headed to Sacramento

Modesto - With day one of the NorCal Finals complete, two of the three Vikings competing on Friday have stamped their ticket for the State Championships next weekend. From this meet, the top 6 in field events and non-lane races qualify and the 800m and below take the top 4 finishers. So for some athletes, this could be the end of the road.

Freshman Chris Bencomo (at right) finished 4th in the Men's Pole Vault with clearance of 15-1. It came down to misses/attempts as four men cleared that height. The winner was State leader Daniel Imlach of Shasta College (15-7).

Heather Laptalo just missed her personal best as she placed 3rd in the 5000m final with a time of 19:05. The freshman battled it out over the entire 3.1 mile distance to earn her second All-NorCal certificate of these Championships.

Sophomore Taff Dirks had a rougher showing as he finished 7th in the men's 5000m event with a time of 16:10. Fortunately he has one more shot today to try and qualify in the men's 1500m.

For live results of the meet CLICK HERE.

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May 3 , 2005
Laptalo Places 2nd in Finals of NorCal 10,000m
Many Vikings Also Qualify On To This Weeks Finals

Oakland - With practically all the teams in the North present, the top 24 athletes in each event went head to head last Saturday at Merritt College. These Northern California Trials had prelims in almost every event in order to narrow the fields down to 9 in the lane events and 12 in the distance races for this week's NorCal Finals at Modesto College.

The only race contested as a final was the 10k. Freshman Heather Laptalo would once again impress us all as she placed 2nd in the race, over 90sec faster than her first outing only 9 days earlier. Laptalo's time of 40:28 gives her the 5th best time in school history. Her next effort in this event will be at the State Championships on May 13 in Sacramento. This week she will compete in the finals of the women's 5000m.

The day continued with a full schedule of preliminary races for athletes to try to earn a spot at this week's NorCal Finals. Qualifying in individual races for West Valley College were Shelby Burrus in both the W1500m and W800m, Taff Dirks in the M1500m, Christine Nguyen in both hurdle races, Whitney Cole in the W400m, Shyrod Taylor in the M200m, and Billy Hall in the men's 400mIH. The men's 4x400m relay team will move on as they finished with the 4th best time of the day and both women's relay teams will also compete on Saturday.

For more information about the NorCal Finals please go to www.norcalstat.com and follow the appropriate links.

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Nguyen Wins Both Hurdle Races
Lady Vikings Get Second Place Thanks to Many PR's

April 23, 2005
Hayward - After a grueling battle over the two day event, the Lady Vikings narrowly missed a team victory by a mere 9 points. Hartnell College won the team title with their 164 points to West Valley's 155. City College of San Francisco was third with 108. On the men's side, the Vikings finished 4th as a team while CCSF took the title with 254.5 points to Hartnell's 171.

Freshman Christine Nguyen was named Athlete of the Meet by the Viking coaching staff after a very impressive day with 4 All-Conference honors to boast. With two individual wins of her own, Nguyen (at right) was also a member of the 1st place 4x100m relay team and 2nd place 4x400m relay team. The second ranked Nguyen stole the victory in the short hurdles with a season best of 16.04. She later notched another win in the 400m IH with a personal best time of 68.33.

Also earning All-Conference honors (Top 3) in Saturday's events were Heather Laptalo in the 5000m (already Conf champ in 10k) for her 2nd place effort (19:12), Emma Asiyo in the 100m (2nd, 13.33), Ashley Mamola for her 3rd place finishes in both hurdle races (16.52 and 74.99), and Whitney Cole in the 200m (3rd, 27.42). Mamola, Cole, Nguyen, and Asiyo were also members of the winning 4x100m relay team as they ran a season best of 50.89. Cole, Nguyen, Mamola, and Shelby Burrus also earned runner-up honors in the 4x400m relay (4:16.57).

In their quest for a 4th place team finish, the men would also walk away with some All-Conference recipients. Freshman Chris Bencomo (at left) took 2nd in the Pole Vault with a jump of 15-6. Sophomore Taff Dirks added another All-Conference certificate to his collection as he finished 2nd in the 5000m (16:06). Shyrod Taylor earned a pair of 3rd place finishes in both the 200m and 400m (22.13 and 48.88). Joining Taylor and Bencomo in both relays that finished 2nd with season bests were Mohammed Zahriya and Durrell Roberts (41.75 and 3:20.11).

