By Rene Ferran

For The Oregonian/OregonLive

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OSAA TRACK AND FIELD 2018: DAY 3 RECAP

A summary of what went down during Day 3 of the OSAA track and field state championships Saturday in Eugene

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Text by Rene Ferran, who can be reached at rferr@hotmail.com. Photos by Serena Morones and Ben Ludeman.

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CLASS 6A BOYS

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Team race

West Salem 60

Tigard 54

Central Catholic 50

Jesuit 37

Tualatin 36

Oregon City 27

Benson 27

Roseburg 24

Sherwood 23.5

Newberg 23

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West Salem opened its doors in 2002, but it wasn’t until Saturday evening that the Titans earned their first state team championship.

They did it thanks to wins from Jacob Miller in the 400 meters and Simon Thompson in the 110 hurdles, along with scattered points from six athletes in seven events and clinched by their third-place finish in the 4x400 relay.

“This is well-deserved,” said Miller, who anchored the 4x400 to victory in the first heat in a time that was bested only by state champion Central Catholic and Tigard.

“We had a lot of people who got us the points to eventually pull it out. Coming into the 4x400, we wanted to win, even though we were in the slower heat, but it was definitely on our minds to get the team the points we needed to secure the win.”

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Gold: Micah Williams, Benson

Seven years ago, Thomas Tyner of Aloha and Jack Galpin of Crater combined to break the 4A state meet records in the 100 and 200, respectively.

In one glorious two-hour window Saturday, Williams deposited both those marks into the dustbin of history, dusting the fields in both races with blistering times of 10.42 seconds in the 100 and 21.19 in the 200.

Both times are second-fastest in state history across all classifications, bettered only by Tyner’s 10.35 run earlier in that 2011 season and Ryan Bailey of McKay going 21.13 in the 200 in 2007.

“To come in here and break records that have been here for a while is a major accomplishment,” Williams said. “I appreciate the opportunities that I’ve been given. But I have a lot more to do.”

Williams ran smartly in Friday’s prelims, winning his 100 heat and placing second in his 200 to draw Lane 3 for the final.

That allowed him to follow his simple race strategy.

“I just go out and run my race,” he said matter-of-factly. “Get out fast and finish strong.”

So, what does Williams have planned for an encore next season?

“I just need to keep working,” he said. “I can’t be at a standstill, but I need to keep improving and getting better every year.”

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Silver: Jacob Miller, West Salem

Miller won a showdown with defending 400 champion Braden Lenzy of Tigard, holding off a furious surge from the Notre Dame-bound Tigers senior over the final 50 meters to win in 47.45 that moved him to No. 7 on the all-time state list (Lenzy, second in 47.52, is now No. 8).

“I could hear him coming up on me, but I was confident in my ability to hold him off,” Miller said. “I made one last push to see if he could match it, and in the last 10-15 meters, I could hear him pull up and I knew that I had it.”

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Bronze: Sawyer Christopher, Lincoln

Christopher successfully defended his title in the javelin, and while he fell just shy of throwing over 200 feet, he was happy to pull out the victory against a tightly bunched field that included three throwers go over 195 feet.

“It was definitely good competition,” said Christopher, whose winning throw of 199-8 on his first attempt was nearly 10 feet farther than a year ago. “All of us threw really well. It was a good day.”

Christopher also placed in two other events over the weekend, finishing sixth in the high jump and fifth in Friday’s discus.

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CLASS 6A GIRLS

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Team race

Jesuit 92

South Eugene 42

Sunset 42

Clackamas 40

Lincoln 34.6

Centennial 34

West Salem 29

Lake Oswego 27

Southridge 26

Sherwood 22

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The Crusaders’ depth was on full display as they won their third consecutive title and fifth of the decade. After winning three events Friday, Jesuit won only the meet’s final race – the 4x400 – on Saturday, but it scored points in 11 of 17 events on the weekend, including in every race but the high hurdles.

