Miller strikes gold (twice) for Pirates at State Meet!

SAN MATEO -- It was the perfect ending for Liberty Miller as she wrapped up her Orange Coast College track career with two gold medals at the 3C2A Track and Field State Championships this past weekend at the College of San Mateo.

After finishing seventh in the state in the 1,500-meter run and eighth in the state in the 5,000 a year ago, Miller rose to the top in both events, winning a pair of gold medals for the Pirates in 2025.

In the 1,500, Miller and her year-long rival at the top -- Saddleback's Danna Ibarra Canales -- were joined by San Diego Mesa's Joelle Tonne and it all came down to the last lap, where Miller executed her game plan to perfection and won the gold with a winning time of 4 minutes, 45.05 seconds. Canales took second at 4:46.39, while Tonne placed third at 4:47.04.

In the 5,000, the road to victory was a little easier for Miller, who topped the state's top distance runners by over 7 seconds, winning her second gold of the day with a time of 17:42.6, well ahead of runner-up Rhiannon Walker of Clovis College (17:49.79) and bronze medalist Alexis Noble of San Diego Mesa (17:56.4).

"The game plan for both races was to sit with the top few girls and then break away once there was about 600 meters to go." Miller said. "My first advantage for both races was my confidence due to months of mental preparation for state. I have never felt so ready for a race. I was so excited to get on the line and achieve what I had been planning for months. My second advantage is my ability to have a strong last lap, running a 67-second last lap for the 1,500 and a 66-second last lap for the 5,000.

"I planned on a double gold. I realized about four months ago that it was an achievable goal and told myself from there on out that I was going to win state in both the 1,500 and the 5,000." 

Realization hit Miller pretty fast as her OCC career came to a sudden end with the 5,000 victory.  "Crossing the finish line was a bittersweet feeling," Miller said. "I was so happy that what I had been envisioning for months went just as planned. However I was sad to be in my uniform for the last time. I am so thankful for the amount of growth I went through here. I am going to miss my coaches and teammates at OCC so much. However I am looking forward to the next chapter and the new achievements I will make."

A pair of Pirates -- Abigail Gavrilovic and Jasmin Trujillo -- each collected bronze medals for their third-place marks in their events. 

Gavrilovic used all six of her attempts to improve on her mark and on her final throw, the sophomore standout earned her spot at third place in the state with a throw of 40-feet, 11-inches, less than an inch farther than San Mateo's Mele Petelo (40-10 1/4) for the bronze medal. Gavrilovic, who is heading to Long Beach State after her Coast career, finished fourth in the state in the hammer throw (140-5) and seventh in the state in the discus throw (134-8).

Trujillo, a standout freshman for OCC out of El Modena HS, qualified for state her first year with the Pirates and got herself a bronze medal in the 400 with a third-place time of 56.34, less than a second off of the state championship time of 55.62 from College of the Canyons' Hazel Rhodes and silver medalist Deniya Fields of Pasadena City College (55.67).

Pole vaulter Kiarah Palacio finished tied for 7th in the state with a solid mark of 10-8.

In the heptathlon, Nikki Witana took on all seven events as well as the state's best and finished 11th overall with 3,449 points. Her peak event came in the javelin throw, where she finished third overall with a throw of 91-6.

Ana Chupinsky earned a spot in the state finals in the 400 hurdles and placed ninth with a time of 1:11.31. 

Sara Chupinsky earned an 11th-place state finish in the high jump after clearing 4-9.

As a team, the Pirates finished ninth in the state with 39 points.

Complete results of the 3C2A Track and Field State Championships can be found by clicking HERE.