DIXON, CA (MPG) - Track and field is traditionally a spring sport but when summer came, several Dixon High School students wanted to keep training, so head coach Tony Pottier and assistant coaches Andy Bloom and Nate Patterson kept meeting, almost daily.

That might be why five DHS students just competed in the Junior Olympics National Championship in Sacramento last weekend, an event that took over Sacramento State with competitors from across several states and why they did so well. They competed in the throws and pole vaulting.

"We are the only sport that kids want to continue on during the summer. It's a blessing having coach Bloom with us and having a guy who competed in the Olympics All-Star," said Pottier, who was an assistant coach under Tom Crumpacker, who is now retired. "It's not about winning; it’s about seeing the kids grow."

Many of the team's students play other sports and it isn't until February that their season officially starts.

"It was the first time that I had a group of athletes who didn't want to stop," said Bloom, who is a teacher at Solano College and has summers free. "We had a really good meet. They competed individually."

Katie Peterson is the school record holder in the discus. She was also the Sac-Joaquin Section (SJS) champion both in the shot put and the discus. She competed for the Golden State Throwers over the summer and was recruited by Princeton. This summer, she competed against three college freshmen and finished fourth in the hammer.

"It was pretty amazing. She's got a really bright future," Bloom said.

Luke DeDora competed in shot put, the spherical weight thrown from the shoulder, as well as discus. He was the SJS champion for Division IV. He recorded a lifetime-best mark of 152-feet, 5-inches to finish in ninth place.

"When he first came to us, he was a little guy and was a soccer goalie. He had never seen a javelin before," Bloom said. "But with training, he qualified for a national (competition), and improved by 40-feet, coming in seated 34th and finishing ninth. On his first throw he hurt his knee, so he struggled and fought his way through the competition despite it. It was an amazing performance."

DeDora is now off to the University of Puget Sound to compete in track.

"It was his top choice and found an event that fits in his body, and I think he has a really good future in javelin," Bloom added. 

Both DeDora and Peterson graduated in June.

"We have an unsung track program that has sent a lot of kids off to college," he said. 

The other two stars who competed in the event are incoming DHS sophomores this year: Emily Penery and Andy's son, Nathan Bloom.

"Emily chose track as her first sport she ever did," Bloom explained.

She had never been a part of organized sports and her technical event was a discus. At her first meet, she threw 50-feet and at the Junior Olympics, she threw 80-feet, 5-inches and subsequently improved to 82-feet, 6-inches. She finished 32nd place.

"She has come so far in one season it’s exciting to think where she'll come in the next three years," Bloom said.

Nathan Bloom's number one event is the discus. He won the first Golden Empire League meet at the first varsity meet last year, so he's already seen a little bit of success.

"He's really focused, and he's worked so hard this summer. It's been fun to watch," said his Dad, Coach Bloom, whose oldest daughter started throwing at 16 when he joined in to coach.

"Nathan's very proud that he's beaten my marks that were mine as a freshman and he makes sure I know that all the time," Bloom said with a laugh.

Nathan finished in 22nd place with marks of 109-feet, 10-inches but improved to 115-feet, 6-inches.

"It's brought us really close together and it’s been a lot of fun to watch him fall in love with a sport that has been a part of my life since 1987,” the elder Bloom stated. “I'm grateful for the opportunity to be part of it."

Jesse Seville, a senior this year, also participated in pole vaulting in the 17-18 age group under Patterson, who pole vaulted in high school and in college Sacramento City College, and UC Davis under Coach Bloom.

"Jesse has a lot of potential. He cleared 13-feet, 7-inches and ranked in the top 20. He's put in a lot of work in the last two years. He's really dedicated, and he also runs cross county," Patterson said.

Pottier is excited for the future of the Rams’ track and field program.

"Now that they have seen that our program is so successful, it's going to come out that the track program at Dixon High has more students competing at the next level than any sports," said Pottier.