Lee's versatility invaluable for Newbury Park track team
Junior willing to do whatever it takes to help Panthers win
By Stephen Dorman sdorman@theacorn.com

PATRICK SHELBY/Acorn Newspapers FUN IN THE SUN-Panther junior Amanda Lee takes a break from Tuesday's practice session at Newbury Park. Lee, a multidimensional athlete, will run the opening leg of the 4 x 400 relay this Saturday at the San Fernando Valley Invitational.

Amanda Lee can do it all.

Newbury Park's junior track star is rated among Ventura County's top females in the high jump, long jump, triple jump, 100 and 300 hurdles.

According to the Ventura County Track Coaches Association's statistics, Lee has posted the county's top 300 hurdle time this season (45.84), a number she hit earlier this month at the Arcadia Invitational. Lee's number in Arcadia was the 22ndfastest girls' time in the state this year, reports DyeStatCal.

"It was my best race, definitely," Lee said. "I was really focused before the race and I really wanted to do well. The weather was perfect, too. It wasn't raining like it has been for the past few months.

"When I stepped onto the track I was really calm, and most times I'm really nervous," she said. "And I ended up (personal besting) by under a second."

In addition to her top ranking countywide in the 300 hurdles, Lee's tied for first place in the high jump (5-2), third in the 100 hurdles (15.84), sixth in the long jump (16-5) and 11th in the triple jump (31-8).

It's not the fast times and gaudy numbers that make Lee so special, though, says NPHS girls' head coach Mike Stewart. What makes Lee exceptional is her ability to be a team player in a sport comprised primarily of individual athletes, he said.

"She's so multitalented and so athletic that I wish we could put her in six events," Stewart said. "She could probably handle it, but we're not allowed to do that."

CIF rules limit each athlete to a maximum of four events per meet, the coach said.

"So what we do instead is we look at the teams and go, 'Okay (Lee), we need you in this event for this meet and we need you here for this meet,'" Stewart said.

Lee never complains, Stewart added, she embraces the challenge and then goes out and gets the job done.

As the returning Marmonte League champion in both the high jump and 300 hurdles, the 16year-old Lee entered her third varsity season with heavy expectations and an open mind about what events she'd compete in.

These days she spends more time on hurdles than the high

jump, but she's also busy mixing relays into her ever-expanding repertoire.

This Saturday at the San Fernando Valley Invitational, the Lady Panthers will put their fastest 4 x 400 relay team on the track for the first time this season. Racing with Lee will be Sarah Babb, Laura Melgar and Chelsea Davis, who's the top 400 female runner in the county (57.99).

"We're excited about that because it's the first time we've got them all together," Stewart said.

As the regular season winds down and the postseason nears, Lee, who ran with the Newbury Park Track Club throughout her youth, said she expects to focus primarily on the hurdles and high jump.

"Hopefully I can make it to Masters in the 300," Lee said. "State's not going to be easy because there's so much talent in the Southern Section. But I think I can make Masters, that's my goal for the year."

Although she still has over a year of high school remaining, Lee is starting to get noticed by college recruiters. After visiting UC San Diego on a non-sports related trip over spring break, Lee received a letter from Cornell University while at school Tuesday.

"That was totally unexpected," she said. "It just makes me think twice about keeping everything open."

Lee said she hopes to major in kinesiology.