CALIFORNIA CALLING
Two Volcano Vista track stars headed for elite national meet
Clovis, Calif., is not exactly a pristine summer destination, but for a couple of days next weekend, it will be a major attraction for Alejandro Goldston and Abram Schaap.
The Volcano Vista track and field stars are headed to central California for the USATF Junior Outdoor Championships to be held June 24-26.
Goldston, a recently graduated senior who will be competing for the University of New Mexico, is running the 200-meter dash.
Schaap, a junior whose college interest includes Texas A&M, BYU, North Carolina and Stanford, is hoping he will get to run the 200 and the 400 in Clovis.
And while each is a long shot to perform well enough to qualify for the Junior Worlds in Poland next month, just the experience of trying out has both revved up.
“I’m excited for it,” Schaap said. “I haven’t had too much competition all year.”
Both Schaap and Goldston recently competed at the Great Southwest Track & Field Classic, which is one of the elite prep events in the country.
Schaap ran third in the 400-meter final. Goldston did the long jump but not the elite 200-meter final.
They will see some of the same competitiors, no doubt, in Clovis, which is a suburb of Fresno, as they did at the Great Southwest.
“It’s pretty humbling,” said Goldston. “Some of the best athletes in the country. It’s a cool experience, for sure. Plus, it’s just nice to have competition, it helps to push you a lot more.”
Goldston was hoping to also compete in the long jump, but needed to post a qualifying mark before competing in California.
Goldston’s qualifying mark in the 200 — during the prelims of last month’s Class 6A state meet at UNM — was accomplished while running hurt for a good part of that race.
He suffered a partial tendon tear in his foot in the middle of that race. But he ran through the pain and still set a state record of 21.19 seconds, eclipsing the mark of 21.30. Schaap ran 21.30 in the state preliminary heat just prior to Goldston’s heat.
“It got tight the week before at district, when I was running the 400,” Goldston said of his foot. “I could feel a sharp pain.”
He could barely jog after that race, he said, but managed to compete at state and score 25 points. He won the 200 and long jump, and was second to Manzano’s Jordan Byrd in the 100.
Schaap was already one of the dominant prep runners in New Mexico as an underclassman. Before next track season, he’ll be a receiver on the football team and a guard on the basketball team, but track is where he shines brightest.
“Going to another big meet like this will help me with my races next year,” he said.
To compete in the 400 in California, Schaap will have to be among the top 18 times that are registered for the meet, so there is no promise of competing. It’s a similar situation with the 200, he said. “It’ll be fun,” he said. His introduction to the 400 was by mistake, he said.
“In the sixth grade, I was supposed to run the 100, and things got messed up, and I ran the 400 instead,” he said. “When I was a little kid, I’d be playing other sports, and I’d always be the fastest on the court or the fastest on the field.”
Starting July 1, Schaap will be able to have many more in-depth conversations with college recruiters. He said the Lobos have not contacted him.
Schaap said he is not close to making a decision on college.
The ambitious Goldston, meanwhile, openly talked during the prep track season about becoming a state-record holder in multiple events. He has equally lofty goals at UNM.
“Whatever I am in college,” he said, “I’d like to be a national contender in those events.” His goal for this trip? “Mainly just a new PR, but really to just go out there and meet some new people and have a great time,” Goldston said. “Some of these athletes, they are some of the best in the world for their age group.”