2007 WA Random Track Articles

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http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/h ... ker29.html

Roundup | Seattle Prep star runs an 8:59.73 in 3,200 victory
By Erick Walker
Special to The Seattle Times


Max O'Donoghue-McDonald
SHORELINE â€â€

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http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/h ... ger29.html

Track & Field | Brooks a fast act at LW Invitational
By Sandy Ringer
Seattle Times staff reporter
KIRKLAND â€â€

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http://www.heraldnet.com/stories/07/04/ ... pre001.cfm

Kamiak finishes 8th at boys-only Shoreline Invite

Herald staff





SHORELINE - At what is billed as the largest all-boys track invitational in the Pacific Northwest, Vancouver's Evergreen High notched 64 points to garner the team title at the Shoreline Invite Saturday. Kentwood (54.5 points) and Sehome (47) finished well behind the Plainsmen.

In a welcome reversal of fortune from last year's torrential daylong downpour, milder temperatures and dry skies ruled the day as 69 teams and 845 athletes competed at the 20th annual event held at Shoreline Stadium.

"The kids are real excited to have such a great day to jump this year," said Kamiak's jumps coach Jill Mayer, echoing the opinions of many at the packed stadium.

In the high jump, a trio of highly touted Wesco South leapers cleared the six-foot mark, only to watch Inglemoor's Dorian Dolleman register an impressive 6-foot, 6-inch jump.

Mariner's Adrien Black (6-4) and Edmonds-Woodway's Eric Greenwood (6-2) placed third and fourth respectively.

Kamiak senior Jesse Swarthout, fresh off the heels of a school record-tying leap of 6-2 on Thursday night, maxed out at 6-0 to finish 11th.

"I felt pretty good out there today," said Swarthout. "The weather was better, so we had some good jumping positions. But I was a little tired, a little sore."

The local squads fared well, with three Wesco schools (Kamiak, Jackson, Mariner) finishing in the top 13.

The "track" athlete of the meet was Seattle Prep's Max O'Donahue-McDonald. The Panther star ran the state's best time in the 3,200 this year, breaking the meet record with a time of 8:59.73.

The "field" athlete honors went to Sehome's Steven Ayers, who won both the shot put (62-6) and the discus (168-9), earning 20 points all on his own for the Mariners.

Other double-winners included Ryan Hamilton of Evergreen, who took both the 100- and 200- meter dashes, and Garfield's Stephone Jordan the state's top-ranked hurdler, who won both the 110- and 300-meter hurdles.

Kamiak's Sean Beigton vaulted 15 feet to tie for second in the pole vault and help lead the Knights to an eighth-place showing with 26 points. Teammate Colin Logue ran the 400 in 50.03 seconds to place fourth and fellow Knight Sean Bucy earned a third in the javelin with a toss of 165 feet, 6 inches.

Jackson's 12th-place finish was highlighted by Mitchell Briggs, who finished second in the rarely-scored freshman/sophomore 1,600 run with a time of 4:28.48. Ali Al-Hussaini also earned points for the T-Wolves finishing fifth in the 300-meter hurdles.

In addition to Black's third in the high jump, Dak Riek ran the 3,200 in 9:04.49, also good for third as the Marauders' 20 points earned them 13th place.

Shorecrest sprinter Kevin Ramos scored all 8.5 of the Scots' points with a fourth in the 200 and a fifth in the 100.

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http://www.theolympian.com/143/story/92772.html

Olympia sweeps at Shelton Invitational

Gail Wood
The Olympian
SHELTON - It was an appropriate award for Olympia - team title.


Despite only two individual first-place finishes, the Olympia boys and girls piled up enough seconds and thirds (12) to win the team titles Saturday at the 47th-annual Shelton Invitational. They won the hard way, with lots of depth but not a lot of firsts.

Casey Stevick and Corey Lusby won Olympia's lone individual firsts. Stevick, entered in four individual events, won the long jump (20 feet, 5.25 inches) and placed second in the high jump (6-0). Stevick missed out on a first in the 110-meter hurdles when he stumbled on the second-to-last hurdle in the finals, dropping him from first to eighth.

"That was a new experience," the senior said. "I've never tripped before. I hope I never do it again."

