AZ State Meet Division 1 & 2 Recap

May 09, 2014

State Meet Recap Division 1 and 2

Girls 4x800 Finals

The race of the night had to be the girls Division 1 4x800 meter relay. Desert Vista came into the meet at 9:20.54 ahead of Xavier College Prep (9:32.82) and Highland (9:33.98) and after 3 laps the two teams were just about even with Dani Jones (Jr., Desert Vista) getting the baton about a second before Lauren Ellsworth (Jr., Highland). Jones led the final 800 with Ellsworth on her heels until 250 meters from the finish line when Ellsworth made a move to the front. It was looking as though the gap Ellsworth was creating was enough for a clean finish but Jones fought back and caught up to Ellsworth with 100 meters to go. Ellsworth swung out into lane 2 as she was starting to lap the field, forcing Jones into lane 3 to try to pass. As both girls crossed the finish line in a virtual photo finish, no one knew the results until it was announced at the awards stand. Highland had the win with a US#3 and a #2 All-Time Arizona Mark of 9:03.90. Desert Vista took 2nd with a US#4 time of 9:03.94 and a #3 Arizona All-Time Mark. Xavier College Prep finished 3rd in 9:28.39 followed by Chaparral in 9:31.29.

Running for Highland were; Allyson Girard (Jr., 1st leg), Addi Montgomery (Jr., 2nd leg), Alena Ellsworth (Fr., 3rd leg) and Lauren Ellsworth (Jr., 4th leg).

Running for Desert Vista were; Baylee Jones (Fr., 1st leg), Mandy Davis (Fr., 2nd leg), Mason Swenson (So., 3rd leg) and Dani Jones (4th leg).

In the Division 2 Girls 4x800 meter relay, Catalina Foothills took an early lead in the first leg but Alhambra moved to the front with the first hand off as Flagstaff moved into 2nd. Gila Ridge took the lead before Catalina Foothills took it back at the next hand-off only to have it taken back again by Gila Ridge at the final hand-off. Gila Ridge held the lead in the final 800 until Catalina Foothill made a move in the final 200 finishing the race in 9:33.17 followed by Gila Ridge in 9:41.01. Flagstaff finished 3rd in 9:45.01 followed by Arcadia in 9:52.54.

Boys 1600 Meter Final

In the Division 1 boys 1600 meter run Nathan Rodriguez (Sr., Corona del Sol, photo right) took the race out in a 59 second 1st lap quickly separating himself and Mt. Ridge senior Nick Dale from the rest of the group. With each lap Rodriguez gained more ground and

crossed the finish line in 4:11.75 followed by Nick Dale in 4:18.24. Ben Davis (Jr., Desert Vista) finished 3rd with a 6 second PR in a time of 4:23.70 followed by Brandon McKay (Jr., Ironwood Ridge) in 4:25.31, Tyler Day (Jr., Mesquite) in 4:25.55.

“Going from 3rd my sophomore year, runner up last year and finally my turn as a senior is a huge accomplishment and I am enjoying every second of it,” said Rodriguez after his race.

In the Division 2 race Lucky Schreiner (Jr., Campo Verde, photo left) took an early lead with Alex Stevens (Jr., Saguaro) in his shadow. Schreiner held the lead the entire race finishing in 4:14.08. Stevens finished 2nd in 4:17.40 followed by Simon Paige (Jr., Prescott) in 4:18.70 and Emilio Vasquez (Jr., Catalina Foothills) in 4:18.82.

“I really wanted to have a strong first lap to make sure I was pushing the pace,” said Schreiner after the race. “Second lap I wanted to keep pace. I kept hearing his (Stevens) name being called but I just kept pushing the pace to wear him out and it worked.”

Boys 800 Meter Final

After finishing 4th in the Divison 2 1600 meter run, Emilio Vasquez (Jr., Catalina Foothills, photo lower left) gave it everything he had - including a dive, tuck and roll over the finish line to win the event with a 2 second PR in 1:55.98. William McClelland (Sr., Arcadia) finished 2nd in 1:56.11 followed by Gustavo Loustaunau (Sr., Youngker) in 1:56.86 and Lucky Schreiner (Jr., Campo Verde) 1:57.14. Schriner’s teammate Brandon Boys finished a close 5th in 1:57.86.

