Matt Thomas (14, Lafayette): 1st place Discus, 2nd place shotput

Twelve young East Bay athletes representing Diablo Valley Track and Field will compete in the USATF National Junior Olympic Track & Field Championships July 27-August 1 at Hughes Stadium, Sacramento. Junior Olympics draws the top three finishers in 24 track and field events from 16 geographic regions throughout the country.

Twenty-eight Diablo Valley T&F athletes competed in 100-degree heat at the Region 16 qualifier in Modesto this past weekend. The Modesto meet had over 1800 competitors, one of the largest youth meets ever held in Northern California.

The Diablo Valley qualifiers include:

Young Men Division (age 17-18): Johnleigh Dean (Javelin)



Youth Boys Division (age 13-14): Matt Thomas (Shot Put and Discus), Charlie Loudon (High Jump), and Parker Lothamer (Triple Jump)



Midget Girls Division (age 11-12): Avery Avina, Grace Brown, Raea Gragg, and Demi Hart (4x800M Relay)



Bantam Girls Division (age 9-10): Jordyn Bryant (Triathlon, Shot, and 4x400 Relay), Arianna "Mup" Gragg (Long Jump, 800M, and 4x400 Relay), Jackie McIntosh (High Jump and 4x400M Relay) and Jenna Miles (1500M and 4x400M Relay)

In addition to qualifying for Junior Olympics, the Bantam Girls team of Bryant, Gragg, McIntosh and Miles also won the Region 16 Bantam Girl Division Championship team trophy, outscoring Northern California teams that numbered more than twice their size.

Diablo Valley Track & Field, a USATF affiliated youth track and field club serving the greater Lamorinda area since 1968, is coached by Darrin Neutz, Harlan Lopez, Amy Banas, Tiffany Chang, and Jeff Thomas.