The Elma Eagles and Montesano Bulldogs came away with team title trophies at the 1A Evergreen League Championship Meet on Thursday at Jack Rottle Field in Montesano.
Montesano’s boys team scored 210 points to win the overall title, with Hoquiam placing second with 145 points and Elma (130) taking the third spot.
Elma took the league title in the girls team competition, scoring 198 points. Hoquiam placed second with 165 points. Montesano came in third with 130 points.
Thursday’s unusually warm weather combined with the fast pace of the late-afternoon meet, meant coaches and athletes had to keep a close eye hydration and fatigue, especially athletes who hopscotched from one starting line to the next.
“It definitely sapped me,” admitted Elma Jillian Bieker, who won the long jump, both hurdles races and anchored the Eagles’ winning 4×200 relay team. “Even during the 4×200, I could feel my throat was parched. The beginning races felt OK and I was running alright, but that 300 hurdles and long jump, it was hard to get that speed up.”
“The biggest factor was the time in between events,” Elma’s Cody Vollan, who won the boys 400 with a time of 50.79. “There was no rest time. … 10 to 15 minutes (until the next race) after running the 400 is not enough recovery time.”
Elma’s Cody Vollan, left, races around the final corner of the boys 400 meters during the 1A Evergreen League Championship meet in Montesano. Vollan won the event with teammate Ray Billerback, right, placing second. (Ryan Sparks | Grays Harbor News Group)
The increased pace of a condensed meet coupled with temperatures that hovered in the mid-80’s for much of the meet meant personal-best marks would be a rarity. But while track and field athletes consistently push for better marks, that was not the focus of Thursday’s meet.
“It’s also about this,” Elma head coach Bryan Schneider said while holding his girls team’s championship plaque. “We had some girls blow chunks, we had some boys blow chunks, but it went so fast we just had to get them through. … They’re tough and you have to be mentally tough. It’s all about getting them rest now.”
As the shade of the grandstands at Jack Rottle Field started to cover portions of the track, times started to improve.
“The weather is kind of cooling down and I felt ready,” said Montesano sprinter Alma Muro, who won the girls 200 toward the conclusion of the meet. “I never ran lower than a 27 here, so 26.89 was pretty good. I felt good coming off the curve, had a lot of energy left and used all of it to cross the finish line.”
Montesano’s Sierra Birdsall, second from left, hands the baton to Alma Muro as Elma’s Jayla Mason, third from left, makes the exchange with Tatiana Freeman during the girls 4x100 relay on Thursday in Montesano. (Ryan Sparks | Grays Harbor News Group)
Most important than PR times was winning league titles and making sure a spot was secured for Thursday’s district meet, which is scheduled to begin at 3:30 p.m. at Woodland High School.
“For me, it’s crunch time,” Elma senior Ray Billerback said as he participates in the final competitions of his prep career. “What you don’t want to do is push yourself too hard and pull something right before districts and state.”
“Today was mainly about getting to the next step,” Vollan said. “Same with districts, it’s about getting to state. When you get to state, winning is all that matters.”
1A Evergreen League Championship Meet
Boys Results (Top 3)
Team standings: 1, Montesano 210. 2, Hoquiam 145. 3, Elma 130. 4, Forks 70. 5, Tenino 47.
100 — 1, Jonah Doll, Hoquiam, 11.48. 2, Tucker Simpkins, 11.68, Elma. Harly Whitaker, Tenino, 11.90.
200 — 1, Doll, Hoquiam, 23.25. 2, Cody Vollan, Elma, 23.49. 3, Bryce Whipple, Montesano, 24.14.
400 — 1, Vollan, Elma, 50.79. 2, Ray Billerback, Elma, 53.00. 3, Colby Adams, Montesano, 55.40.
800 — 1, Alex Tomko, Hoquiam, 2:23.12. 2, Kordell Dungan, Montesano, 2:31.91. 3, Drew Hart, Tenino, 2:34.27.
1600 — 1, Wesley Camacho, Forks, 4:57.98. 2, Matthew Larson, Forks, 5:11.81. 3, Braxton Williams, Tenino, 5:18.00.
3200 — 1, Camacho, Forks, 11:27.15. 2, Braedon McMillan, Elma, 11:44.83. 3, Matthew Larson, Forks, 11:47.36.
110m hurdles — 1, Antonio Garcia, Hoquiam, 15.80, 2, Sam Winter, Montesano, 16.52, Montesano. 3, Matthew Fitzpatrick, Hoquiam, 17.45.
300m hurdles — 1, Jaedyn Edenstrom, Elma, 43.78. 2, Winter, Montesano, 46.11. 3, Clyde Bailey, Elma, 47.60.
4×100 relay — Hoquiam (Doll, Garcia, Jackson Moodenbaugh, Abraham Morales), 44.62. 2, Montesano (Whipple, Aydan Darst, Colby Adams, Hunter Schnoor), 44.73. 3, Elma (Edenstrom, Billerbeck, Simpkins, Vollan), 44.99.
4×400 relay — 1, Elma (Billerbeck, Edenstrom, Simpkins, Vollan), 3:42.02. 2, Montesano (Schnoor, Darst, Whipple, Adams), 3:53.71. 3, Hoquiam, 4:40.38.