“It was just a true team effort,” said freshman Molly Grant, who anchored the victorious 4x400 to a state-leading time of 3:54.55. “Everyone on this team pushes each other and wants to do well. The results of that show here.”

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Gold: Kelly Makin, Sunset

The University of Washington-bound Makin made her own luck in winning the 1,500 title for the second year in a row and took advantage of an unlucky break to double up in the 800.

Makin was the only fresh contender in a 1,500 field that included the top five finishers from Friday’s 3,000. She and teammate Lucy Huelskamp took up the mantle from a field reluctant to push the pace, and with 300 meters to go, she left Huelskamp in her wake as she won in a personal-best 4:26.47, the eighth-fastest time in state history.

“That was the perfect race,” Makin said. “Lucy kept the perfect pace for me, and it worked out perfectly for us. But I was definitely concerned if I had anything left in my legs for the 800.”

That concern appeared almost prophetic when Southridge senior Taylor Chiotti opened up a 30-meter gap on Makin and Grant with 200 meters to go, but as they hit the final straightaway, Chiotti began tying up and Makin put on a burst of speed.

“I could definitely see ahead of me that I was gaining on her,” Makin said, “and I was getting pushed from behind by Molly. I knew I had a chance if I could just keep kicking.”

Makin passed Chiotti just a few meters before the finish line and won in 2:11.72, just a tick slower than her winning time of a year ago and only a half-second faster than Grant, with Chiotti third.

“That is not the way I wanted to win it,” Makin said. “Taylor ran a real gutsy race. She really went for it. That is not the way I would want it to finish for both of us, but it is what it is. It worked out in the end for me.”

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Silver: Skyler Blair, Southridge

The Skyhawks senior came into the state meet eyeing bigger things than just winning her first state titles.

Blair, who signed with the University of Utah, had run the second-fastest 100 hurdles time in state history (14.17) and third-fastest 300 hurdles (42.91) in winning the Metro district titles last week. She had her sights set on breaking the records before a roaring Hayward Field crowd.

That was until running her 100 hurdles prelim race Friday morning. She banged her knee going over a hurdle, and the pain throbbed throughout the rest of the day.

“My main goal at that point became to just win both of my races,” she said.

She accomplished that goal with relative ease, winning the 100s in 14.30 and the 300s in 43.61, and pronounced herself satisfied with how the weekend concluded.

“My ultimate goal was to win,” she said. “I had goals of meet records and a state record in the 300s, but some things, you just can’t change.”

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Bronze: Shelby Moran, Sherwood

If the Arizona State-bound Moran could change anything about her storied career that includes holding the state record in the discus, it would be one day in May.

Moran thought she had finally put to bed the memory of last year’s state discus competition, when she stunningly fouled on all three of her throws.

Then, she stepped into the ring for warmups, “and suddenly, I’m thinking, yes, this did happen last year,” she said. “I decided then I was going to get one in on my first throw. I didn’t care how far it went. Then, I’d just go on from there.”

That first throw, a 154-11, broke the meet record. She improved to 163-3 in the second round and 165-6 in Round 3, but she could go no further after going 179-7 to win last week’s Three Rivers district meet.

Moran also won the shot put with a throw of 42-11, nearly four feet shorter than her personal-best 46-9¾ from a month ago.

“It’s kind of upsetting that I didn’t throw well out there,” Moran said. “I didn’t perform well today. But it’s a lot better than last year.”

Moran has achieved the qualifying standard in the discus and hammer throws for this summer’s U-20 World Championships in Finland, but she still needs a top-two finish at next month’s US Junior Nationals to advance.

“I definitely have more in me,” she said. “This meet was something I’d been looking forward to for the whole year, but I have bigger things I’m looking forward to this summer.”

