Chandler Rotary Preview by Dave Shapiro
The Chandler Rotary Track and Field Invitational enters it’s 69th year this year. The meet has developed into one of the largest Invitational in the southwest with teams coming from Arizona, Colorado, New Mexico and Texas. This year over 70 schools and 2500 athletes will participate in the two day meet.
It wasn’t always like that. On March 21, 1941 the sleepy little town of Wickenburg hosted the first Wickenburg Rotary Relays. Seven schools attended the meet including Chandler, Buckeye, Tempe and the host Wickenburg team. Nine months later the United States was in the War, and a year later the second annual Wickenburg Rotary was held; it would be the last time the meet was held outside of Phoenix.
In 1943 with gas rationing and travel hard to come by, the Rotary Club of Chandler brought the meet to Chandler High school. The meet continued to be a relay meet featuring ten to twelve boys teams. In 1985 a bold move was made to add a girls division to the meet. Prior to that, the norm was for girls track meets to be held separately from boys. Even the girl’s state meet was held on a different weekend than the boys. The meet grew from 20 to 50 schools and then in the recent years as many as 85 schools have been represented at the meet. Schools from Nevada, California and even from Canada have attended along with the current three states from outside of Arizona.
Innovation has always been the goal of meet management for the Chandler Rotary Meet. Chandler was the only invitation in Arizona that allowed the Javelin to be thrown (as exhibition) and was the first 5A school to compete the Triple Jump as a scoring event.
Several years ago the meet was split into the current two sessions. Friday is what we call the Open Session and Saturday is known as the seeded session. The awards have been upgraded to special event watches to the winners or NIKE gear.
Many competitors from yester-year have gone on to college, NFL and Olympic careers. Every year new champions are crowned, and every year it’s hard to believe that the current year will be just as exciting as the past year. This year 13 event champions from last years 28 individual events return, to make 2009 look like it could be the best ever. They are (in no particular order) Seniors: Larrissa Mathews (Chandler-HH, pictured right), Kelsey Williamson (Thunderridge-400), Markus Wheaton (Chandler-400), Sierra Myer (Gilbert-HJ), Samantha Collins (Westwood-LJ) and Bryce Lamb (Chandler, LJ & TJ, pictured left). 
Junior champions returning are: Serena Williams (Peoria-100 &200), Jessica Tonn (Xavier-1600 & 800) and Shaylah Simpson (Desert Vista, PV, pictured above). Sophomore Hannah Carson (Dobson-Shot) returns, but is out for the season due to an injury. Some of these individuals and others who placed second led to eight marks that were ranked in the top five nationally by DyeStat.com, Milesplit and other rankings.
Last years’ featured race was the boys 800, where Catalina’s James Eichberger out dueled Desert Vista’s John Kline in an exciting race where they both went under 1:52.5. This years top boys races could be either the 400, the 1600 or the 3200. In the boys 400 five athletes are capable of running in the mid to low 47 second range. Last year’s champ, Markus Wheaton has recorded a time of 47.95 already this year at the Aztec invitational and recently ran in the Scholastic National Indoor meet. Duke bound Curtis Beach of Albuquerque Academy consistently hovers near the 48 flat range. Desert Vista has Spencer Chase who ran 47.45 at the state meet last year. But don’t rule out Peoria’s junior Jamal Hines, who sat out last year due to an injury. In 2007 Jamal won the Rotary 400 with a time of 48.09. The fifth runner entered at 47.9 is El Paso Montwood’s Chris Muncie.
(Photo on right; James Eichberger (left) and John Kline (right) heading for the finish in the 800 at last year's Chandler Rotary.
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The 1600 could produce a time in the low 4:teens, unless it becomes a strategy race. Many fine distance runners are in this race. Last years runner up Brian Shrader (Sinagua, 11) has run 4:18, and Sherod Hardt (Queen Creek-3rd in 2008) has run 4:19. Throw in Tuba City’s Ryan Yazzie (State Champ XC-’08) you have three quality juniors. It doesn’t end there, as there is Kevin Rayes (Arcadia-4:24), Larry Hermance 3A State 1600 runner up from Chino Valley (4:24), and you have the 5A state Champ DJ Johnson (Mt View 4:19) seeded 9th in the field.
The boys 3200 has top runners that should push through the 9:20’s barrier. If he is recovered from the 1600, Sherod Hardt ran 9:15 last weekend. Then you have a field of 20 runners entered at 9:59 or faster. Steve Magnuson (Ironwood Ridge) steps up at this invitational after running 4:19.29 earlier this year. Tim Freriks of Mingus who also has run 4:19.42 is in this field. It might take a 9:30 to score this year.
In the recent past the girls 1600 has been one of the top races, but many of the top elite athletes have graduated, leaving Xavier Jessica 
Tonn (double champ, pictured right), teammate Sarah Penny, Sara Beth MiVille (Ironwood Ridge) and Blue Ridge’s Jessica Rydberg to push each other. The girls 3200 could be a race as four time New Mexico state champ in the 1600 Jacqueline Campos from Santa Teresa will run. In New Mexico you can run on high school teams as an 8th grader. Campos ran a 5:10 last year. Watch for Chinle’s Rolando Jumbo who has run sub 11:00, Jessica Rydberg of Blue Ridge and Thunderridge’s Domingue Gerard who ran 11:16 in last year’s Rotary and only finished 7th.
The top girl event this year could be the high jump, an event that has been down in the past decade in Arizona. Four entries have already cleared 5’ 6”. Last years’ champ Sierra Myer, could be pushed by Chandler’s Cadija Harris, Westwoods’ Samantha Collins and Sinagua’s Taylor Stapley all come in at 5’ 6” this year.
Though as this is written entries are not due for later this evening, but these other fine athletes are sure to put in top marks that could and should be nationally ranked. Boys: Sprints Ryan Milus (Hamilton), Derek Molina (Red Mountain), Miles Disabella (Westwood), Patrick Foley (Notre Dame). Distance: Andrew Kellogg (Desert Vista), Jumps: Dovonant Grant (Marana-Mt View). Hurdles: Aaron Allen, Mesa-Mt view.
Just some of the other girls to watch: Sprints Shannon Jacobs (Highland), Stephanie Jordan and MacKenzie Flannigan (Chandler). Kala Stepter (CDO), Alexis Stamps (Skyline), Shayna Norbert (Mesa Mt View) Hurdles: Callie Davis (Highland), Sarah Geren (Horizon) Distance: Melanie Mcgrath (Catalina), Taylor Cole (Hamilton), Taylor DelaVega (Perry), Cami Jackson (Mesa-Mt View) Horizontal Jumps: Alexis Clay (Chandler), Jasmine Todd (Chandler), Vault: Lacy Palmer (Westwood), Makenzey Donaldson (Mesa-Mt View).
The 69th addition of the Chandler Rotary features representatives from 78 high schools from Arizona, Colorado, New Mexico and Texas. Two Thousand-Two Hundred and forty eight (2248) registered in over 3300 events, will be sure to make 2009 a memorable event.