Vaulting toward history

TRACK & FIELD /// Simi Valley Pioneers
Three Pioneer pole vaultersfly closer to school record from 1984



GIVEN TO FLY—Simi Valley High boys’ track andfield seniors, from left, Michael Maxson, Jonathan James and Griffin Hagen are three of thefive best pole vaulters in Ventura County this season. BOBBY CURTIS/Acorn Newspapers

GIVEN TO FLY—Simi Valley High boys’ track andfield seniors, from left, Michael Maxson, Jonathan James and Griffin Hagen are three of thefive best pole vaulters in Ventura County this season. BOBBY CURTIS/Acorn Newspapers

Simi Valley High’s boys’ track and field team has had some talented pole vaulters soar in the program.

This season, they’re better than ever.

“We haven’t had it like this, not at this height,” said fifth-year head coach Steve Ringgold, who is in his 10th year with the Pioneers. “They’re nails. They bring it every week.”

 

 

Jonathan James, Griffin Hagen and Michael Maxson, all seniors, are three of the top five pole vaulters in Ventura County.

James, who cleared 14 feet, 9 inches last spring, is second in the county this season with a height of 13-8. Hagen is third in the county with a personal best height of 13-6. Maxson’s PR of 12-6 ranks fifth in the area.

The vaulters keep raising the bar with daily training sessions. The coach said he sometimes puts a Gatorade or PowerBar on the line for the vaulter who can win the jump-off that day.

“Every day there’s competition,” Ringgold said. “When we get into a meet situation, they’re not unfamiliar with that. They know what it’s like to compete.”

 

 

Simi Valley graduates Max Orloff, a member of the Class of 2016, and Isabella Ironhill, the school record holder (11 feet) in the girls’ pole vault who graduated in 2015, coach the trio of Pioneers.

“They’ve been really working at it,” Ironhill said of the three vaulters. “They’re really passionate about it. They were helping each other so much. They’re really building each other up.”

Orloff said he recalled James standing out when the coach was still a senior at Simi Valley. Orloff cleared 14 feet, but James has been consistently soaring over 14-7.

“He’s been kind of struggling to keep at that mark, but we’ve been working really hard with him,” the coach said of James.

James admitted that he’s been losing many of the mental games he’s played with himself early this season.

“My first couple of meets were just rough meets,” the 18-yearold said. “It wasn’t my day, and I kind of let it get into my head. I wasn’t feeling it for a little bit, but recently, I got out of that. I’m doing really well in practice. Things are starting to look up.”

James said he wants to break the school record of 15-6 held by Chuck Houde, who set the mark in 1984.

“He’s had it since the ’80s, so I thought maybe it’s time to take it down,” James said.

The son of Dwight and Pamela James, Jonathan James has spent past years working with numerous clubs on campus, including Friday Night Live, a mentor program for troubled youths, and Circle of Friends, a club aimed at socializing with special needs kids.

James, an avid rock climber, got accepted into the University of Oregon, but he’s still weighing his options for after high school.

Hagen, 17, has already topped his personal best mark from last season by a foot. The versatile athlete, who also competes in the triple jump and long jump, said pole vaulting is his favorite event.

“There’s so much to learn,” Hagen said. “I learn something new every single day. It keeps me coming back. Pole vault will always be my love.”

Hagen, the son of Thomas and Cheryl Hagen, two graduates of Simi Valley’s Class of 1982, said he’s determined to continue pushing himself during his senior campaign.

He wants to study environmental architecture at Cal Poly Pomona next year, but he’s still a Pioneer.

“I want to leave my mark here,” Hagen said. “I want to be known as a good jumper. All year I’ve been trying to teach kids and be a good mentor, someone they can look up to. I want this program to thrive. I want to leave behind a good program.”

Maxson said he wanted to try pole vault because he heard good things from his uncle, Chad Bigley, an LAPD officer who jumped 13-6 in his time at Simi Valley.

“He really inspired me to get into it,” Maxson said of his uncle. “I’m trying to get up there with him.

“I’m really sticking to it and staying more focused with my work ethic.”

The 18-year-old said he wants to study criminal justice at Moorpark College to follow in his uncle’s footsteps of serving in law enforcement, but he’s determined to first create memories in his final prep season.

“I’m trying to go all out to maximize what I can do,” he said.

The Pioneers have come out flying high this spring.

The sky is literally the limit for these three pole vaulters.

“As we’re going deeper into the year, they’re getting into a better rhythm and higher and higher marks every meet,” Orloff said. “We’ll see where they end up at the end of the season. We’ll see if we can get some looks at CIF finals.”

CATCH UP WITH THE PIONEERS

Dexter Stephens has been impressive early this season for the Simi Valley boys’ team.

The senior tossed the discus a personal best 170 feet, 6 inches at the Mount Carmel Invitational March 24.

Brandon Nolfo, a senior, and Logyn Gowey-Hughes, a senior football standout, are two of the team’s top sprinters.

Riley Hunt will defend his Coastal Canyon League titles in the 110- and 300-meter hurdles. Jonathan Ponce and Blake Smith also excel in hurdles.

Andrew Teasdale, a senior, dominates the distance events. Sophomore twins Bradley and Nicholas Williams are distance runners to watch.

On the girls’ side, Jill Walker is shredding the track.

Walker, a freshman who shone during the cross country season, ran the 3,200-meter race in a personal best 10 minutes 42.33 seconds at the Azusa Meet of Champions on March 24.

Hailey Golmon, a sophomore, excels in the 200, 400 and 800. Alicia Porter, a junior who plays volleyball and basketball, is a first-year thrower.

Elysia Laramie, a senior, and Jordyn Brown, a junior, are speedy sprinters with leaguechampion potential.

Emily Reinig, a senior, and Emma Lomas, a freshman, are talented pole vaulters.

Email Jonathan Andrade at jandrade@theacorn.com.