A great day for all the Vikings who competed. This week many of these athletes will square off with some of NorCals finest in the NorCal Trials to be held at Merritt College on Saturday (4/30). Only the men's and women's 10,000m are finals this week. All other events contested will be prelims for the NorCal Finals in Modesto on May 7th.

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Laptalo Wins Conference 10,000m
April 21, 2005

Hayward - After the first day of competition West Valley has already crowned a Conference Champion. With much of the day consisting of trials in sprint races and finals for some field events, the Vikings did what they had to do to qualify for finals on Saturday and score some valuable points. With the first day complete, the Lady Vikings are currently in 3rd place... a shot for the team Conference title is within reach.

In the Women's 10k freshman Heather Laptalo (at left) covered the 25 lap event in 42:00 to earn her first win of these championships, first All-Conference honor, and put her at #7 on the WVC Top 10 List. Sophomore Shelby Burrus placed 4th (43:39) and is now #9 on our List. Amanda Schwabe finished 8th after leading our Vikings with a 3-4-5 finish in the women's high jump along with Louise Sarabosing (4th) and Lily Pham (5th). In the finals of the women's Javelin, sophomore Natalia Crema impressed everybody with her 3rd place finish with a throw of 97-7. She would later place 6th in the hammer (83-0).

In the trials of the sprint races, each of our Vikings qualified for Saturday's finals. Competition begins at 11am at Chabot College in Hayward. For results of Thursdays events click here.

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Lady Vikes Get Win and Many PRs
April 16, 2005

Pleasant Hill - With many of Northern California's finest athletes in attendance, the West Valley College women's track & field team narrowly edged host school Diablo Valley College for the win Friday night at the Viking Twilight Invitational. West Valley's final score was 80.5, DVC finished 2nd with 79 points and Santa Rosa placed 3rd with 77 points.

It came down to the 4x400m relay, and with a new season best of 4:15.09, West Valley held off DVC at the line and earned the 10 points needed to win the meet. All this without top 400m runner Emma Asiyo, who earlier placed 2nd in the open 400m with a time of 59.90. The team consisted of Whitney Cole, Christine Nguyen, Shelby Burrus, and Amanda Schwabe. These ladies also performed well in their respective individual events. Cole placed 4th in the open 400m (60.68) and won her heat of the 200m (26.92). Nguyen lowered her time in the 100m hurdles (16.19) and the 400mIH (70.06) for a pair of 4th place finishes. Burrus (seen at right) ran a personal best in the 800m (2:24.09) and finished 2nd in her heat. Schwabe competed in the high jump for the first time this year and finished third with a clearance of 4' 6". Sophomore Natalia Crema also finished 4th in the Javelin (96-10.5) and improved her school record in the Hammer to 86-4.

The men also had a successful day which started with a season best in the 4x100m relay (42.10). Chris Bencomo, Shyrod Taylor, Durrell Roberts, and Mohammed Zahriya also finished in the top 3 of their individual events. Bencomo faced off with the top NorCal pole vaulter, but the Shasta athlete came out on top today. Bencomo cleared 15 feet for 2nd place. Taylor finished 3rd in the 200m (21.97). Roberts placed 2nd in the 400m (50.08) and 6th in the 200m (22.33). Zahriya also got third in the 100m (11.09). Sophomore Taff Dirks also walked away with a new PR in the 800m with a time of 2:01.84.

With some great momentum these past few weeks, the West Valley Vikings gear up for the Coast Conference Championships this week. This year's competition will be at Chabot College in Hayward. Thursday's action will include trials of the sprint events, as well as finals of some field events and the men's and women's 10,000m races. The remainder of the finals will be held on Saturday.
- Click Here For a Tentative Time Schedule -

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Roberts, Taylor and Zahriya Collect Wins
April 9, 2005

Santa Rosa - In the 4-way meet against some familiar faces (DVC, SJCC, SRJC), West Valley College proved once again that hard work brings success. Many more season and career bests were achieved by the Viking athletes on Friday, and with only 2 weeks until the Conference Championships things are coming together at the right time. - Results on DirectAthletics -

Three of the four men from our relay team each won an individual event. Sophomore Mohammed Zahriya (at left) won the 100m in a season best of 10.86. Freshmen Shyrod Taylor and Durrell Roberts won the 200m and 400m, respectively. Taylor lowered his time to 21.61. Freshman David Conover improved his triple jump mark for the win (40-6.75).