Even with the stumble, Olympia boys won the 32-team meet with 71.5 points, 20 more than runner-up Hockinson.

"Going into the meet, I knew our seeding marks were solid," Olympia boys coach Scott Ditter said. "I just didn't think we'd score this well. I'm proud of both the boys and girls teams."

Olympia's Natalie Kirk had a busy day as she pocketed a second in the 100-meter hurdles and a pair of thirds in the long and triple jumps.

The Olympia girls grabbed five seconds and three thirds. Their only firsts came in the relays - the 400 and 1,600.

But their 87 points was nearly twice as much as runner-up Tahoma, who finished with 48.

Olympia coach Cris Violette was pleased both with the team trophy and with getting through a meet without an injury.

"I feel like I'm playing M*A*S*H," Violette said. "I'm glad we don't have a league meet next week. It gives us a chance to rest up."

Laurel Stormans didn't do any resting up in the 300-meter hurdles as she cut a second off her personal best to place second with a time of 46.4 seconds. Cheri Watson, with a late surge, showed her speed and endurance to place second in the 800 with a time of 2:18.

But Watson wasn't going to catch Puyallup's Chelsie Jorgensen, who won with a meet-record time of 2:14.

"She was smoking," Violette said about Watson. "She finished well. This is early for her to be breaking 2:20."

The Olympia boys medley relay team showed their heels to a fast field and won with a time of 10:47, breaking meet and school records. In the winning four-leg relay, Colin O'Leary ran the 1,600, Jacob Goodin ran the 1,200, Dan Lueke ran the 800 and Anthony Balingit ran the 400.

They finished 19 seconds ahead of runner-up Shelton to pick up the Olympia boys other first.

Olympia went 1-2-3 in the boys high jump, with Lusby winning with a jump of 6-2 and just missing at 6-3, his personal best.

"I've been working on sprinting to the bar," Lusby said. "Sometimes I slow down. I didn't slow down at 6-2. You've got to put it all together."

In the boys 3,200, Colin O'Leary led early but couldn't hold off the challenge of Redmond's Anthony Ellis and placed second with a time of 9:44.8. Ellis won in 9:40.

"I wanted to go under 9:40," O'Leary said. "No one pushed it early so I took the lead. But I didn't feel like I had the legs."

In the boys mile, Olympia's Jacob Goodin stuck with his plan to stay with the leaders and finished third with a lifetime best of 4:27. Tahoma's Jon Lafler won in 4:41.

Goodwin, running the first lap in 66 seconds, wanted to get out faster.

"The first lap was pretty slow," he said. "We had negative splits every lap after that."

Chehalis' Alexa Huestis won the pole vault with a jump of 11-6, just missing at 12 feet, a height she's cleared twice this year.

"She's upset," "Chehalis pole vault coach Don Rinta said. "Looking back, we should have moved to the next pole. She had the height."

Huestis, who has accepted a track scholarship to Washington State University, is the third Chehalis pole vaulter to commit to a NCAA Division I program in the last five years.

Shelton's Gabe Shoemaker experimented with the spin approach in the shot put this week, but the senior won with the traditional glide approach with a throw of 51-7.

"I'll mess with both throws and see how it goes," Shoemaker said. "I wanted to see if I could pop one."

On his only attempt with the spin, he threw 45 feet.

Elma's Christian Stark got out fast in the 110-meter hurdles then held off a late challenge to win in 14.96 seconds. It's the first time he's run under 15 seconds.

"My coach says the first two hurdles are where it's won," said Stark, who placed third at 2A state last year. "I got off to a good start. It's something I've been working on."

Timberline's Derek Devine won the javelin with a throw of 169-1.

At 5-foot-2 and 92 pounds, Hockinson's Shannon Porter was the smallest runner, but the sophomore had the biggest heart as she won the mile in 5:08 and the 3,200 in 10:52.

"My mom is my hero," Porter said about her running inspiration, Laurie Porter, who is hoping to qualify for the Olympia Trials in the marathon.

Seattle Academy's Jade Langston was the meet's top female athlete. She won the high jump (5-2) and the long jump (17-3).

Hockinson's Colton Dunn was the male athlete of the meet. He won the 100 (11.3), the 200 (22.5) and 400 (50.3).

