Burnham Runs to Form in Return

After being sidelined for three weeks, Angela Burnham of Rio Mesa High made an impressive return to competition at the Ventura County track championships at Camarillo High on Friday night.

Burnham, the defending state champion in the 100 meters, had suffered through a virus, a strained hamstring and a case of the chicken pox in the past three weeks. She hadn’t raced since winning the 100 and 200 meters at the Arcadia Invitational on April 11.

“My body feels like it’s been through a war,” Burnham said after winning the 200 meters. “I’m dead.”

Tired or not, Burnham won the 100 meters in a wind-aided 12.1, the 200 with a 25.1 clocking and anchored Rio Mesa’s 400-meter relay team to a 49.3 victory. She ran a 57-second third leg on Rio Mesa’s 1,600-meter relay team that placed second in 4:04.2 to finish her night’s work.

“I’m just taking the meets one at a time,” Burnham said. “Considering it’s my first meet back, I’m pleased with how I ran tonight.”

Dave Bultman of Royal, Staci Leach of Thousand Oaks and Simi Valley’s Vanessa Dixon also won two individual events at Friday’s meet.

Bultman, the state-leader in the shotput and the discus, won those events. Bultman threw the shotput 60-4 1/2 and the discus 167-5.

Leach won the 100-meter low hurdles with a wind-aided 13.9, the 300-meter low hurdles (44.6) and anchored the Lancers to victory in the 1,600-meter relay (4:03.6) with a 57.8 anchor leg. She also ran the anchor leg on the Lancers’ 400-meter relay team, which placed second (49.6).

Dixon won the long jump (18-3) and the triple jump (36-6 1/2) with season-best marks.

The Simi Valley boys team, which has had its share of injuries this season, dominated the boys sprint events. Mike Carnes won the 100 in a wind-aided 10.60, Robert Harris won the 200 in 22.1 and the Pioneers won both relays, clocking a season-best 42.0 in the 400 relay and 3:20.3 in the 1,600 relay.

Overall, Valley-area athletes dominated the meet, winning 14 of 16 boys events and 13 of 15 girls events.

Doug Fairman of Thousand Oaks ran 4:17.6 to win the boys 1,600 and Christy Farrell of Thousand Oaks ran a season best of 4:59.9 in the the girls race.

In the 3,200 meters, Newbury Park’s Mike Esparza and Melissa Sutton each won. Esparza, a sophomore, won the boys race with a personal best of 9:26.5 and Sutton defeated Jena Haggenmiller of Thousand Oaks in her first race since injuring ner right hip a month ago to win the girls race with a 11:09.5 clocking. Haggenmiller clocked 11:10.3 in second.