Former Milpitas HS standout, Whitney Cole won the women's 400m in a season best of 61.44 and later improved her 200m time to 26.81. Cole was also a member of both relay teams. Frosh Louise Sarabosing collected wins in both the long and triple jumps at 13-5.25 and 27-1.5, respectively.

This week West Valley heads to Diablo Valley College for the Viking Twilight meet to earn some final marks before the Coast Conference Championships.

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Fast Times Posted at Johnny Mathis Invite
April 4, 2005

San Francisco - The Viking Track & Field teams took advantage of the great weather and quality competition at the 24th Annual Johnny Mathis Invite at San Francisco State. In the non-scored meet, our Vikings went head to head with some of the best athletes in Northern California, both 4-year and post-collegiate athletes.

Freshmen, Shyrod Taylor and Durrell Roberts went 1-2 in their heat of the 400m with new bests of 49.80 and 49.81, respectively. Taylor would later return in the 200m for 2nd place honors with another sub-22sec mark (21.98) as he was barely nipped at the line. Sophomore and 3-time All-Conference performer Taff Dirks, would run a career best in the 5000m with a time of 15:50.56. Freshman Chris Bencomo cleared 15-7 in the Pole Vault this week and finished 3rd behind two Stanford athletes.

The ladies also put up impressive marks this weekend with soph Ashley Mamola (seen above) improving her collegiate best in the 100m hurdles (16.36). Freshman Heather Laptalo lowered her time in the 5000m among some fierce competition (19:04.28). Sophomore and 4-time All-Conference recipient Shelby Burrus would come close to her career best in the 800m with a time of 2:26.96.

The Vikings travel North this Friday to Santa Rosa JC for a small meet with SJCC, DVC, and SRJC for another opportunity to improve their marks before the Conference Championships.

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Sprinters Compete at Stanford Invite
March 29, 2005

Stanford - West Valley College brought a few Vikings to compete at this years Stanford Invitational this past Friday and Saturday. The meet featured many of the top Division I and II athletes from across the country, as well as top level post-collegiate athletes. Our Vikings held their own and some were able to walk away with new bests.
- Complete Results -

On Friday afternoon, hurdlers Christine Nguyen and Ashley Mamola started the day with season bests in the 100m hurdles (16.51 and 16.77, respectively). In Saturday's action, the Vikings competed in both 4x100m relays and the men's 4x400m relay. The men improved their 4x100m time to 42.18 (Zahriya, Taylor, Roberts, Bencomo). The same men returned in the 4x400m relay with soph Mohammed Zahriya anchoring with a sub-50s split.

This week the Vikings compete at the Johnny Mathis Invite at San Francisco State. This meet will also feature some DI and DII colleges and some local post-collegiate talent. Another great opportunity for the Vikings to post some great marks.

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Big Weekend for Vikings
March 20, 2005

Saratoga - On Thursday the West Valley College Vikings hosted the West Valley Open Invite and had another opportunity to compete on their home track. In the non-scoring meet against some very strong JC programs, most of the Vikings were able to walk away with season bests.
- Complete Results -

Some of the highlights of the meet included Sophomore Taff Dirks' (at right) season best in the 5000m race with a time of 16:09, good enough for 5th place. Freshman Chris Bencomo continues to raise the bar in the Pole Vault. This week he cleared 15-0 to earn the win. Sophomore Natalia Crema improved her Javelin best to 98-7 as she finished in 2nd place for the event.

The Vikings also successfully hosted the 29th Annual West Valley Relays on Friday and Saturday. The event ran smoothly thanks to the help of the officials, current WV athletes and the many alumni that came out.

"We were nervous all week leading up to the event because the forecast called for lots of rain, especially on Saturday," said Meet Director Lisa Renteria. "But we lucked out on both days with the patches of clear skies. The sun came out long enough for us to put on every event and allow all the athletes to participate throughout the day."

This week some of the Vikings will compete at the Stanford Invitational on Friday and Saturday, while others will take a week away from competition and gear up for next weeks Johnny Mathis Invite.