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CLASS 5A BOYS

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Team race

Sandy 86

Marist 62

Summit 58

Hood River Valley 44

Crater 42

Ashland 41

Ridgeview 37

Hermiston 35

Milwaukie 28.5

Bend 24.5

Mountain View 24

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The Pioneers won their first team title since 2003 and scored the most points by a 5A boys team since Summit amassed 88 in 2012.

They did it by displaying their depth. Only Dayne Gordien was a double-winner, earning Friday’s shot put and discus, and their only other individual champion was Maxwell Shannon in the triple jump – the senior also anchored the first-place 4x100 relay.

They instead got points from seven different athletes in eight separate events, as well as finishing second in the 4x400 to cap their victory.

“We’ve been working all season for this day,” said junior Dallin Thomas, who ran on both relays and chipped in a sixth-place finish in the 400. “We got as many of us to state as we could, so we could score points everywhere we could. We just showed up here and did our best.”

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Gold: Evan Holland, Ashland

A day after winning the 3,000 title, the Grizzlies sophomore became the meet’s only other double-winner by answering a challenge from Ridgeview senior Albert Hesse to win the 1,500 in 3:55.61.

Hesse had never run faster than 4:05 in the event, but he hung stride for stride with Holland and held a slight lead with 400 meters left. Holland matched Hesse’s surge and, despite heavy legs from running a meet-record time in Friday’s 3,000, found another gear to open a gap on Hesse and a hard-charging Ashland senior Alex Franklin.

“That is not an easy double,” Holland said. “I started feeling that 3K with 300 meters to go, and it hurt for sure, way more than yesterday. But I saw that I’d gapped him with 200 to go, and I just had to finish strong and give it my all.”

Defending champion Jantz Tostenson of Crater, who also was doubling after finishing second in the 3,000, fell off the pace midway through the race and finished seventh.

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Silver: Pierce LaCoste, Marist

The Spartans senior came in with lofty expectations and experienced a weekend of near-misses before finally breaking through in the 200 final, holding off classmate Andres Lopez and 100 champion Daekwon Mitchell of Hillsboro down the stretch to win in 22.24.

“I definitely had a lot of almosts, I’d have to say,” said LaCoste, who signed with Oregon as a decathlete. “But I’m a state champion. That’s all I really wanted. I was able to get it this time.”

LaCoste had finished second in Friday’s long jump and looked poised to win the high jump, not missing on any of his attempts through 6-4. With the bar at 6-5, though, “I don’t know if I was too nervous or had too much adrenaline like I did in the long jump, but all my attempts were bad,” he said. He finished tied for second when defending champion Dakotah Camberg of St. Helens made 6-5 on his second attempt.

LaCoste then moved over to the track, finishing fourth in the 100 final after escaping from prelims with the seventh-fastest qualifying time, leaving him one last chance to leave Hayward Field a winner.

“That’s exactly what it was all about,” he said. “It was my last high school race, and I was going balls to the wall.”

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Bronze: Tyler Rohrman, Hermiston

The Bulldogs senior tried not to look at what the meet record in the 110 hurdles was coming into the weekend. He didn’t want to tempt fate – or himself – by knowing he needed to run faster than 14.32 to enter the record books.

After posting the fastest qualifying time by almost a second over the rest of the field into a strong headwind Friday afternoon, Rohrman came back with the fastest time in 5A history and No. 4 all-time across all classifications, winning in 14.09.

“I knew I was capable of this. I even thought I could go 13.9, and if I hadn’t smacked that ninth hurdle, I think I could have done it,” Rohrman said. “Winning that race meant so much to me. Last year, I put a lot of pressure on myself, so this year, I decided I was going to have fun with track and make the most of the experience.”

Rohrman, who’ll run at Whitworth University next year, later placed a strong second in the 300 hurdles in a personal-best 39.22, losing only to Crater senior Cal Duke’s meet-record 37.51 – eighth-fastest in state history for all classes.

