Enumclaw and White River will be well represented this week when the state’s best track and field athletes gather in Tacoma for Star Track – the season-ending championships.
The big meet for Class 4A, 3A and 2A schools takes place May 23-25 and is again slated for Mount Tahoma High School. Tracksters from smaller schools – Class 1A, 1B and 2B – will compete the same days on the campus of Eastern Washington University in Cheney.
Enumclaw High will be sending 11 performers to Star Track. They qualified May 16 and 18 during the West Central/Southwest District meet at Sunset Chev Stadium in Sumner. White River qualified 14 athletes to state based on their performances during the 2A district meet at Bremerton High School.
ENUMCLAW HIGH BOYS
Qualifying for this week’s state championships were six Hornet boys.
Leading the way, finishing first in the field, was the EHS 4×400 relay team. Posting a time of 3:25.07 were Ricky Portillo, Royal Snyder, Anthony Russell and Kale Engebretsen.
Bryson Engebretsen clocked a time of 15.06 seconds to secure a berth in the 110-meter hurdles. Carson Christensen sailed 21 feet, 7.25 inches to qualify in the long jump and bounded 44-06.25 in the triple jump; Russell also made it in the long jump, going 21-05.75; Snyder finished 400 meters in 51.07 to make it to Tacoma; and Bryson Engebretsen cleared 14 feet in the pole vault to make it Mount Tahoma.
Earning a trip to the district meet but falling short of making it to state were Carson Christensen, 100 meters; Anthony Russell, 400 meters; Sam Lingwall, Dominic Deady and Jacob Dickson, all in the 1,600 meters; the 4×100 relay team; Lingwall, Deady and Trevor Storm at 3,200 meters; Kale Engebretsen in the 300-meter hurdles; the 4×100 relay team; and Jack Morse in the high jump.
Ethan Eilertson will head to state as an alternate in the relay.
ENUMCLAW HIGH GIRLS
On the girls’ side, five Hornets qualified for Star Track.
Making it to state in the 400 meters were both Johanna Brown, with a time of 9.53 seconds, and Mia Ammons, 1:00.45. Addie Neu ran a time of 2:17.30 to qualify for state in the 800 meters.
Winning the district meet and earning a state berth with a time of 3:58.81 in the 4×400 relay was the foursome of Gracie Neu, Ammons, Brown and Kayla Carlson. The same crew combined to secure a state spot in the 4×200-meter relay.
Competing at the district level but falling short of state were Carlson in the 400 meters; Addie Neu and Natasha Puzon, both in the 1,600 meters; the 4×100-meter relay team; Payton Roberson, 800 meters; Puzon, Anna Bogh and Kristen Dickson in the 3,200 meters; and Ellie DeGroot in the 300-meter hurdles.
DeGroot and Julianna Brown will join the team in Tacoma as relay alternates.
WHITE RIVER BOYS
Jackson Gibbon qualified for state in two events, taking first with an effort of 53 feet, 10 inches in the shot put and second with a toss of 143-09 in the discus.
Others earning state trips were Spencer Brooks, sixth at 400 meters with a time of 51.46 seconds, and Thomas Cox, fourth in the javelin with a throw of 154-02. The 4×100 crew of Brooks, Grant Swettenam, Payne Plaster and Braedan Clay took fifth with a time of 44.84.
Competing at districts on the boys’ side, but missing out on a state berth, were Will Stern, in both the 1,600 and 3,200 meters; Swettenam in both hurdle races; Christopher Farrer in the discus; the 4×400 relay team; Duncan Walker in the javelin; and four pole vaulters, Riley Maas, Charlie Pratt, Blake Leahy and James Hendrickson.
WHITE RIVER GIRLS
Earning state berths were Tori Schmidtke, who was fourth in the 400 meters with a time of 1:00.56; Makayla Melcher, fifth at 3200 meters, 12:22.23; Taylor Schmidtke, fifth in the 300-meter hurdles, 47.94; and Paidon Froemke, fourth in the javelin, 111-05.
Both Jessica Taylor and Madison Jenkins tied for third in the pole vault at 8 feet, 6 inches, and qualified for state.
The White River quartet of Maria Hawthorne, Emma Robbins and the Schmidtke sisters (Taylor and Tori) earned state berths in both the 4×200 and 4×400 relays.
Hornet girls who competed at districts and missed out on making it to state were Robbins in the 400 meters; Kajsa Holland-Goon, 800 meters; Makayla Melcher 1600 meters; Sam Fiedler, 100 meters; a 4×100 relay team; Hawthorne in the javelin; Gabrielle Piontek; pole vault; and Sam Fiedler, triple jump.