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West Valley To Host 3 Days of Competition
March 16, 2005

West Valley College athletes and coaches prepare for a very busy weekend. On Thursday, the Vikings host the 3rd Annual West Valley Open Invite. The meet will feature mostly community college athletes as well as some open/unattached local talent.
Click here for the current list of entrants in the West Valley Open Invite

Friday and Saturday will mark the 29th year of the always popular West Valley Relays. There are 58 schools and over 1300 athletes scheduled to compete in the two day affair. The meet continually produces top marks and season highlights for these young high schoolers. The weekend forecast calls for rain, so it could be a wet one. But that wont stop these athletes from enjoying another great meet.
Click here for the current list of entrants for the West Valley Relays

Join us for the fun and support your West Valley College Track & Field teams.
Thursday begins at 2pm - Friday begins at 2:30pm - Saturday begins at 9am

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Vikings Continue to Improve Marks
March 12, 2005

San Jose - Only a handful of West Valley athletes competed in the 6-way meet at San Jose City on Friday, but many were able to take advantage of the competition and walk away with season and personal bests. - Complete Results -

One of the highlights of the meet came from freshman Shyrod Taylor (at right) as he once again lowered his 200m best to 21.83, which now puts him with the 8th fastest time in school history. Teammate Mohammed Zahriya finished 2nd in the 100m with a season best of 10.95. Making his season debut was former Branham HS standout Andre Ingram as he earned a time of 11.26 in the short sprint. The men's 4 x 100m relay team (with these three men plus Durrell Roberts) also captured the win with a time of 42.56.

Sophomore Shelby Burrus also had an impressive day as she was able to double up with a pair of season bests just missing her PR's in the 1500 and 800m races (5:07 and 2:27). Freshman Heather Laptalo also lowered her 1500m time to 5:04 with her 3rd place finish. Emma Asiyo grabbed the win in the open 400m with a time of 61.54. The ladies 4 x 400m relay also collected another win on this day with a time of 4:21.

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West Valley Competes at Beaver Relays
March 6, 2005

Sacramento - Even with our team numbers having only 11 on each side, both squads competed with the best in Northern California in many of the relay races. Most of the Vikings ran in multiple events throughout the day and some were still able to put up some seasonal bests. -Complete Results-

Freshman Christine Nguyen (at left) lowered her season best in the 400m hurdles to 70.17 which was good enough for a 4th place finish. Nguyen is currently ranked 6th in NorCal. Freshman Chris Bencomo placed third in the Pole Vault, matching his best of 14-6 and giving him the third best vault in NorCal. Earlier in the day Bencomo also anchored our men to victory in their heat of the 4 x 100m with a time of 42.36. The lady Vikings improved their 4 x 100m time to 52.29 with their third place performance.

West Valley's womens distance squad finished with a pair of 3rd place performances in both the Distance Medley (13:13) and the 4 x 1600m (23:33). In the Sprint Medleys, the ladies would finish 5th (4:36) and the men took 6th overall (3:40). Both teams sealed the day with the 4 x 400m relays with the men taking 5th (3:25.96) and the women finishing 4th with a new best of 4:15.96, giving the ladies the 3rd best time in NorCal.

This week some of the Vikings will be resting from competing, while others may be at San Jose City for a mini-meet on Friday.

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Lady Vikings Capture Win at Home
February 24, 2005

West Valley successfully hosted its first of two home meets of the season as the Women's team earned the win in this 6-way meet with 119 points. The men's team, missing two of its top runners, would finish 5th with 75 points. Diablo Valley won the men's competition with 141 points. -Complete Results-

The Lady Vikings won a total of 7 events which helped seal the victory for the day. The day started and ended with wins in the relay races, which included a season best of 52.35 in the 4x100m relay and a number 8 spot on the All-Time List. Emma Asiyo was first to cross the line in both the 100m and 200m races while improving on her marks in each as well (12.79, 26.11). Freshman Heather Laptalo (seen at right) won her first 5000m race on the track after being sick all week with a very impressive time of 19:08. In the field, Natalia Crema picked up another win along with a PR in the Javelin with a throw of 94 feet. And Lily Pham won the Triple Jump event just missing her best with a jump of 26 feet. Five of the seven wins earn a spot on our Top Ten All-Time List.

