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Inland athletes deliver strong performances during qualifying session. – San Bernardino Sun

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A handful of Inland track and field athletes put themselves in position to win CIF State titles following strong performances Friday afternoon and evening.

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Vista Murrieta’s Joab Vela, center clears the first hurdle in the Boys 110-Meter Hurdles prelims of the CIF State Track and Field Championships on Friday at Buchanan High in Clovis on Friday, May 30, 2025. (Photo by Terry Pierson, The Press-Enterprise/SCNG)

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The preliminary session of the 2025 CIF State Championships took place Friday at Buchanan High School in Clovis. More than two dozen Inland athletes and three relay teams will compete for state titles Saturday. And five area athletes posted the top qualifying time or mark in their respective events Friday.

Temecula Valley senior Jack Stadlman will be the favorite to win the state title in the boys 400-meter dash Saturday after posting the top qualifying time of 46.99 seconds. Stadlman also won his heat in the 200 meters and finished with the No. 4 qualifying time (a personal-best 21.00).

Cajon senior Keith Cotlage has been the state’s best boys triple jumper over the past month. He twice surpassed 50 feet Friday evening, including the top qualifying mark of 50 feet, 4 3/4 inches. Cotlage also jumped 50-2 1/4 on his final attempt.

Chaparral senior Keelan Wright posted the fastest time in the girls 200 meters, a 23.58 that held up through the rest of the heats. Wright also advanced in the 100 meters, with the No. 4 qualifying time (11.49).

Santiago junior Braelyn Combe finished with the top qualifying time in the girls 1600 meters, as she won her heat in a time of 4:49.38.

Jurupa Valley junior AB Hernandez, a transgender athlete whose participation in girls events has sparked nationwide debate, had the top qualifying marks in the high jump, long jump and triple jump. Hernandez’s 5-5 in the high jump was a personal best. Hernandez jumped twice in the long jump, including a top qualifying mark of 19-11 3/4. Hernandez concluded the session with the triple jump, needing only one attempt to post a top mark of 40-9 3/4.

An additional 17 Inland athletes and one relay team advanced to Saturday’s championship session through qualifying heats (running) and flights (field).

Rancho Cucamonga’s Rodney “RJ” Sermons, who recently reclassified into the 2025 class, had a longer day than expected. Sermons won his heat in the boys 100 meters and finished with the No. 5 qualifying time (10.40). He finished second in his heat in the 200 meters but tied for ninth place with a time of 21.19. As only nine runners can advance, a run-off between Sermons and Torrance’s Nicolas Obimbga was needed to determined the last spot.

Sermons ran a leg on Rancho Cucamonga’s 4 x 400 relay, an event that ended Friday night’s session. Sermons was given 30 minutes after the final heat of the 4 x 400 relays to recover. At 11:15 p.m., Sermons was victorious in the run-off with a time of 21.11, which was .20 seconds faster than Obimbga.

Yucaipa senior Benjamin Lingengelter qualified second in the boys discus (188-4) and fourth in the shot put (58-8).

Elsinore’s Nicolas Alexis also advanced to the finals in two events, qualifying second in the boys long jump (23-6) and seventh in the triple jump (47-4 1/2).

Six other Inland boys athletes advanced to the finals in one event.

Alta Loma’s Quishawn Stanford qualified third in the 300 hurdles (personal-best 37.25). Great Oak’s Colin Green was fourth in the triple jump (47-8 3/4). Ayala’s Joshua Komrosky qualified seventh in the discus (175-7). Etiwanda’s Brandon Andrade was ninth in the 110 hurdles (personal-best 14.12). Riverside Poly’s Beckett Sullivan was ninth in the 800 meters (1:52.99). Redlands’ Michael Cullen tied for 10th in the pole vault (15-6).

Murrieta Valley’s 4 x 100 relay team (Darius Johnson, Camden Palos-Connor, Sedwrick Dunklin, Brandon Ortega) qualified seventh in a time of 41.41.

Eight additional Inland girls athletes also advanced to the finals in one event.

Chaparral’s Katelynn Suemnick tied for third in the pole vault (12-0). Roosevelt’s Alyssa Jones tied for fourth place in the high jump (personal-best 5-5). Murrieta Valley’s Taylor Anyansi ran the No. 5 qualifying time in the 100 meters (matched personal best of 11.63). Summit’s Amira Whitehead qualified fifth in the 400 meters (54.92). Chino’s Arelle Middleton was fifth in the shot put (42-5 3/4). Riverside Poly’s Kylani Gaines qualified seventh in the 100 hurdles (14.07). Claremont’s Grace Smith was seventh in the 800 meters (2:09.33); Murrieta Valley’s Jordin Lieberman qualified 11th in the 1600 meters (4:51.49).

Saturday’s championship also will include the finals for the 3200 meters and the 4 x 800 relays. Those events did not have preliminary heats Friday.

Santiago senior Rylee Blade will be looking to capture the state title in the girls 3200 meters for the second time in three seasons. She will be joined in that race by Temescal Canyon’s Megan Crum. Woodcrest Christian’s Eyan Turk and King’s Maximo Zavaleta will compete in the boys 3200-meter final.

Santiago and Claremont qualified for the finals in the girls 4 x 800 relay.



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