IN THE HUNT

WASILLA — Nobody at Wasilla High School can seem to remember the Warriors winning a girls track and field conference title. If Wasilla did, the championship would predate anyone currently working at the school.

Gary Howell, a former high school runner in the Valley, doesn’t know if it has ever happened. But the Wasilla head coach does know one thing, the Warriors have the potential to be crowned girls champs at the Northern Lights Conference Championships, which start today at Palmer High School.

“It’s going to be tight. It’s Kodiak, Colony and us,” Howell said earlier this week. “It’s who performs on that given day.”

Wasilla has two runners who have posted state-best times this year and have the top mark in the conference in six different events this season, but depth has been the key for the Warriros.

“What makes us dangerous is we can score in every single event,” Howell said. “That’s the advantage of having depth.”

Sophomore Morgan Dampier and freshman Jenna Ford both currently own top times in the state. Dampier has owned the 800 meters this season. Ford posting a scorching time of 11 minutes and 14 seconds in the 3,200-meter last weekend at the Freshman/Sophomore Championships in Anchorage. Not only did Ford set a new state season best, but she also snapped a meet record that stood for more than a decade.

Dampier could also be a contender in the 100, and Ford should battled for the title in the 1,600.

Freshman Dejanae Harris has the conference’s best time in the 100 and is second in the 200. Howell said the Warriors have the potential to have the top three runners in the 100 Saturday, Harris, Dampier and Cori Schleich.

Junior Alice Oksoktaruk has emerged as a top jumper in the conferene, recording an NLC-best in the triple jump. Howell said Kiera Rust has also stood out in the jumps.

Senior Jillian Troisi leads the Warriors in the throwing events.

Colony junior Shellina Irwin currently holds the state’s top mark in the shot put, and will lead the Knights into the conference meet alongside defending NLC champs Taylor Stewart and Gaynor Johansen.

Stewart won conference titles in both the long and triple jumps as a freshman. She’s currently ranked second behind Oksoktaruk in the triple and fourth in the confernece in the long.

Johansen is the defending conference champion in the discus.

Her sister, Siobhan, is third in the NLC in the 300 hurdles.

Houston senior Danielle Barney holds the NLC’s top mark in the discus, a throw of 109-1.

That throw was also the best in the state for much of the year, until East Anchorage’s Tekoa Dumpson managed to hit 117-11 during Anchorage’s Junior/Senior Last Chance Meet last week.

On of Barney’s teammates, sophomore Savanna James, also posted late-season throw of 100-11.

Palmer also has shown strength in the girls’ throwing events, with Erin LaMere and Monica Nuernberg. LaMere is second in the NLC in the shot put and Nuernberg is fourth.

The Moose have also done well in the relay events, holding the second-best conference time in the 400 relay and 1,600 relay. Palmer is ranked fourth in the 800 relay and fifth in the 3,200 relay.

Sprinters lead

Palmer boys

Like the Wasilla girls, the Palmer boys have proved to be among the deeper teams in the regions. While the Moose have potential to score in just about every event, the Palmer sprinters have been enjoying the most success.

Senior John Scoresby and junior Jim McCall are currently the top two athletes in the 100 and the 200. Scoresby is first in the 100 and second in the 200. McCall is first in the 200 and second in the 100.

Scoresby and McCall are both the Moose 400 relay team that is tops in the confernece, and McCall also leads the NLC in the long jump.

Scoresby is the reigning region champ in the 100, but has bettered his time from a year ago. The senior won the 100 with a time of 11.83 at the 2009 NLC meet. This season, a 11.44 is his personal best.

Senior Wylie Mangesldorf has also consistantly scored points for his team, placing high in the 1,600 and the 3,200. Kyle Scheibe leads the Palmer throwers.

Both Colony and Wasilla return athletes who captured a pair of confernece titles last year.

Colony senior Matt Jaronik won both the 200 and the 400 at the NLC meet last year. He was also a state champion in the 400 as a sophomore. Jaronik is expected to battle with McCall and Scoresby for the 200 title, and Kodiak’s Kristan Schick for the top time in the 400.

Jaronik is also second to McCall this season in the long jump. Anthony Bricker and Blake Niver will also be in contention to record high finishes during the region meet.

Wasilla senior John Knowles will be in search of victories in both the shot put and discus for the second straight year. Knowles, the 2009 state champion in the shot put, holds the state’s top marks in both events. Sophomore Devon Teeling is ranked third in both the shot and discus.

Senior Manny Curtis has emerged as the top jumper on the Wasilla squad. He cleared a personal best of 6 feet in the high jumper earlier this year, and is narrowing in on the 40-foot mark in the triple jump.

Senior Taylor Owens is ranked fifth in the 400.

Sophomore Colton Buzby and freshman Charlie Buzby are expected to lead the Houston Hawks.

Contact Frontiersman sports editor Jeremiah Bartz at sports@frontiersman.com.