Future sits at 16 feet for Justin Matoesian (CA)

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http://www.dailynews.com/sports/ci_6034172

Prep track notes: Future sits at 16 feet
BY IVAN OROZCO, Staff Writer
Article Last Updated: 05/31/2007 11:00:30 PM PDT

Justin Matoesian's future could be defined this weekend.

The Crespi of Encino pole vaulter will be trying to clear the mark he's been targeting all season: 16 feet.

Clearing that mark could also increase his chances of making it onto the USC track and field team next season.

The timing or stage couldn't be better for Matoesian.

The Celts' senior standout will have a shot at his goal today at the 89th state track and field meet prelims at Hughes Stadium in Sacramento.

Matoesian joins sprinters Justin Shanks and Mark Watley, making Crespi the only area Southern Section school with three male athletes in the state prelims.

Shanks is scheduled to compete in the boys' 200 meters and Watley will compete against the top two athletes in the state in the 400 (Bryshon Nellum of Long Beach Poly and Nevin Gutierrez of JW North of Riverside).

Clearing 16 feet will not automatically qualify Matoesian for the state finals Saturday but it will be another mark on his pole-vaulting resume. The nine competitors with the best marks in each event qualify for Saturday's championships.

"It's going to be crazy," Matoesian said. "It's going to be tough and I'm going to have to put

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on a performance of a lifetime. Especially now that I know that if I can clear 16 it can get me into USC."
Matoesian, who has been accepted to UC Irvine, said USC recruiting coordinator John Henry Johnson told him via e-mail the probability of becoming a Trojan will increase if he clears his desired mark.

After all, Matoesian has the 4.0 grade-point average that can help him get accepted into the university.

He will have enough motivation at the two-day meet. There are five competitors with better marks than Matoesian's personal best of 15 feet, including Los Gatos High junior Nico Weiler, who qualified for today's meet with a 17-foot, 6 1/4-inch mark.

But USC wasn't Matoesian's first choice. He had his mind set on UCLA, a Pacific-10 Conference pole-vaulting powerhouse, along with Oregon.

"I want to be a Trojan," Matoesian said. "I changed my mind about UCLA because I have been thinking about my future beyond pole vaulting. UCLA doesn't really have my majors (kinesiology and business)."

But Matoesian hasn't ended the possibility of going to UCLA. He has trained this season with Bruins pole vault coach Anthony Curran at a clinic at Santa Monica High throughout the season.

If he breaks the 16-foot mark, it could perhaps give Matoesian a shot. If he fails to reach the mark, UC Irvine it is.

Curran, who also coached Oak Park girls' pole-vaulting standout Aubree Stark, said he couldn't comment on Matoesian's situation or about the Celts senior in general.