Vista Murrieta TC (CA)

Team Website / NTN Profile

Top Athletes: Jovonte Slater (sprints & jumps), Chris Navarro (hurdles), Bernard Quinn (sprints), Emil Mejares (throws), Corey Whitaker (throws), Nick Taylor (jumps), Drew Dalton (distances) and Bryce Rausa (distances).

Team Strengths: Try and find a weak spot among the Vista Murrieta squad.  We dare you?  From top to bottom, the US#1 team entering Friday’s Nike Track Nationals simply doesn’t seem to have a weakness.  Jovonte Slater (100m and long jump) gives the squad two events where they should score some very big points, while fellow sprinter Bernard Quinn, hurdler Chris Navarro, discus thrower Emil Mejares and 1,600m runner Drew Dalton all have the ability to finish top five in their respective events and push or exceed the 900 point barrier.

Key to Success: As with most teams, having improvements from some of your lower scorers coming in, can be all a team needs between finishing fifth or finishing first.  For Vista Murrieta, 800m runner Bryce Rausa and shot put thrower Corey Whitaker could each help their team in a big way by pushing their PRs.  Luckily, this team is so well rounded that no athlete should be feeling too much pressure to perform.

Q&A with Coach Coley Candaele

NTN: Vista Murrieta is ranked US#1 heading into Nike Track Nationals on the boys side. How is the squad doing heading into next weekend?

Coley Candaele (CC): We are excited for the opportunity and grateful to Nike for allowing us to compete one more time this year.  We took a few weeks off at the end of the season to get the batteries recharged and now look forward to competing at the best track and field city and facility in the world.

NTN: With such high expectations, how are you managing the team and their expectations?

CC: At NTN's, there are no favorites, any one team can win.  The structure of the meet fits exactly into our team's philosophy and strengths-  great all-around team, smaller number of teams entered, and team results based on everyone having a great competition on one single day.  

We have are a team that is made-up of no national superstars, but I like the 8 kids' attitudes who make up our team at NTN's. They are all very competitive individuals who perform better when a team title is on the line.

NTN: California is a powerhouse state for track and field.  How does having such intense competition, especially in the Southern Section, help your squad prepare for national competitions?

CC: The intense competition in southern California will have prepared us for this meet.  We have faced 4 of the top 10 teams all year.  However, we know the competition at NTN's is even going to be stronger.

NTN: With such tremendous performances already this season, is there anything the team can do to improve on their past performances?

CC: Our team motto when it comes to end of the year performances is "What got you there, will keep you there".  Meaning, if we just compete the way we have been competing all year, we will be very happy with our meet results.

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