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http://www.columbian.com/sports/localNe ... 133287.cfm

Girls track and field

Buruse makes name for herself at 2A - Athletes from Class 4A and 3A high schools dominate the list of area best performances reported to The Columbian this spring.

Not so in the 1,600-meter run, with Ridgefield's Natosha Buruse and Hockinson's Porter sisters, Shannon and Sarah, making it a 2A sweep.

"We're pretty proud of it. We're like sisters, almost," Buruse said - adding after a brief pause: "Off the track."

Buruse finished between the Porters recently at Columbia River's annual Twilight meet, lagging about five seconds behind her school-record time of the previous week after some jostling during the race.

"They're amazing runners, and I am so fortunate to be running in the same league as them. It's really nice when we can go to invites and come from 2A schools, but still be well-known all around the county. I think that's something to be proud of."

Buruse had the area's best time in the 1,600 until the Twilight meet. While Sarah Porter won the race by about 11 seconds, it was much closer than their first meeting.

"My freshman year, I raced Sarah Porter for the first time and had no idea who she was. It was my first race ever, and she beat me by 40 seconds. I've come a long way since my freshman year. I have goals, and I want to keep trying to achieve them."

Ridgefield coach Gregg Ford has seen the development.

"She's a competitor, and she's learning how to compete," he said. "Those are strategy races. People think you just go out and run two laps or four laps, but every race can be different. ... It's a learning experience, and it's tough. She's learning."

Buruse, a junior, is a returning 2A state placer at 800 and 1,600 meters, and was a cross country state qualifier this past fall. She holds the Ridgefield school records in both events with times of 2 minutes, 22.38 seconds - set at last year's state meet - and 5:12.78. That time in the 1,600 broke a 25-year-old mark this season at the prestigious Pasco invitational.

"Track's my sport over cross country. I just like the environment a lot more. I like running the 800 and the 1,600 compared to running a 5K. It's a lot more comfortable."

Buruse was the only competitor for the Ridgefield girls at the Pasco meet and one of just eight in the program this spring. It is easily the smallest group the program has had in Ford's 17 years, but he said a surge is coming from younger grades.

"We're a really close group of girls," Buruse said. "It would be awesome if there were more girls going out, but it's fun."

- Kurt Zimmer




Boys track and field

Evergreen's Hamilton sets bar high - It would figure that posting two wins at a prestigious meet like the Pasco Invitational would fill a high school athlete with excitement.

To do it two years in a row, it would be hard for anyone to contain his excitement.

Anyone, that is, except Evergreen sprinter Ryan Hamilton.

"That's pretty mediocre for me," he told the Tri-City Herald of his 200 time. "This just shows me what I need to work on from here on out."

Hamilton was the lone double winner on the boys side of this year's meeting, repeating as champion of the 100 and 200 meters at Pasco, setting a state-leading mark of 10.84 seconds in the 100 and a posting a solid 22.54 in the 200.

Hamilton has set the bar pretty high for himself this season. Perhaps that's because no one knows better than Hamilton that what you do in April doesn't matter much in late May when the state championships are held.

Last season, Hamilton headed down the stretch run of the season as one of the favorites to win a state title in the sprints. But slowed by injury and illness, Hamilton lost 5 to 7 pounds the week leading up to the West Central regional meet and failed to qualify for state in the 100 and 200.

But with a healthy and refocused Hamilton, Evergreen looks to be a tough team to contend with this season. The Plainsmen's performance at Pasco showed that.

Evergreen finished with 46 points, one point behind Prosser for the team title. And the Plainsmen's score was comprised of more than just Hamilton.

Alex Nelson was third in the discus (156 feet), James Monk was fifth in the long jump (21-4) and Brad Wall was fifth in the 400 meters (50.91).

That depth has helped Evergreen to a 4-0 mark in 4A GSHL dual meets. The regular season ends Tuesday with a meet at Heritage. A win would give the Plainsmen the league dual-meet title. A Heritage win likely will leave Evergreen, Heritage and Skyview to share the honor.

If nothing else, the road to state becomes a little less involved for Hamilton and other 4A GSHL athletes.