“Our first lap was a little slow around 57 - 58 so I knew if I wanted to beat that kid from the first heat we would have to run an even lap and we did,” said Vasquez. “I wasn’t going to lose,” Vasquez continued about his acrobatic finish. “I did whatever it took and it was way worth it.”

In the boys Division 1 800, Nick Creasman (Sr., Corona del Sol) pushed the pace with an early lead at the 400 mark. Teammate Nathan Rodriguez turned the corner in 2nd with Alex Nova (Sr., Boulder Creek) and Cade Bukes (So., Perry) in lock step. As the four came down the final 100 meters Rodriguez cranked it up and crossed the finish in a PR of 1:52.97. Burks finished 2nd in a Pr of 1:54.22 followed by Nova in 1:54.50

(PR) and Creasman 1:55.39. Brody Hagan (Sr., Highland) finished 5th in 1:55.71 (PR).

“My teammate - I give him all the credit. He ran one of the most gutsy races I have ever seen,” said Rodriguez about teammate Nick Creasman, “He just paved the way that whole first lap taking it out really hard and then held on all the way to the last 100. That’s an outstanding performance. I was just trying to gage myself off of him most of the time.”

Girls 3200 Meter Final

Bridgette Doucet (Jr., Canyon del Oro) took the lead and paced the 3200 meter run for 7 1/2 laps with Tatiana Gillick (Sr., Flagstaff) in tandem. The two ran together until the final 300 when Gillick moved to the lead finishing the race with a 26 second PR of 10:36.90. Doucet finished 2nd in 10:40.60 for a 20 second PR. Queen Creek freshman Alexus Navarro just missed going under 11 minutes with an 11:03.99 - a 26 second PR. Carissa Diaz (Jr., Vista Grande) took 4th in 11:23.91.

“I feel great - it was an amazing race, Bridgette Doucet paced that whole time,” said Gillick. “My goal was to just hang on to Bridgett Doucet because I knew she wanted to PR and I wanted to do the same and I knew she had 11 flat so if I just stuck with her I knew I would PR.”

“It was amazing and the best weather I could ever ask for,” said 3200 runner-up Doucet. “I am really bad at waiting, I am really impatient and so I don’t like trying to stay in a pack.”

In the girls Division 1 3200 meter run, Dani Jones (Jr., Desert Vista) moved quickly to the front with younger sister Baylee (Fr) tagging along. Alice Jensen (Jr., Mesquite) moved into 2nd place at the gun but yielded the spot to Baylee 600 meters into the race. Dani and Baylee ran together for a little more than 6 laps before Dani upped her pace. Jensen stayed in the 3rd spot with Tayrn Estavillo (Jr., Red Mountain) in the 4th spot until the final lap when Mason Swenson (So., Desert Vista) and Mandy Davis (Fr., Desert Vista) moved into the 4th and 5th position. Dani crossed the finish line in 10:34.16 followed by Baylee in 10:45.32 and with less than 100 meters to go Swenson passed Jenson for the 3rd spot in 10:56.84. Jenson finished 4th in 10:56.94 with Davis in 5th in 11:01.10. Estavillo finished 6th in 11:03.12. All six girls PR’d.

“It was a fun race and I really loved having my sister out there,” said Dani after the race. “She helps push me and in the 3200 I could hear her behind me and it just encourages me to run harder. I am really confident in my endurance and the 3200 is a fun race to have even coming off an injury. It’s a relief to have this under my belt after being out of meets for so long.”

Division 1 Top Field Event Winners:

After a fall on the first hurdle in the 110 hurdle prelims, Ashlee Moore (Sr., Hamilton) scratched from the 100 meter dash. Moore went on to jump 5-8 in the high jump finishing 2nd to Zarriea Willis (Jr., Alhambra) who also jumped 5-8.

