Brown-Trafton on track for a trip to Beijing

Tag : womens slippers
Three hours before she was to compete for a spotin the 2008 Olympic Games, Stephanie Brown-Trafton was checking here-mail in the athlete’s center while wearing pajamas andslippers when in walked Lance Deal, the American record-holder inthe hammer.

“He gave me this perplexed look and asked,‘Aren’t you throwing tonight?’ ” Brown-Trafton recalled. “I’m just really relaxed rightnow.”

It showed in her performance. The 28-year-old former Cal Poly andArroyo Grande High standout threw 208 feet, 8 inches to advance outof the qualifying round of the women’s discus Friday duringthe opening night of the U. S. Olympic Track and Field Trials infront of 16,500 at historic Hayward Field.

“It was a fairly good throw. I did well,” Brown-Traftonassessed. “The goal tonight was just to make it to finals.After tonight the marks get wiped clean and you start over. I needto come out and do just as well or better on Sunday.”

Though she was an Olympian in 2004, the 28-year-old has had abreakout season this year. She threw a world-leading mark of 217-1on May 8 at the Hartnell Throwers Meet in Salinas. It was also thethird-best mark in U. S. history. She then won the PrefontaineClassic at Hayward Field earlier this month.

“I think that my confidence level has got to be a lot betterthan last year because last year I didn’t do well atall,” said Brown-Trafton, a six-time indoor and outdoorAll-American for the Mustangs who now resides in Galt. “Butit’s just about keeping it at a peak spot in your trainingand a peak spot in your throwing.”

The top 12 out two heats advanced to the finals. That included SuzyPowell-Roos, the defending U. S. champion and Americanrecord-holder at 222-0. The two-time Olympian won the OlympicTrials in 1996 at age 19 and had the second-best throw Friday at201-5.

“There was a little bit of pressure today even though I havethrown 60 meters (196-10) every single meet this year,”Powell- Roos said. “But mostly I’m just excited thatit’s finally here.”

Brown-Trafton’s fellow Arroyo Grande High School alum,Billie-Jo Grant, failed to advance to the finals. She finished 21stwith a

throw of 159-6.

Former Cal Poly standout

Maggie Vessey, the 2005 NCAA runner-up in the 800 meters, continuedher string of success at Hayward Field this month.

She advanced to the 800 semifinals today with a third-place finishin her quarterfinal heat finishing in 2:04.0.Her time was eighthoverall through three heats and 28 competitors.

Vessey won a last-chance meet at Hayward Field on June 15 in apersonal-best 2:02.72 to qualify for the Trials.

Jon Takahashi, the former Big West decathlon champion from CalPoly, failed to advance to the finals in the pole vault when hecouldn’t clear 17-8 1 /2 in Friday’s qualifying round.

Though that height was more than a foot below his PR of 18-8 1 /2Takahashi never came close to getting over the bar

Arroyo Grande High School alum Sean Shields failed to advance tothe finals of the men’s shot put. Shields , who was 12th atthe U. S. national meet in 2006, finished 16th overall with a topthrow of 62-4.Only the top 12 overall made today’s finalround.