REV’s Medina sets record in 1,600-meter run; joins Wildcats’ elite

Elijah Medina has launched an assault on the middle- and long-distance records held by some elite Redlands East Valley High athletes of the past.

This past Saturday (March 28), Medina set a new school record for sophomores by finishing fifth in the Elite Division of the 1,600 meters at THE TEN track meet at JSerra High School.

Medina was the fifth runner across the finish line, timed at a personal best of 4:10.32, setting a new school record for sophomores and breaking the old mark of 4:12.14 set in 2022 by Elias Opsahl.

His time also eclipsed the junior record for the distance, set by Elias Opsahl in 2017 at 4:13.79.

The current school record for all classes is 4:08.74, set by Simon Opsahl in 2021 at the CIF Southern Section Division 2 finals. Medina is now No. 2 on the all-time list, ahead of Elias Opsahl’s 4:10.79 time at the 2018 CIF State championship finals.

Medina was among a strong field at JSerra, as Martin Luther King High School of Riverside’s Maximo Zavaleta won the Elite 1,600 in 4:06.02. Zavaleta was the runner-up in the CIF State Cross Country championship 3-mile run in 2025.

Medina has already set a new school record in the 3,200 meters at 9:07.56 this season, beating Liam Mapes’ mark of 9:12.53 set in 2021. He also has run 1:57.12 in the 800 meters this season.

At the same meet, REV teammate Brendan Mercado-Medina finished second in the Open 1,600 meters in 4:23.12, and the Wildcats’ Dominic Vasquez was ninth in the Open 800 meters in 2:01.24.