Story by Marcus Tolero/Photo by Craig Mandall

The CCSF Track team will be well represented at this weekend’s NorCal Finals held at De Anza College. 

The Rams will send both men’s relay teams, high jumper Rodney Morgan, and the 100-meter conference champion Ana’staja Fulbright. 

Track and Field Coach Douglas Owyang said his team is ready for the NorCal Championships.

“I think that we are mentally and physically ready to give our best performance. We are well prepared and ready for the challenge, and that’s why we work hard all year to get to this part of the season,” Owyang said. 

At last week’s NorCal Trials, the 4x100 team of sophomores Elijah Allen, Anthony Ismail, Marquis Mahone-Chambers, and freshman Marquez Bura ran an impressive 42.34 in their preliminary heat, finishing third in the heat (fifth overall time). The 4x400 team of Mahone-Chambers, Ismail, Allen, and freshman Ray Warren finished fifth in their preliminary heat with a time of 3:25.93 (eighth overall time). 

Freshman high jumper Rodney Morgan comes into the NorCal finals as arguably the best high jumper in the state. At the Woody Wilson Classic Open at UC Davis, Morgan won the high jump event with a 6’10.75” jump, which tied him for the state’s highest mark. 

Ana’staja Fulbright, who earned the title of fastest sprinter in the Coast Conference after capturing the 100-meter, placed eighth overall in the NorCal Trial’s 100-meter dash  with a time of 12.68. Fulbright will look to recapture the magic of her Coast Conference Championship performance, where she ran a 12.56 in the 100-meter dash, when she faces off against Northern California’s finest 100-meter sprinters. 

In preparation for the NorCal Finals, the coaching staff used this week to focus on the athletes’ mental approach to this penultimate event before the State Championships. 

“There’s really no magic workouts right now. The bulk of our work is done. It’s more on the mental side.  Visualization, relaxation, taking care of our bodies, getting enough rest, and recovery – it’s juggling and mixing those.

“One of the things I tell them is that the times in the book really don’t matter at this point. You have to throw them out the window. There are no guarantees. That’s why we have this competition,” Owyang said.

The NorCal Finals takes place this Saturday at De Anza College.