ALL-AREA GIRLS TRACK AND FIELD Kailah McKenzie
Orange Vista, Senior
Kailah McKenzie was about 5 when her father took her to the track where he was coaching. He quickly got a glimpse of the future.
And Kailah?
“I just liked playing in the sand pit.” Over the next decade-plus, McKenzie made her home in the pit and almost everywhere else on a track. In regional and state competitions, the Orange Vista High standout established herself as a premier multi-event athlete, qualifying in three events at the CIF State Championships each of the last three seasons.
McKenzie capped her senior year of high school this spring with her best showing at the CIF State meet, taking third in the 100-meter hurdles, fifth in the long jump and tied for eighth in the high jump. Before that, she won CIF Southern Section Division 1 titles in the 100 hurdles and high jump and a Masters Meet title in the 100 hurdles.
It is a resume that has earned McKenzie the IE Varsity girls track and field athlete of the year honor.
McKenzie’s father, Glenn, the head coach at Orange Vista, remembers the launch of her career, when a pint-sized Kailah took her first long jump.
“I was like, ‘Whoa! Do that again,’ ” he said. “I recognized that she had a little bit of talent there, even at 5.”
Kailah started competing the next year, and her father said the sport came easy to her. But the light went on when she discovered the hurdles.
“I just love the hurdles,” she said. “I don’t know why. They’re so fun. It’s a tactical event. Maybe not like the triple jump, but it’s technical. You’ve got to get the three steps in between and be fast in between.”
Even when the event is not so much fun, McKenzie has shown the willingness to throw herself in and compete. In the course of her career in high school and running with her club team, McKenzie has done the jumps and hurdles, but has also competed in sprints.
With her club, she has competed in the pentathlon, a five-event test that includes two events well outside her comfort zone — the shot put and 800-meter run.
McKenzie’s versatility can be a double-edged sword. Counting her participation in relays, McKenzie produced 265 points for Orange Vista this season, and more points means more hardware.
It also makes for a tough day at events like the CIF state meet.
Multi-event athletes are at the mercy of scheduling, often hustling from event to event without a full rest or chance to properly prepare. At the end of the first day of the state meet, McKenzie said she was physically beat up enough to require an ice bath.
It can also be mentally taxing, as athletes try to leave what happened in one event behind as they move to the next.
While McKenzie’s marks at the state finals were solid, none were season bests.
“Especially when I don’t do as well as I expect,” McKenzie said, “I tend to belittle myself and that just makes it worse.”
Still, three top-8 finishes at the state meet was a solid send-off for McKenzie into the next level. She signed with UC Irvine to do jumps and hurdles, but is open to doing more.
As for Glenn, he knows it will be an adjustment to go from coach to just dad.
“I’ve got to step back now and let her coaches do what they do,” he said. “I don’t want to be a hover dad.”
RICHARD MORALES,
Chino Hills
Morales guided the program to one of its strongest seasons in recent memory. The Huskies were dominant in Baseline League duals, winning each by at least 35 points to capture the league championship. Chino Hills also had a solid showing at the Baseline League finals, with its athletes claiming half (eight) of the titles, and the Huskies finished sixth in the team standings at the CIF Southern Section’s Division 1 finals. Chino Hills made history at the CIF State meet, becoming the first girls program to reach the finals in all three relay events.
Tamara Aimufia, United Christian Academy, Sr.
Camryn Alo, Etiwanda, Sr.
Alyssa Alumbres, Vista Murrieta, Jr.
Taylor Anyansi, Murrieta Valley, So.
Janelle Avilez, Etiwanda, Sr.
Makena Bailey, Chino Hills, Jr.
Rylee Blade, Santiago, So.
Mackenize Browne, North, Sr.
L’Mio Edwards, Claremont, Jr.
Mercy Ehiemere, Orange Vista, Sr.
Aspen Fears, Vista Murrieta, Jr.
Alyssa Hope, King, Sr.
Kayla McBride, Ayala, Jr.
Kailah McKenzie, Orange Vista, Sr. (Athlete of the Year)
Madisyn Negro, Murrieta Valley, Sr.
Andreese Ortiz, Heritage, Jr.
Breija Stredic, North, Sr.
Daj’Eauna Williams, Elsinore, Sr.
Dominique Abbott, North, Sr.
Sarah Ajayi, King, Sr.
Samarra Blake, Vista Murrieta, Jr.
Isabella Duarte, Chino Hills, Sr.
Ileen Emerson, Carter, Sr.
Shayna Hinds, Great Oak, Sr.
Fiona Holloway, Vista Murrieta, Jr.
Coryssa Hope, King, Sr.
Sofia Lieberman, Murrieta Valley, Jr.
Dakota Minor, Roosevelt, Sr.
Sinaiah Pointer, Etiwanda, Sr.
Alayah Robinson, Etiwanda, Jr.
Kailea Satterwhite, Cajon, Sr.
Emoree Smith, Vista Murrieta, Jr.
Simone Smith, Upland, Sr.
Jordyn Thomas, Chino Hills, Sr.
Lady William-Mensah, Chino Hills, Jr.
Su’Riah Williams, Redlands, So.