The men would have a rougher showing in some areas, however we were still able to capture 4 wins on the day. Freshman Shyrod Taylor has continued to shine as he won both the 200 and 400 meter events with career bests of 22.03 and 51.21. Taylor's 200m time now puts him at #9 on the All-Time List. Pole Vaulter, Chris Bencomo improved in his best with a 14-6 jump to win the event. Sophomore Taff Dirks also brought home a win in the 5000m race with a time of 16:23. With our top sprinter, Mohammed Zahriya, out of town for this meet our relay team used many alternates. Unfortunately, our top 400mIH in NorCal, Billy Hall, ran a leg in the 4x100m relay and pulled up before the handoff due to a pulled hamstring. Hopefully Hall will be back in full force in a few weeks.

The Vikings had many other exciting finishes as the day went on. Visit complete results at our 2005 season schedule. Next up for the Vikings is the Beaver Relays in Sacramento. The meet will offer head to head action with many of NorCals finest in a multitude of relay settings (ie. 4x1600, Distance/Sprint Medleys, 4x200m, etc). Things are sure to get exciting!!

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Heavy Rains Postpone Hartnell Rotational
February 19, 2005

With an 80% chance of rain in the forecast and possible thunderstorms to join, Hartnell College called off the meet early yesterday morning. In what was set to be a 5-way meet between West Valley, Sequoias, San Mateo, Monterey and Hartnell, talks of rescheduling for later in the season look hopeful. Not all were disappointed though. "With the meet being cancelled, we were able to get in another solid workout to cap off a hard week of training," said Head Distance Coach Lisa Renteria.

The Vikings now look forward to hosting their own Rotational next Friday the 25th. The meet will feature two of the biggest programs in Northern California - American River, out of Sacramento, and Diablo Valley of Pleasant Hill. College of San Mateo and Santa Rosa JC will also be in attendance, both of which always have strong field event groups.

The meet begins at 2pm with the Women's 3000m Steeplechase. Come out and cheer on your Vikings as they continue to shine!

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Vikings Fare Well at Conference Preview
February 12, 2005

The West Valley Vikings competed at the Coast Conference Preview meet on Friday at San Jose City College. The meet offered the athletes a glance at where their fitness stacks up against everyone in the Conference. In total, the Vikings brought home 5 wins and many other top 3 finishes in spite of the often wet conditions.
- Complete Results -

On the track, Emma Asiyo (seen at left) would again prove to be too fast for some. Asiyo won the 200m with a season best of 26.28, which now gives her the 9th fastest time in school history. She would also finish 2nd in the 100m with a 12.88. Also earning a win was freshman, Christine Nguyen in the 400m Hurdle race. Nguyen would also finish 2nd in the 100m hurdles earlier in the day. Heather Laptalo led our distance ladies in both the 1500 and 800m events with her 3rd and 4th place finishes (5:12.03 and 2:34.12, respectively).

Another 400m Hurdle victory came from sophomore Billy Hall. The former Live Oak HS standout edged the competition and stopped the clock at 57.32. Although they didn't get the win, Shyrod Taylor, Durrell Roberts, and Mohammed Zahriya would go 2-3-4 in the 200m. Zahriya would also finish 3rd in the 100m with a time of 11.10, with Taylor in 5th (11.15) and Chris Bencomo in 7th (11.25). Roberts also placed 2nd in the 400m earlier in the day with a time of 50.90.

The Viking relay teams showed their strengths as well. The men's team, who last week ran the 3rd fastest 4 x 100m in school history, just missed that mark this time around with their 42.39 win. They would improve their 4 x 400m time to 3:23.93 good enough to win their heat. The women improved on their time by 2 seconds as they stopped the clock at 4:17.67 for the win.

In the field, sophomore Natalia Crema improved her school record in the Hammer with a throw of 86-1 good enough for 3rd place overall. Crema would also finish 3rd in the Javelin (83-1). Freshman David Conover placed 3rd in the triple jump with a season best of 39-1.

Next up for the Vikings is the first of two 5-way meets. On Friday Feb 18th, we travel to Salinas to face against Hartnell, Sequoias, San Mateo and Monterey. View our 2005 Schedule for more information on our upcoming races and results.

