CHANDLER, AZ. -- The Arizona Open marked the second big weekend of track meets here in Arizona, and there were no shortage of top performances as Basha sophomore thrower Gabriella Garcia launched a new U.S. No.1 in the girls javelin with her mark of 163-1.
"It's actually kind of crazy," Garcia said after her massive throw. "For me, it's kind of unbelievable. Like it doesn't feel real yet, if that makes any sense. It was awesome though. Out of the hand, I knew it was going to go a ways. I was not expecting it to go that far."
Garcia was already leading all high school girls in the United States for the javelin in the early portion of the season with last week's 145-7 at the 2022 Saunders Montague Classic. Of course outdoor competition is just beginning across the nation, but Garcia has a sizable lead -- 28-9 feet to be exact -- on the U.S. No. 2 (Alabama's Maddie Roberts, 134-10).
The throw cannot be officially entered into the record books as meet officials failed to bring out the metal measuring tape. The 163-1 also would have been a new state record by a wide margin. It is actually the second time Garcia has surpassed the state record (Kofa's Keiley Sharp's 150-8.25) and have it not been counted due to no metal measuring tape -- Garcia tossed 152-8 at the 2021 Nike Outdoor Nationals.
Despite this, Basha throws coach Simon Ocampo is very confident in his star sophomore athlete moving forward.
"Every time she does something like this," Ocampo said. "I look at her mom [Kara], and we just think, 'Where do we go from here?' She accomplishes these feats that are absolutely incredible. On paper, she's not supposed to do that. She's five-foot-three and she doesn't weigh a lot -- she goes against the grain, and she comes out here and does things that we are blown away by."
"I've never had a thrower like this. Every day it's astonishing the way she works. She'll shut up, go to a corner and gets twice the amount of throws in. She works harder than everybody else."
Even Ocampo, who knows Garcia as a thrower better than just about anybody else, was not expecting such a mark. Ocampo thought Garcia could maybe hit 150 feet.
Now Garcia is entering a stratosphere few high school girls have reached. But Ocampo is keenly aware that the season is still young and there is a fierce field of throwers who have yet to compete.
"I definitely know that not all of the girls have thrown," Ocampo said. "There's some really, really good girls out there. But again, it's well-deserved. As hard as she works, good for Gabbie. Good for Basha. Good for the sport. And I can't wait to see how this thing shakes out at the end of the year."
Elsewhere, there were a handful of noteworthy performances at the meet.
On the boys side, the field events were headlined by Chandler senior Amar Elmore, who uncorked a 178-04 in the discus throw. Elmore is the clear state leader -- by 15 feet -- and is also now one of the top throwers in the nation. He is the U.S. No. 3 for the discus.
Elmore's teammate and fellow senior Isaiah Johnson hit a 55-08.00 in the shot put. Johnson was already No. 2 in the state, but has now moved up a bit with his latest throw.
Corona del Sol senior Brett Wynn leapt 6-7 to win the high jump, which is tied for the state lead.
Chaparral senior Davondre' Bucannon ran 10.83 in the boys 100m, which is the fourth-fastest time in the state. In the 400m, Chandler sophomore Otis Knapper broke the 50-second barrier for the first time in this young season with his 49.84. Knapper now sits at No. 4 in the state for the 400m.
ALA Queen Creek senior and defending Division III state champion in the 300m hurdles, Logan Hubler continued his winning ways with a 14.54 in the 110m hurdles. Hubler's time is No. 1 in the state.
In the distance events, Catalina Foothills junior Brandon Martz won the 800m in 1:57.57. Martz is the new No. 3 in the state for the 800m.
On the girls side, Chandler freshman S'Niyah Cade beat out Agua Fria junior Sabatiney Onyepunuka in the 100m 12.04 to 12.24, respectively. Cade is now No. 2 in the state for the 100m.
Chandler senior Jocelyn Johnson posted the fastest legal time in the state for the 200m with her 24.65.
Chaparral senior Neya Jamison won the 300m hurdles easily in 43.71. Jamison is already No. 1 in the state for the 300m hurdles.
Desert Mountain senior Mary Evans ran 2:18.45 to win the 800m en route to recording the second fastest time in the state. Sunrise Mountain senior Kaitlyn Kaye and Salpointe Catholic junior Kylie Wild duked it out in the 1600m, with Kane taking the victory in 5:06.75 to Wild's 5:07.09 (No. 2 and No. 3 in the state).
Casteel senior Annie Murphy is the new state leader in the pole vault with her 12-1 winning mark.
NOTE: All state and national rankings are taken from the MileSplit database as of 12:00 p.m. on 3/12/22.
Logan Stanley is the State Editor of MileSplit Arizona. You can follow him on Twitter @LSscribe.