Kyle Mills-Bunje Article (CA)

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http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.c ... CU9N11.DTL

Mills-Bunje jumping all over the track
St. Francis junior excelling in three events, but has an affinity for pole vault


Mitch Stephens, Chronicle Staff Writer

With a last name that sounds like bungee, Kyle Mills-Bunje was destined for flight.

The only question for the muscular and springy St. Francis High junior --

called "Cordy" by schoolmates growing up -- is which air space will he occupy?

At last week's Central Coast Section trials, he soared to a personal-best 15 feet, 9 inches in the pole vault, winning by 15 inches over a talented field that included many of his teammates.

This, after placing second in the long jump (22-7) and third in the triple jump (46-2), marks that were off from his bests of 23-71/4 and 47-31/2. His best marks should put him in the state finals in all three events.

It was just another routine day in orbit for Mills-Bunje, one of the headliners in Friday's CCS finals at Los Gatos High. The top three finishers advance to the state meet.

"The kid is phenomenal," St. Francis coach Michael Saso said of the 6-2, 170-pounder. "He's just blessed with great athletic ability. There are a lot of college coaches excited with the prospect of landing him."

Most coaches plan to plant him in the decathlon, which makes sense. He scored 5,900 points and finished 12th in the Junior Olympics last summer in Eugene, Ore. (California's David Klech was fourth at 6,051).

His hops are obvious, as are his speed, strength and endurance when he races down the runway, plants and vaults over a towering bar.

Mills-Bunje admits that the pole vault is his favorite event, one which he started only last summer to prepare for the Junior Olympics.

"I'm just a rookie at it," Mills-Bunje said. "That's why I'm so inconsistent."

It raises the question, what could Mills-Bunje do if he focused on the technically demanding event? At every meet this season, he's physically spent from the ultra-taxing jumps before he even takes his first vault.

"I think about that question all the time," Mills-Bunje said. "I can't figure out what my future really is in. I really look forward to doing the decathlon. But I really have a blast with the pole vault."

That's largely because it is his team's showcase event, thanks to one of the most respected track and field coaches in the state, Tom Tuite.

Tuite was the head coach for the Lancers for decades, and now helps Saso with the vaulters. It's not a coincidence Mills-Bunje is one of four 15-foot vaulters for the Lancers; the others are Casey Roche (15-7), Ben Sheehan (15- 0) and Kyle Chronis (15-0). On the girls' side, St. Francis sophomore Natasha Barthel (12-9) is the CCS record-holder and teammate Taylor Franklin (12-6) isn't far behind. Both are among the top six in the state.

"We have a great time competing against each other and just having a fun time," Mills-Bunje said. "(Tuite) knows everything about the sport, and he's so easy to approach. It makes for a perfect atmosphere to do well."

Mills-Bunje will have lofty competition in the jumps even at CCS. Last week, Serra's Aven Wright (47-41/2) and Riordan's Marco Moon (47-41/2) passed him on the state triple-jump list and Westmoor's Jaime Gonzalez won the long jump at 23-2.

Mills-Bunje has shown he can overcome fatigue and competition when it counts most. Two weeks ago, with the West Catholic Athletic League Meet team title on the line, Mills-Bunje busted off his best triple jump of the season to pass Moon and secure the title. It came on his last attempt.

"I don't know where the energy came from," he said. "I was absolutely spent. But we needed the points and my body just responded."

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http://www.mercurynews.com/mld/mercuryn ... 403822.htm

St. Francis' Kyle Mills-Bunje completed a double as well, but that did not include his best event, the pole vault.

Mills-Bunje won the long jump at 22 feet, 2 inches, and the 100 in 11.23. But the 100 came at the worst time for the section's pole vault leader (16-6) -- just as he was about to enter the pole vault competition at 15-6.

Completely gassed, Mills-Bunje, who was given the choice by Coach Mike Saso to scratch from the 100, missed once at his opening height before passing to 16-1 to salvage a bit more time to rest. He then missed twice to finish with a no-height.

``The pole vault's my best event,'' Mills-Bunje said. ``If there's an event that's going to conflict with it at CCS, I'd probably drop it.''

Teammate Casey Roche won at 15-6 and had a near-miss at a personal record 16-1. He was selected as the boys field athlete of the meet.

Both feel they are on the verge of huge breakthroughs, Roche into the mid-16s and Mills-Bunje to 17 feet. They may have happened Friday, if not for the timing of the 100 and a shift from a tailwind to a cross-headwind just as the bar was raised to 15-6.