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CLASS 5A GIRLS

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Team race

Summit 156

Bend 89

Hermiston 50

Mountain View 44

Marist 33

Sandy 33

Crescent Valley 32

Hood River Valley 28.5

Churchill 26

Wilsonville 25

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The Storm fell short of their state goal of 200 points in their swan song as a 5A school, but they still nearly doubled up second-place Bend in winning their 12th consecutive title and remaining the only program to win a 5A girls title.

“There’s a lot in a name,” said senior Quin Fraley, who won both hurdles races and anchored the state champion 4x400 relay. “That’s a big motivator for us. We’ve had such great kids come through Summit. It’s a challenge, but one that we gladly accept.”

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Gold: Quin Fraley, Summit

Of the 15 athletes who contributed to Summit’s title run, Fraley might have played the biggest part, winning two individual titles, anchoring a champion relay and running on the third-place 4x100.

“I’m very tired,” she said with a smile after the 4x400 medals were awarded. “But I don’t think that I should complain. We set a lot of goals and accomplished them.”

Fraley’s goals included getting into the 14s in the 100 hurdles and the mid-44s in the 300s, and she accomplished both. She won both with personal-best times of 14.91 in the 100s and 44.44 in the 300s – the latter moving her to No. 8 on the Class 5A all-time list.

“I didn’t want to say them out loud before the meet, so I didn’t jinx myself,” she said. “But I accomplished them, so I’m really excited.”

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Silver: Marley Salveter, Sandy

The Pioneers junior came into the meet with the fourth-fastest 100 qualifying times in both the 100 and 200, but it was how she left the meet that counted more – winning both races in personal-best times of 12.27 and 25.20, respectively.

“I’m still in shock,” Salveter said after beating defending champion Maya Hopwood of Bend in the 100. “I’d never had a top three in my career at state. It was super close there, and when I heard my name and saw my time, I put my hand over my mouth. It was totally not what I expected.”

She was more confident about how she’d run in the 200 final after posting the fastest qualifying time. Salveter prides herself on her closing speed, and she showed it off as she caught Summit’s Emma Normand on the turn after getting off to a slow start to the race.

“To win this on top of the 100 is just amazing,” she said. “This is just a crazy experience. I’ll never be able to relive this.”

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Bronze: Jasmine Martin, Mountain View

Martin had only one event Saturday, finishing second in the triple jump to Bend’s Leah Richards with a jump of 36-9¼ (Richards went 37-5½), but that was the capper to a meet that saw the Cougars sophomore successfully defend her long jump title and add the high jump crown to her resume Friday.

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CLASS 4A BOYS

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Team race

La Grande 94

Crook County 74

Scappoose 59

Marshfield 52

North Bend 49

Cottage Grove 47

Newport 27.5

Gladstone 25

Stayton 24

Sisters 22.5

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La Grande’s best finish before this weekend was a tie for second at the 1985 AAA meet. The Tigers scored points in 12 events, including three individual titles and a championship-clinching victory in the 4x400 relay.

“We’re from over in La Grande. No one knows about us over here,” said senior Cade Reed, who won both hurdles races and ran the third leg on the 4x400. “They’ve got to respect us now.”

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Gold: Cade Reed, La Grande

Reed and younger brother Nathan went 1-2 in both hurdles races, with Cade – who ran state-leading times of 15.11 and 39.40 in Friday’s prelims – coming back Saturday to win in 15.25 in the highs and 39.60 in the intermediates.

“I wanted to PR, and I wanted to do what I could do to put the team in position to win a state title,” Cade said. “I feel like for us to come over here and go 1-2, it just shows that the two best hurdlers in the state are from La Grande.

“And with my little brother just a sophomore, we’ll just keep getting it done.”

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Silver: Victor Ramirez, Crook County

The Cowboys senior posted the fastest qualifying times in the 200 and 400 on Friday, and he came through in the longer race with a state title, passing Marshfield senior Zach Kellar down the stretch to win in 49.48.

