Menlo News May 17, 2019

Girls’ track wins program’s first CCS Championship!

Five athletes come away with six top-three finishes

The Menlo girls' track team won the CCS Championship - its first in program history,

Juniors Charlotte Tomkinson (2) and Kyra Pretre (3) took first and second in the 800 at CCS

Michelle Louie raced the 200, 400 and 4x400 to help the Knights secure the championship.

From start to finish, the Menlo girls’ track team bolted through the CCS Championships to take its first section title in program history Saturday at Gilroy High.
The Knights, the smallest school to ever win a CCS championship, jumped past San Lorenzo Valley and Silver Creek by 15 points to win and sending the top three finishers to state.On Friday, it all came down to five girls in seven events: three of them running three events, and one doubling.

“It was such an amazing experience to win tonight as a team. beyond being the first team in program history to win, it was the first time that a small-school team won in CCS history. achieving such a big accomplishment with only five girls took so much grit and effort from everyone,” Junior Kyra Pretre said. “i think the meet went as well as it possibly could have, and it was the best feeling to experience it with such a loving, supportive team.”

Pretre kicked off the night for Menlo, winning the 1600 in a personal-best 5:01.58. Charlotte Tomkinson, also a junior, and Pretre went 1-2 in the 800, crossing the finish line in 2:13.69 and 2:15.16, respectively, collecting nearly one-third of the team’s points in one event.
The Knights ended the night with the 4x400 team of junior Michelle Louie, senior Lauren Hamilton, Pretre and Tomkinson, taking second place in a blazing 3:56.74 - topping their time of 3:59.78 set at the Stanford Invitational.
Alexandra Chan, a senior, finished third in the 100 hurdles in 14.71, eclipsing her previous-best of 15.19. Chan also placed eighth in the 300 hurdles in 48.96.
Tomkinson also placed third in the 400 in 57.35 and junior Michelle Louie was seventh in 59.39. Louie also contributed point in taking seventh in the 200 in 26.18.

“Going into the meet we all knew we had a shot at the team title but we also went in knowing that every point would count and we’d all have to give it everything we had to make it happen,” Pretre said. “We were definitely surprised by the wide margin we won by, but everything aligned for us tonight; it all still feels surreal.”