LIHU‘E — Kaua‘i Interscholastic Federation track and field athletes marked eight state qualifying times and distances during the final qualifying track meet, Thursday at Vidinha Stadium. Kelsey Cadiente, marking two auto state times, and Kawehi Louis-Diamond, marking one auto time,
LIHU‘E — Kaua‘i Interscholastic Federation track and field athletes marked eight state qualifying times and distances during the final qualifying track meet, Thursday at Vidinha Stadium.
Kelsey Cadiente, marking two auto state times, and Kawehi Louis-Diamond, marking one auto time, set the pace for the Kaua‘i girls who finished the night with 179 points, followed by Kapa‘a (139 points), Waimea (67 points) and Island School (19 points).
Kevin Marshall Adkisson of Kapa‘a High School continues his quest for a state title, finishing Thursday with qualifying distances in the Boys Shot Put (46 feet, 6 inches) and the Boys Discus Throw (163-03), to lead the Warriors to 181 team points.
Kaua‘i, getting two considerations and a auto time run by Darren Acoba, finished second with 163 team points, followed by Waimea (40 points) and Island School (29 points).
Logan Domingo was the talk of the boys arena, leaping to a 6-02 height in the Boys High Jump, surpassing the auto qualifying height of 6-00.
Pierce Murphy, already recognized as tops in the Boys 1500 and Boys 3000 meter runs, secured an auto state time in the Boys 800 Meter Run on a 2 minutes, 0.67 seconds trip around the track, besting the auto standard of 2:04.14.
Acoba’s top event, the Boys 110 Meter Hurdles, saw him stop the clock at 15.61 for an auto time standard. He added consideration runs of 42.76 in the Boys 300 Meter Hurdles and a 23.50 in the Boys 200 Meter Dash.
With the KIF Championships coming up Thursday and Friday, Kaua‘i coach Richard Matsumoto noted Acoba is in line to break a KIF record of 14.8 seconds set by Kenyatta Charles in 1999 in the 110 Hurdles. Acoba’s best run this season is a 14.96 and Matsumoto said a run of 15.03, or better will take the record.
Murphy stands a good chance of breaking three of his own records set in 2010, for the Boys 800M, 1500M and 3000M runs.
The Island School runner’s best run is a 2:00.67, bettering his 2010 run of 2:05.31 in the 800M. His recent performance at the Arcadia event in California also puts him in position to break his own records in the 1500M (4:08.67) and the 3000M (9:05.90), Matsumoto said in an email.
Kevin Marshall Adkisson is also in a position to break his own record in the Boys Discus Throw (151-03) after recording two throws of more than 160 feet, Thursday night throwing for 163-03, an auto distance.
Kaua‘i’s Michael Kahoekapu-Cruz, getting an auto distance with a 151-03 toss, Thursday, ties the 2010 record set by Marshall Adkisson.
Logan Domingo wowed the audience with his Boys High Jump leap of 6-02, just 0.5 inches short of a record 6-02.5 leap set in 2002 by Kapa‘a’s Cale Forsen. The jump is better than the state auto distance of 6-00.
Kaua‘i’s Cadiente recorded state times in her first-place finishes in the 100 Meter Dash (12.85) and the 200 Meter Dash (26.87), but the story goes to Kawehi Louis-Diamond, who despite her state time run of 15.68 in the 100 Meter Hurdles, is in line for a possible record in the event after posting a season-best 15.20 run. The current record in the 100M Hurdles is 15.55, set by Louis-Diamond in 2010.
Louis-Diamond finished the 300 Meter Hurdles on a 50.09 Thursday, but her season-best run is 47.63, a better run than the existing KIF record of 47.4 set in 1986 by Waimea’s Melissa Pacheco.
Kapa‘a’s Rachael Hinkel finished second in the 100 Meter Hurdles, but qualified for an auto time with her 16.63 run. Jayme Jacinto of Waimea, finishing third at 16.87, earned a consideration standard.
Lauren Spears of Island School topped the Girls 800 Meter Run on a 2:34.54 run for a consideration standard.
Waimea’s Cassandra Owen topped the Girls High Jump on a 4-10 leap, a consideration standard. Kaua‘i’s Reanna Javinar also pocketed a consideration leap of 33-08 in the Girls Triple Jump and Kapa‘a’s Katalina Fifita earned a consideration toss of 97-06 in the Girls Discus Throw.
The Kaua‘i Girls 4×100 Relay team stopped the clock at 50.83 for an auto time, Thursday, but its best performance is 50.39, placing it in position to break the KIF record of 50.16 set in 2008 when Cadiente, a member of the team, was a freshman.
The KIF qualifying round for track and field starts at 4 p.m., Thursday with the final round taking place Friday at Vidinha Stadium.
• Dennis Fujimoto, photographer and staff writer, can be reached at 245-3681 (ext. 253) or dfujimoto@kauaipubco.com.