The district meet, which will be May 9 and 11 at McKenzie Stadium. Unlike past years, there will be no preliminary races. All events will be finals.

So Hamilton won't have to run two prelims on Wednesday and two finals on Friday to advance to the next stage of state qualification. That next stage is the District 2/4 meet, which will be May 18-19 in Lynnwood.

- Tim Martinez

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http://www.ballardnewstribune.com/artic ... orts01.txt

Track - Beavers seeking post season chances

By Dean Wong

Tuesday, May 01, 2007

With the track and field season winding down, the Ballard Beavers are relying on a team of relatively young team to get them into the playoffs.

"This is the time of the season when it is starting to count. We are working towards the post season," said assistant coach Bob Mirenzi.

Individually, the boy's team has had some strong performances in recent weeks. They include: Kellen Jones, shot put; Sam Gerner, javelin; Clayton Anderson, 800-meter; Alex Barkley, 1600 and 3200-meter; Julian Montante, 100-meter and triple jump; Jack Brannan, 110 and 300-meter hurdles; and Leonardo Santana, 400-meter.

Patrick Ni has been a surprise addition to the team. He has won the high jump, long jump and 100-meter during meets this year.

"He's going to be good," said Mirenzi, referring to Ni, who is fifth best in the state in the high jump.

Head Coach Bruce Drager said Ballard girls distance runner Bridgett Berg is doing awesome and is one of the best in the state.


Drager said Miran McCash is running a strong 800-meter race this season.

The field events that include discus, javelin and shot put are improved from past years.

"We have a good team all round. We are strong in all the events," said Drager.

"The field throwers are doing good. The hurdlers are doing good," said Mirenzi.

The team lost eight seniors from last year. Cross country and track standout Zack Gussin was among those who graduated.

Gussin is now running for the University of Washington.

In 2005, Ballard was the second best team among the state's 4A schools.

Ballard, Eastlake and Lake Washington compete in a meet on May 2. The KingCo meet for both 3A and 4A is May 9 and 11 at Liberty. The District meet is May 18 and 19 at the Southwest Athletic Complex at Chief Sealth High School. The State meet is May 25 and 26 in Pasco.

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http://www.thenewstribune.com/548/story/50660.html

Local flavor carries day at Shelton Invite

TODD MILLES; The News Tribune
Published: April 29th, 2007 01:00 AM




SHELTON – The opportunity was there to seize. Laura Martin could have joined an impressive list of distance runners at Charles Wright Academy.
When Tarriers coach Drew Wartenburg suggested last summer that Martin, the returning Class 1A state 400-meter runner-up, switch to a longer race, she gave the idea more than a fleeting thought. She attended the University of Oregon cross-country camp.

A steep and winding hill reinforced her taste for sprinting.

Martin’s game is speed, and she proudly put that on display Saturday at the 47th annual Shelton Invitational at Highclimber Stadium, marking the end of invitational track in 2007.

She set a personal-best time in winning the girls’ 400 in 58.33 seconds – the fourth-best time in the state this season. She also moved past 1A leader Gwenna Carie of Cascade of Leavenworth (58.4).

Hours later, Martin easily doubled up with a victory in the 200, leaving thoughts of logging heavy mileage in the rear-view mirror.

“(Wartenburg) wanted me to do cross country. They needed one more girl to fill out the team,â€Â

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http://www.thenewstribune.com/548/story/50661.html

Gig Harbor girls win at Lake Washington

News Tribune staff
Published: April 29th, 2007 01:00 AM




Gig Harbor High School track coach Kevin Eager has been waiting patiently for his girls team to perform to its ability.
The Tides finally seemed to do that Saturday at the annual Lake Washington Invitational, taking home the team title with 67 points. Bellarmine placed third (52), and Lincoln finished fifth (30.5).

“They did good today,â€Â

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http://www.bellinghamherald.com/111/story/68542.html

Speedster Mallard focused on state
PREP TRACK


JOSIE LIMING THE BELLINGHAM HERALD
Ferndale's Chris Mallard takes first place in the 100 meter dash at a Nooksack Valley meet last month. Mallard's time was 10.89 seconds.

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DOUG PACEY
THE BELLINGHAM HERALD

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The 100-meter dash seems so simple and straightforward.