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West Valley Dominates Pre-Season Scrimmage
February 5, 2005

The Track & Field program at West Valley may not be the largest, but as the saying goes... it's "quality not quantity" that counts. And today, the Vikings showed off their talents as they walked away with 16 wins out of the 34 events contested against San Jose City, De Anza and Santa Rosa.
-Complete Results-

The men's 4x100m relay started off the winning with a very strong 42.36 finishing time. That time puts them at # 3 on the West Valley All-Time List. The team consisted of soph. Mohammed Zahriya, and freshmen Shyrod Taylor, Durrell Roberts, and Chris Bencomo. The group continued to shine as the day went on. Zahriya won the 100m with a time of 11.03, and Roberts would finish third at 11.19. In the 200m, the Vikings finished 1-2-3 with Taylor (22.31) leading the charge with Roberts (22.59) and Zahriya (22.64) close in tow. Taylor would also grab the win in the 400m with a time of 51.66. The same four men would seal the day with a victory in the 4x400m relay with a time of 3:30.20.

Also earning a win on this day was sophomore and 3-time All-Conference performer, Taff Dirks. With a time of 9:33, Dirks won the 3000m race out of the 6 entrants. Sophomore Billy Hall won the 400m hurdles as he stopped the clock at 57.06.

In the field events, Bencomo (seen above) also earned a solo victory with his 14 foot jump in the Pole Vault. Freshman Brandon Bradford placed 4th in the high jump and also competed in the long jump and discus. Freshman Andrew Halderman took 6th in the discus with a toss of 119-6. David Conover finished 2nd in the triple jump with his 38-4.75 leap.

The women also saw a lot of the same success as they brought home 7 wins and many top 3 performances. Freshman Emma Asiyo won a pair of individual races with her victories in the 100m and 200m events (12.87, 26.74). Her 100m time moves her onto the All-Time List at #9. Asiyo also anchored both relay teams.

The former Milpitas HS duo, Whitney Cole and Christine Nguyen, would also each win an individual race. Cole cruised to victory in the 400m with a time of 1:05.20. Nguyen won the 400m hurdles in 1:12.16 and finished 2nd in the 100m hurdles with her 16.60, which now puts her at #10 on the All-Time List. The ladies would later finish the day with a win in the 4x400m relay with a time of 4:19.58.

The Vikings also showed their talents in the 3000m race with a 1-2 finish by All-NorCal performers Heather Laptalo and Ashley Harris. Laptalo won with a time of 11:47.7 to Harris' 11:52.3.

On the field, sophomore Natalia Crema captured a win in the Javelin with new best throw of 92-4. Crema also finished 3rd in the Hammer and Discus, and placed 4th in the Shot Put.

The Vikings next meet is Friday, Feb. 11th at San Jose City at the Coast Conference Preview. The meet offers the athletes the chance to see where they stack up against everybody in the conference. For a complete list of where the Vikings will be this season, please visit the 2005 Track Schedule.

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Welcome to Viking Track & Field
January 17, 2005

The West Valley College Track and Field teams are gearing up for what looks to be an exciting season. Many new and returning athletes have been training hard over the Winter break and are determined to leave impressive marks all over the board.

The Vikings boast 16 new recruits this Spring in the sprinting and field event department. The distance squad will feature 9 young freshman ready to round the oval after a solid Cross Country season in the Fall. Add this to the 8 returning athletes from last years squad and you have the recipe for a very successful season. Go to our team roster for a brief bio on each athlete.

The first competition of the season is Jan 29th at the Silver State Indoor Invite in Reno, NV. Meets will continue through the Spring until mid-May at the State Championships for those that qualify. Visit our 2005 Schedule and save the dates now!

This site has many exciting features about the strong tradition of the West Valley program. Take a moment to view school records and all-time best marks in school history.

For more information about the season, the team, or how to become a part of it... simply contact the coaches at 408.741.2457 or WVCtrack@hotmail.com.

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The 2005 Track & Field Season is Fast Approaching
December 19th, 2004

The West Valley Vikings are working hard over the break in order to improve upon last years finishes. In 2004, the Vikings placed 3rd in the men's division and 5th in the women's division at the Coast Conference Championships. This year, the numbers are up and that means more athletes in even more events. Things look promising!

As we prepare for the upcoming season, take a moment to look at results and highlights from the 2004 campaign.

- - - 2004 WVC Track & Field - - -

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