Shot put — 1, Caleb Larsen, Hoquiam, 50-04.50. 2, Ben Bridge, Elma, 47-09.50. 3, Tanner Nicklas, Montesano, 47-01.00.
Discus — 1, Luke Dahlgren, 147-00. 2, Bridge, Elma, 142-03. 3, Skyler Steffen, Forks, 131-08.
Javelin — 1, Matt Brown, Hoquiam, 165-01. 2, Conner Hollatz, Montesano, 149-08. 3, Alex Mesquita, Montesano, 127-10.
High jump — 1, Garcia, Hoquiam, 5-08. 2, Garrett Iverson, Montesano, 5-08. 3, Hayden Queen, Forks, 5-06.
Pole vault — 1, Lutra Felten, Hoquiam, 11-06. 2, Hollatz, Montesano, 10-06. 3, Zach Barnes, Hoquiam, 8-06.
Long jump — 1, Whipple, Montesano, 20-10.50. 2, Brennen Wolcott, Montesano, 19-11.25. 3, Edenstrom, Elma, 19-09.25.
Triple jump — 1, Winter, Montesano, 42-02.50. 2, Darst, Montesano, 41.10.25. 3, Wolcott, Montesano, 39-04.50.
1A Evergreen League girls team champions: Elma Eagles. (Ryan Sparks | Grays Harbor News Group)
Girls Results (Top 3)
Team standings: 1, Elma 198. 2, Hoquiam 165. 3, Montesano 130. 4, Forks 71. 5, Tenino 60.
100 — 1, Jayla Mason, Elma, 13.32. 2, Sierra Birdsall, Montesano, 13.85. 3, Katie Burnett, Hoquiam, 13.93.
200 — 1, Alma Muro, Montesano, 26.89. 2, Tatiana Freeman, Elma, 27.52. 3, Sharaya Brydon, Hoquiam, 28.57.
400 — 1, Madolyn Olson, Montesano, 1:01.72. 2, Jaiden Morrison, Montesano, 1:03.33. 3, Jennifer Cole, Hoquiam, 1:05.95.
800 — 1. Elizabeth Peterson, Montesano, 2:39.70. 2, Valerie Roloff, Hoquiam, 2:44.24. 3, Melissa Galindo, Forks, 2:46.39.
1600 — 1, Galindo, Forks, 6:28.77. 2, Karen Salazar, Forks, 6:39.95. 3, Jeidi Ahilon, Forks, 7:27.26.
3200 — 1. Salazar, Forks, 14:04.42. 2, Katie Snyder, Tenino, 14:37.39. 3, Reina Schneider, Elma, 16:52.45.
100m hurdles — 1. Jillian Bieker, Elma, 16.35. 2, Olivia Hisaw, Tenino, 18.78. 3, Elizabeth Folkers, Hoquiam, 19.06.
300m hurdles — 1, Bieker, Elma, 51.07. 2, Kynleigh Landry, Elma, 53.11. 3, Candida-Rose Sandoval, Forks, 55.09.
4×100 relay — 1, Elma (Kayli Johnson, Maddi Clark, Freeman, Mason), 51.88. 2, Montesano (Olson, Morrison, Birdsall, Muro), 52.17. 3, Hoquiam (Brydon, Katie Burnett, Sadie Carlyle, Elyse Goulet), 54.04.
4×200 relay — Elma (Mason, Freeman, Clark, Bieker), 1:47.55. 2, Montesano (Olson, Cori Fritts, Morrison, Muro), 1:49.66. 3, Hoquiam (Brydon, Goulet, Hannah Krohn, Ryley Watkins-Lorton), 1:53.22.
4×400 relay — 1, Montesano (Peterson, Muro, Olson, Morrison), 4:18.43. 2, Elma (Mason, Landry, Freeman, Clark), 4:20.00. 3, Hoquiam (Jennifer Cole, Goulet, Watkins-Lorton, Ariel Grant), 4:42.34.
Shot put — 1, Tyara Straka, Hoquiam, 39-04.50. 2, Sarah Bridge, Elma, 37-02.25. 3, Jalyn Sackricer, Elma, 35-08.50.
Discus — 1, Sackrider, Elma, 113-11. 2, Straka, Hoquiam, 107-10. 3, Holli Ray, Elma, 94-07.
Javelin —1, Ashley Schow, Tenino, 100-08. 2, Kacey Pelan, Hoquiam, 97-08. 3, Taylor Strom, Hoquiam, 93-02.
High jump — 1, Brydon, 4-08. 2, Mercedes Morrill, Montesano, 4-08. 3, Fritts, Montesano, 4-04.
Pole vault — 1, Ariel Grant, Hoquiam, 7-00. 2, Natalie Clements, Montesano, 6-00.
Long jump — 1, Bieker, Elma, 15-05.25. 2, Clark, Elma, 15-01.50. 3, Katie Burnett, Hoquiam, 14-10.50.
Triple jump — 1, Ashleigh Adams, Tenino, 33-00. 2, Morrill, Montesano, 30-11. 3, Johnson, Elma, 30-10.50.
1A Evergreen League boys team champions: Montesano Bulldogs. (Ryan Sparks | Grays Harbor News Group)
1A Evergreen League boys team champions: Montesano Bulldogs. (Ryan Sparks | Grays Harbor News Group)
