Track: Budincich Gives Coach Dream-Like Performance

For most coaches, a dream scenario is watching one of their athletes break one of their records.

Friday in the CIF State Track and Field Championships at Buchanan High in Clovis, Loyola junior and Sierra Madre resident Nick Budincich did what his coach Matt Pentecost was hoping he’d do.

Budincich broke Pentecost’s 16-year-old school record in the discus of 179 feet, 7 inches, and finished third in the state preliminaries, easily qualifying him for Saturday’s finals.

“It’s all his. I couldn’t be happier,” Pentecost said. “I woke up this morning and thought it would be great if I’m no longer the Loyola High discus champion. He did a great job.”

Budinich’s second of three throws went 182 feet, 9 inches.

Just last week in the CIF-Southern Section Masters Meet he set a personal best by going 174-4. He was ninth in the Masters Meet.

“He just needs to pull it over a little more to the middle and he might go 10 feet further,” said Pentecost, the 1995 state champion in the shot put.

Budincich wasn’t the only local to be elated after Friday’s preliminaries.

San Marino junior Omhunique Browne won her heat of the 300-meter hurdles in 43.39 seconds. The mark was the fourth fastest of the day.

“I had my second best time of the year,” Brown said in a phone interview. “After I stutter-stepped the second hurdle I tried to open it up. Coming off the turn was all good.”

Browne’s performance was good enough to convince her to remain in the Fresno area and not return to San Marino as she had been scheduled to take her SAT at 8 a.m. Saturday morning. Browne said she has decided to postpone the test.

“My mind is focused on the hurdles,” Browne said. “I don’t have to worry about the SAT or anything now.”

Muir’s Daityvon McFadden won his heat of the boys’ 300 hurdles in 37.77, the third fastest time of the day.

In Saturday’s final McFadden will be looking to upset national leader Jonathon Cabral of Agoura, who had the fastest qualifying time at 36.85.

In getting to the 300 hurdles, McFadden has established himself as one of his school’s great hurdlers along with 1990s greats Makio Haywood, Terry Jenkins and Kenny Haslip.

La Salle High’s Itohan Aikhionbare was not as fortunate as the others. She failed to qualify for the finals, finishing in 20^th place in the girls’ shot put with a best of 37-7 ¾. Last week she set a personal best of 41-4 in the Masters Meet. Had she equaled last week’s best throw, the UC Irvine-bound thrower would have moved onto the finals.