Williams Stays on His Feet Just Long Enough for Taft

WOODLAND HILLS —  Fred Williams of Taft High was battered and bruised after a West Valley League track and field showdown Friday against visiting Birmingham.

But the pain was worth it after the senior anchored Taft to a come-from-behind victory in the mile relay to push the Toreadors past the Patriots, 68-59.

Taft, the top-ranked team in the region by The Times, had a 63-59 lead over No. 2 Birmingham entering the mile relay, the final event of the meet. But the winner of the relay would win the meet because first place was worth five points and second worth zero.

Anthony Hartzog and Alexis Pitt gave Taft (4-0, 3-0 in league meets) a 15-yard lead after the first two legs of the relay, but Josh Zeichik lost about 25 yards to D’Andre Sewell on his leg, leaving Williams 10 yards behind Ramal Porter at the final exchange.

Porter, who won the 440 in 51.0, doubled Birmingham’s lead in the first 165 yards of the last leg, but Williams shifted gears with a 220 remaining.

He cut Birmingham’s lead to 10 yards midway through the final turn, narrowed it to five coming off the curve and nipped Porter by two inches at the finish line as his 47.9 split gave Taft a 3:25.9 victory.

“I knew what I was doing,” said Williams, who crashed to the dirt track with Porter after they tangled arms leaning at the finish. “I never go out too fast in the mile relay. . . . I wanted to see what kind of pace he was running [in the first 220].”

Williams won the 100 meters in 10.6, the 220 yards in a career-best 21.6 and anchored the 440 relay team that won in 43.0.

Taft got double victories from junior Daniel Clements in the mile (4:30.6) and two-mile (career-best 9:52.4) and senior Jamaal Crawford in the long jump (21-6) and triple jump (43-5).

But Birmingham (4-1, 2-1) took a 49-46 lead after 11 events when John Walker won the 300 intermediate hurdles in 41.3 to pace a 1-2 finish by the Patriots and Robert Mooney cleared 13-6 in the pole vault to do the same.

Williams led a 1-3 Taft finish in the 220 and Clements won the two-mile heading into the mile relay.

Birmingham defeated two-time defending City Section champion Taft, 70-57, in the girls’ meet.

The Patriots (5-0, 3-0) trailed, 26-15, after five events, but consecutive victories by Vincetta Mendola in the 100 (12.1), Shakela Wilson in the 880 (2:26.9) and Melissa Astete in the pole vault (10 feet) helped top-ranked Birmingham take a 40-28 lead.

Erin Reed of No. 2 Taft (3-1, 2-1) won the 220 in 26.1, the 440 in 58.1 and ran on the 440 relay team that won in 47.9.