It’s the shortest of all the track events. Runners get in their blocks, listen for the gun and then run for about 11 seconds.

Yet, because of its fleeting duration it also has the smallest margin for error. Factor in the close proximity to other sprinters, and that makes it one heck of a mind game.

Just ask Ferndale sprinter Chris Mallard.

The Golden Eagles senior qualified for the Class 3A state meet as a sophomore and junior, but each time he failed to advance out of the preliminary race.

Mallard says he’s big on statistics. He’d study his opponents’ times and have a mental list of where each runner should finish. That kept him from reaching his potential.

“I ran my worst times of the year at state,â€Â

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http://www.bellinghamherald.com/111/story/63598.html

JAKE RILEY

School: Sehome

Sport: Track and field

Year: Senior

Events: 3,200 meters

What he did: Riley ran the 3,200 at the Shoreline Invitational on Saturday in 9 minutes, 0.50 seconds. Not only did that set a school and Whatcom County record, but it is the fourth fastest time in the 3,200 in the nation so far this year and the eight fastest time using con-verted two-mile times. Only one Washington state high school runner has gone faster in the event in the past two years, and that was Seattle Prep’s Max O’Donahue, who edged Riley in the race by turning in a time of 8:59.73.

Coach’s quote: “Jake is one of the savviest racers I have ever known. He has a great sense for pace and an ability to push himself right to his very limits without going over the edge. He is showing that he is a talent on the national level on the track as well as in cross-country.â€Â

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http://www.sportstricities.com/sportstc ... 9820c.html

Jumping at a second chance

This story was published Thursday, May 3rd, 2007

By Rene Ferran, Herald staff writer

If Vien Hua had his way, the Hanford senior wouldn't be the reigning 3A regional long jump champion and the area leader this season.

Hua's first love is basketball, and in his dreams, he'd star for the Falcons basketball team, leading the purple and gold to the state tournament.

"I'm obsessed with it," he said. "I play every day. I'd go to the gym and play with my friends. I live by Chief Jo Middle School, so I'd go after school at night and shoot on the outside courts."

The only problem with Hua's dreams?




"I'm just not good at it," he said, smiling.

So Hua, a 20-year-old who moved to the Tri-Cities from Vietnam 10 years ago, contents himself with strutting his stuff wearing a purple and gold tank top, hoping for another shot at a state title after finishing in last place at last year's state meet.

"He's one of those jumpers who'll go low 19, then BAM! out comes a 21-footer," said Hanford track coach Darren Crow. "He's just barely scratched some 23-footers. It's within his realm to jump it. It's there."

Hua tried out for the track team as a freshman, but he didn't stick around long. Before the first meet, he quit the team. "Those were the hardest two weeks," he said. "I didn't like it."

Then last year, a friend convinced Hua to give track another try. This time, he survived the two weeks of practice before the jamboree and stuck it out the entire season.

He started the year as a sprinter, then at midseason he wandered over to the long jump pit.

Something clicked. "Jumping is just a natural thing for me," he said.

Quickly he went from the 18s to the mid-20s, placing fourth at the Mid-Valley League district meet.

The following week at regionals, everything clicked. He jumped a career-best 21-8 to win the title.

"That was a surprise for me," said Hua, whose best jump this year is 21-5 1/2. "That told me I can jump. I didn't know how good I was."

Because of his age, Hua had to apply to the District 5 eligibility committee to be allowed to compete this year. The circumstances surrounding his petition were compelling.

A Google search of Hua's home town of Quang Ngai, Vietnam, nets a Web site (www.pensfans.com/vietnam4.html) that describes it as near the site of one of the most infamous incidents in U.S. military history -- the My Lai Massacre.

It tells of how the area was a VietCong stronghold, that the U.S. did everything in its power to uproot the VC from the area -- to no avail.

His father, Sam, fought in the South Vietnamese army, but Vien said he doesn't remember any problems growing up. "Everything was already over when I was born," he said. "Life was normal."

Still, he and his family (father, mother Hoai and two older sisters) left Vietnam when Vien was 10. Ask Vien why, and he mentions something about "this refugee program," but trying to get more details proves fruitless.