“I feel like I accomplished something,” said Willis after the awards. “Next year hopefully I can clear 6 feet.”

Four athletes jumped over 46 feet in the triple jump with Sam Tooker (Sr., Chaparral) taking the win with a jump of 46-11.75 followed by Bryant O’Georgia (Sr., North Canyon) in 46-04.75; Kode Kuauhtl (North) in 46-04.00 and Connor Watson (So., Desert Vista) in 46-03.25.

Ashlee Moore won the long jump with an 18-9.50 jump. Chandra Hawthorne (Sr., Tucson Magnet) took 2nd with a jump of 18-00.50

Steven Connor (Hamilton) won the pole vault with a jump of 15-3. Jakob Alme (Sr., Desert Vista) jumped 15-00 for 2nd place.

Troy Kowalsky (Sr., Mt. Ridge) won the boys shot put with a 59-01.25. William Partridge (Jr., Buena) through 58-03.75 for 2nd place followed by Beau Eggers (Sr., Hamilton) with a 57-03.75.

Makenzie Holmes-Digiovine (Sr., Desert Vista) won the discus with a PR of 142-9. Erin Fakler (Sr., Xavier College Prep) took 2nd with a 135.11 followed by Bianca Finn (Sr., Chandler) with a 134.11.

“It’s been pretty amazing to come out here and win it two years in a row,” said the two time discus State Champion Holmes-Digiovine. “Hard work definitely pays off. I did not come in seeded #1 because I did not have the year I expected. I was seeded three which helped me because I wasn’t expecting to win and that mind set helped me get to where I got to.”

Division 1 Top Prelim Times of the Day:

Joshua Davis (Sr., Mesquite) 14.35 in the 110 hurdles.

Ky Westbrook (Sr., Chandler) 14.54 in the 110 hurdles, 11.93 in the 100 dash, 24.56 in the 200 dash.

Paul Lucas (Jr., Mtn. Pointe) 10.42 in the 100 dash, 46.90 in the 400 dash, 21.05 in the 200 dash.

Mesquite Boys 4x100 Relay - 41.96

Chandler Girls 4x100 Relay - 47.84

Jasmine Stauffacher-Gray (Jr., North Canyon) - 55.59 - in the 400 dash, 43.13 in the 300 hurdles.

Robert Grant (Sr., Brophy Prep) - 37.39 in the 300 hurdles.

Brophy College Prep Boys - 3:19.53 in the 4x400 relay

Corona del Sol Girls - 3:54.86 in the 4x400 relay

Division 2 Top Field Event Winners

Emily Gerard (Sr., Catalina Foothills) and Megan Schiffmacher (So., Cactus) jumped 5-6 in the high jump with Gerard taking the wind.

Stephfon Hayden (Poston Butte) jumped 47-05.50 in the triple jump - the longest jump across both divisions with - Cameron Duffy (Jr., Peoria) jumped 45-06.00.

Aaliyah Cook (Sr., Cactus) jumped 18-10.50 in the long jump with Shantinique Cunningham (Jr., Apollo) taking second with a jump of 18-02.00

“My last jump felt good, better than all the rest - more pop and more momentum and the support from all my friends is nice,” said Cook after her win. “I think I am definitely more coachable this year than any of the other year because I am older. I more willing to listen because I want to win for my team and not just for myself.”

Timothy Duckworth (Sr., Arcadia) jumped 16-02.75

Athena Masolini (Sr., Saguaro) jumped 11-3 in the girls pole vault with Justice Masolini (Jr., Saguaro) finishing right behind in an 11-00.

Nik Mercer (Sr., South Mountain) won the boys shot put with a 56-4.00. Hunter Jones (So., Desert Edge) finished 2nd in 52-10.75.

Kayla Melgar (Sr., Tempe) threw the discus 143-01 for the win. Second place went to Canyon del Oro senior Meredith Alarcio-Caldon with a 134-01.