By Pete Borello

The first sign of growth for the Pinewood School track and field program is in the parking lot. The Panthers finally have enough competitors to travel to meets in the same fashion as most other high schools.

“We’re using the bus instead of vans,” head coach Matt Stimson said. “The kids enjoy that. It’s something new around here.”

This year’s team has 27 athletes – a record number for the small private school in Los Altos Hills.

“When I started, there were 10 kids on the team – there wasn’t much going on,” said Stimson, in his third year as coach. “We’ve got the enthusiasm up. Now, we need to compete at a higher level.”

Stimson, also Pinewood’s athletic director, hopes more competitors leads to more success this year. Neither the girls nor boys are favored to win the Private Schools Athletic League, but Stimson expects both squads to finish in the upper half of the standings.

“The girls could be in the top two,” the coach said. “We lack throwers and hurdlers, but if we get some points out of those, we have a chance to compete against King’s (Academy) for the title.”

King’s has the numbers on its side, however. The Sunnyvale school has 30 girls on its team, according to Stimson. Pinewood has 14.

“They have more athletes,” he said. “They’re the team to beat.”

Pinewood has a few athletes who may be hard to beat, though. The Panthers have the league’s best sprinter in Angela Gradiska. She was the PSAL champion in the 100- and 200-meter dashes as a freshman last season and nearly qualified for the state meet. Gradiska finished fourth in the 100 at the Central Coast Section finals (the top three advanced to state) and fifth in the 200.

The sophomore has picked up where she left off last season, running away with the 100 and 200 races in Pinewood’s two league meets this year. Gradiska, also a standout in tennis, has proven to be a strong anchor for the Panthers’ 4×400 relay team as well.

“She’s doing really well,” Stimson said. “She’s not quite there yet (time-wise), but she ran into the wind at both meets. She’s training well and looking sharp.”

So are Hailie Eackles and Katherine Mellis, two new members of the track team who are winning events.

Eackles – a freshman who starred on the school’s volleyball and basketball teams – is shining in the jumps. She placed first in the high jump at both league meets (her personal-record is 5 feet, 4 inches) and last week went 31 feet in her first try in the triple jump.

“She hasn’t practiced much and is just getting into the flow after basketball,” Stimson said. “She’s a natural athlete and once she learns the technique, she’ll blossom.”

Mellis is a sophomore who also excels in soccer. She won the 400 run last week.

“She’s doing well,” Stimson said. “She’s a good athlete and she’s fit.”

On the boys’ side, the coach is still trying to find out where everyone fits.

“A lot of the boys coming out are just learning track,” Stimson said. “We’re trying to find the best events for them.”

The Panthers have only one senior among their 13 boys: Jason Raffin. He is the team’s best shot-putter (throwing close to 35 feet) and finished second in the 100 dash last week.

“He’s a great leader,” Stimson said. “He’s a strong, really athletic guy and he trains really hard.”

The coach said Harker Academy and King’s are the boys teams to beat in the PSAL.

Pinewood has a bye this week. The Panthers’ next league meet is scheduled 3:30 p.m. April 3 at Chabot College.

Contact Pete Borello at peteb@latc.com.