“I saw him pass me on the inside, so I knew I had to kick it,” Ramirez said. “That last 100, I just went all out and ended up with the win.”

The 200, though, turned into a bit of tragic comedy when Ramirez forgot to change into his running spikes that he brought with him to the warmup area under the Hayward Field stands. Running in his tennis shoes, Ramirez managed to still place third in a wind-aided 22.48, beaten by Cottage Grove’s Jacob Woods (22.34).

“My prelim time was faster than what won,” Ramirez said, almost spitting the words out. “But when I ran, I felt myself slipping on the track. I was supposed to win that race. That’s what bugged me.”

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Bronze: Jacob Woods, Cottage Grove

Woods, who won the long jump Friday, not only was the beneficiary of Ramirez’s mistake in the 200 final but also finished second in the 100 and anchored the Lions’ seventh-place 4x100 relay team.

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CLASS 4A GIRLS

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Team race

Marshfield 60

Astoria 55

Philomath 52.5

North Valley 50

Valley Catholic 43.5

Hidden Valley 43

Scappoose 42

Sisters 34

Cascade 33

Sweet Home 22

Tillamook 22

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The Pirates ended Astoria’s three-year reign atop the 4A ranks and won their first title since 2005 despite having only one individual champion. Marshfield scored points in 10 events, led by a 1-2-4 finish in the pole vault led by junior Khaley Aguilar.

“As the day went on, I realized just how much those points meant for us,” said Aguilar, who was the only vaulter to clear 11-0¼ after teammate Jamie Anderson went out at that height. “We knew we could do it, and we ended up winning it.”

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Gold: Baylee Touey, North Valley

The Knights junior came in carrying a truckload of expectations after sweeping the three sprint titles a year ago.

The weight didn’t prove too heavy for her, however, as she completed the sweep for the second time, winning the 100 in 12.22, the 200 in 24.86 and the 400 in 58.05.

About the only hiccup she experienced over the weekend was ending up in Lane 6 for the 400 final after taking it a little too easy in the prelims, but she quickly overcame that handicap by powering through the first 200 and holding off a tightly-bunched pack of pursuers – the next three placers finished within .08 of a second of each other.

“I’m feeling really good right now,” Touey said. “I just wanted to come here and give it my all, and I was able to do that today. I accomplished what I wanted to.”

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Silver: Linnaea Kavulich, Scappoose

The Portland State-bound senior completed her distance double, following her victory in Friday’s 3,000 by steadily pulling away over the final lap to win the 1,500 in a personal-best 4:39.83.

“I was disappointed with the time I ran yesterday, and I wanted the feeling of running fast today, being absolutely exhausted at the end,” Kavulich said. “I got that today. I couldn’t be happier.”

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Bronze: Darian Hageman, Astoria

Like LaCoste in the 5A boys meet, the Fishermen senior finally found a bit of relief from a weekend of near-misses in her final event, competing a four-peat in the triple jump by going 38-2½ on her final attempt to cap a series in which she had the event’s four best jumps.

“The triple jump is my main event, the one I have the most confidence in,” the Oregon State-bound Hageman said. “I was just happy to finally get into the 38s today.”

Hageman had had a rough season, battling a stress fracture in her right shin, and the weekend included a third in Saturday’s pole vault following runner-up finishes in the high jump and long jump Friday.

“I definitely felt a lot of pressure this weekend,” she said. “It was a mental breakdown type of season for me, but I got through it and I’m still breathing.”

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MORE PHOTOS & LINKS

PHOTOS: 6A/5A/4A state meet Day 1

PHOTOS: 6A/5A/4A state meet Day 2 (track)

PHOTOS: 6A/5A/4A state meet Day 2 (field)

PHOTOS: 3A/2A/1A state meet Day 1

PHOTOS: 3A/2A/1A state meet Day 2

State track and field Day 1 recap

State track and field Day 2 recap

State track and field preview

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