Pair of Valley girls each win 3 state championships

FAIRBANKS — As the Valley’s top track and field athlete — Colony senior Audrey Michaelson — capped her stellar prep career, Michaelson’s heir apparent — Wasilla sophomore Peggy Mathis — put her own stamp on the state.

Both Michaelson and Mathis won three individual titles, ran to a runner-up finish in another and led their teams to a second-place tie in the 4A girls team standings during the ASAA/First National Bank 4A State Track and Field Championships at Lathrop High School in Fairbanks.

Led by Michaelson and Mathis, Valley rivals Colony and Wasilla each placed second with 61 total points. Dimond dethroned two-time defending state champion Wasilla, and used 81 points to win its first team title since 2010. Both Michaelson and Mathis collected 38 points each for their teams.

But the highlights for Valley athletes in the 4A meet revolved around Michaelson and Mathis. Michaelson pushed her career total to six individual state titles, with wins in the 800, 1,600 and 3,200. Mathis, who was part of Wasilla’s state championship 1,600 relay team as a freshman, won the 100, 200 and 400.

Michaelson and Mathis faced off twice Saturday, in the 400 and 800. Michaelson was runner-up to Mathis in the 400, and Mathis finished second to Michaelson in the 800.

Both of those races came within about an hour during the heart of the race-day Saturday.

“It was really kind of neat, exciting to watch those races so close together, watch them go head-to-head,” Wasilla head coach Leslie Varys said of seeing Michaelson and Mathis face off during the final round. “Each got one of them. It’s a great storyline.”

As she sat on the team bus on the way back to the Valley Saturday night, Michaelson said she felt sentimental, humbled by the success and excited about the opportunity to compete against Mathis.

“She is incredible. I’m extremely happy and proud to race with someone like her,” Michaelson said by cellphone. “I got to race with Morgan (Dampier) and now Peggy.”

Dampier, a former Wasilla standout who recently won a Big Sky Conference individual championship as a member of the Division I Sacramento State track and field team, won three individual titles last season.

Michaelson started her weekend with a win in the 3,200 meters on Friday, and became only the second runner in state history to win a state title in the event three times. Saturday, Michaelson earned her second straight state title in the 1,600 and her first in the 800.

Going into the weekend, Michaelson said her focus was on staying strong throughout the weekend.

“I definitely had goals. Not as much to break records or PR, but feel good for all my races. This is the biggest load I’ve ever taken,” Michaelson said of running in the 400, 800, 1,600 and 3,200 races. “I wanted to be as consistent as I could, be strong in all of my races. I’m very blessed and feel very grateful. I couldn’t have asked for a better last meet, better last season. I love my team. I’m very grateful.”

Michaelson’s final victory came in her final race of her prep career, the 800, a race in which she had to ward off Mathis.

“I was very nervous how it was going to go. It was my last event, I told myself to go hard, it’s my last high school race, run as fast as I can,” Michaelson said. “(Coach Mark) Strabel gave me some very encouraging advice, a good strategy to stick too. I gave it everything I had left.”

After the meet, Strabel said he knew Michaelson had the ability to accomplish what she did.

“It’s incredible,” Strabel said of Michaelson, who leaves Colony with four individual school track records and a share of a relay record. “She’s one of the top girls we’ve ever had, one of the top female athletes we’ve had come through Colony.”

Michaelson was named athlete of the meet following the championships.

After winning four individual titles during the Region III Championships last weekend, Mathis won her first three individual state titles of her career on Saturday. The sophomore stormed to a win in the 100 meters, clocking a mark of 13.06. Mathis edged Michaelson to win the 400 and capped her day with a victory in the 200.

“I thought it was fantastic,” Varys said of Mathis. “I’m so proud of her.”

Mathis also recorded a personal best time of 2:18 in her runner-up finish in the 800. Varys said she knew Mathis had the ability to have this type of success.

“She’s looked so strong running this lineup,” Varys said. “First we just wanted to try it out and see. Then she got stronger and stronger every time she ran it.”

Led by Michaelson, Colony boasted its highest finish in the 4A girls state standings since the Knights won a state title in 2000. Strabel was ecstatic about his team’s finish.