Part of it, no doubt, is the language barrier. Hua is a quiet kid to begin with, and despite 10 years of English instruction -- he was even held back as an eighth-grader to improve his proficiency -- he still struggles with it.

"It was hard learning English," he said. "The writing part is so different. Everything is backward from our way of speaking."

The differences show when he explains his nickname: Vienna 102. "Vienna is because I like the name," he said. "102, if you read it in Vietnamese, it means, 'There's only one; there's no two.' "

When he first came to Richland, he attended Jefferson Elementary. "The classroom was way nicer than at home," he recalled. "And I'm thinking the teacher is going to hurt me because I didn't know English. Over there, the teacher will spank you if you don't know anything"

Hua has been contacted by the University of Mary to jump for the North Dakota NAIA school, but he's more likely to bypass an athletic career and attend Columbia Basin College.

There's something about Mary he doesn't like.

"It's too far away and it's too cold," he said. "I don't like to go far away from home."

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http://www.theolympian.com/143/story/96387.html

JORDAN STRAY

Centralia track and field

Age: 18

Year: Senior

Family: Mom, Jane; dad, Jerry; younger twin sisters, Jasmine and Jill; older sister, Lindsay.

Grew up in: Centralia

Other sports: Football

Last week: Stray broke the Tigers' 49-year-old discus record with a throw of 163 feet, 8 inches in a three-way meet against Aberdeen and Black Hills last Thursday. Stray also won the discus (163-7) and hammer (222-7) at the XO Invite Saturday, a prestigious high school invitational held at the University of Oregon. His winning throw in the hammer set a meet record.

About last week: "My best hammer is 223-11, so I was just off from my personal best. It's a really good feeling to have throws that close to each other. It means I am consistent. That is a huge factor with hammer."

Comment from John Schultz, Centralia shot, discus, hammer and javelin coach: "He's going to be an Oregon Duck next year. That's where his home is going to be for the next four or five years. So to throw well there was really fun for Jordan."

Who is someone, living or dead, you might like to meet? "I would like to meet Hal Connolly, the last U.S. gold medalist in the hammer, in the 1956 Olympics. I haven't gotten to meet him in person, but I have gotten to talk to him by phone and e-mail."

You do discus and hammer. Which event is most difficult in your mind? "I throw the shot as well, but I'm not really that competitive at it. Hammer is the most difficult, because of the footwork you have to do. It takes a while to get the footwork down."

Do you notice the intensity picking up as the season nears the end? "Definitely, yeah. Guys from a lot of other schools are starting to throw farther now. You have to keep working hard to stay ahead. The intensity is definitely picking up. You have to keep lifting, stay after school and practice the hammer throws."

OTHER TOP PERFORMERS

Cody Brooks, North Thurston baseball: Went 9-for-12 in three games, with one home run, two doubles and six singles.

Kay Dunklee, River Ridge track and field: Was a triple-winner individually in a dual meet against Elma, winning the 100-meter hurdles (17.8), 300 hurdles (47.7) and pole vault (8-6). She also ran the second leg of the winning 1600 relay.

Brad Jersernig, Capital baseball: Got the victories in both games against Shelton last week, coming in late in the game, striking out four and getting the winning RBI in the eighth inning of the first game. In the second game, he struck out 11 batters, going six innings.

Josh Phillips, Capital soccer: Phillips had game-winning goals against North Thurston and Clover Park and has scored five goals and had three assists the past five games as the Cougars climbed into first place in the Western Cascade Conference.

Krista Shannon, Capital fastpitch: Pitched back-to-back shutouts in her first two starts of the season. She struck out 28 batters in two games and allowed one hit.

Olivia Smith, Timberline fastpitch: Smith went 7-for-8 and recorded two RBIs in the Blazers' two victories last week against Clover Park and Shelton.

Katrina Tabil, Timberline tennis: Timberline's No. 1 singles player won both of her league matches last week against Shelton (6-1, 6-4) and Capital (6-4, 7-5).

Anthony Thomas, River Ridge track and field: In a dual meet against Elma, he set a school record in the javelin with a throw of 182 feet, 7 inches and went 21-1 in the long jump, the second farthest jump in 2A this spring.