“I had an inkling we could be in the top 3 based on how everybody was coming out,” Strabel said. Colony had a good head start, thanks to Michaelson and freshman Chase Stephens, the Knights were at the top of the leader board after Day 1 with 20 overall points. Michaelson won the 3,200 on Friday, and Stephens finished second in the long jump during the first day.

“What they just did there was incredible to be a part of,” Strabel said.

Stephens added a third-place finish in the triple jump and fifth-place finish in the 100 hurdles on Saturday. Strabel also said senior Mackenzie Thompson was key to Colony’s ability to finish second in the team standings. Thompson scored key team points, finishing fourth in the 1,600 and fifth in the 3,200.

While Colony had a big lead after Day 1, Wasilla was forced to play catch-up. The Warriors did score a team point during the first day of competition. Considering that, and the fact the Wasilla girls had only eight athletes in the championship meet, Varys said she is very happy with a piece of the runner-up finish.

“We’re very, very happy. We weren’t able to pull out the win, but every year’s different, brings its own challenges,” Varys said. “We met every challenge and brought our best game. We scored points where we could.”

Wasilla sat in third place late in the day and needed a third-place finish during the final event of the meet — the 1,600 relay — to force a tie with Colony.

“It came down to the 4 by 4. We had to get third,” Varys said.

With a runner-up finish for the team on the line, Wasilla’s 1,600 relay team — Danika Ingersoll, Jenna Ford, Mariah Burroughs and Alysha Devine — combined to post a time of 4:24.11 and finish third, just more than a half-second ahead of fourth-place Bartlett.

“I was really happy to tie them. It was fantastic,” Varys said.

Burroughs, a junior, also finished third in the 1,600 and sixth in the 800 for the Warriors. Devine was fourth in the 300 hurdles. The Warriors were also third in the 3,200 relay.

Palmer senior Taylor Blake led the Moose with a third-place finish in the shot put.

In the 4A boys’ meet, Palmer senior Connor Looney earned his first state title with a victory in the high jump. Looney, a basketball standout at PHS, cleared 6 feet, 1 inch to grab the win. Fellow senior Hayden Niekamp placed second in the shot put, with a throw of 45-2.25.

Colony had a pair of athletes place in the boys’ jumps. Senior Gatwech Both was second in the triple jump, and Jordan Black finished fourth in the event. Both was also sixth in the high jump. Fischer Summers was fifth in the discus for the Knights.

Senior William Harren led Wasilla with a third-place throw in the shot put. Junior Mitchell Rilatos was fourth in the 110 hurdles and sixth in the 300 hurdles for Wasilla.

ASAA/First National Bank State Track and Field Championships

Friday-Saturday, Lathrop High School

4A Girls team standings:

1. Dimond 81; 2. Colony 61; 2. (tie) Wasilla 61; 4. Eagle River 54; 5. Service 43; 6. Thunder Mountain 41; 7. West Valley 37; 8. West Anchorage 32; 9. Soldotna 21; 10. Kenai 18; 10. Chugiak 18; 12. Bartlett 17; 13. South Anchorage 12; 15. Palmer 6; 16. Kodiak 4; 16. Juneau 4; 18. East Anchorage 3; 19. Ketchikan 2.

Girls 4A individual results:

100 meters — 1. P. Mathis, Was 13.06; 2. D. Harris, Ser 13.40; 3. C. McKoy, Bar 13.40; 4. K. Hines, Sou 13.45; 5. S. Butler, East 13.48; 6. G. Carter, Ser 13.56.

200 — 1. P. Mathis, Was 26.69; 2. M. Lynken, Dim 27.33; 3. S. Warners, ER 27.62; 4. K. Hines, Sou 27.85; 5. M. Wilkins, Kod 28.25; 6. C. McKoy, Bar 28.33.

400 — 1. P. Mathis, Was 58.16; 2. A. Michaelson, Col 58.73; 3. E. Acquistapace, WV 1:01.07; 4. N. Boggs, ER 1:01.31; 5. M. Wilkins, Kod 1:01.53; 6. M. Imig, Dim 1:03.04.

800 — 1. A. Michaelson, Col 2:16.92; 2. P. Mathis, Was 2:18.28; 3. J. Bruce, ER 2:22.51; 4. R. Roelle, West 2:22.53; 5. A. Hebard, Lat 2:26.70; 6. M. Burroughs, Was 2:27.47.

1,600 — 1. A. Michaelson, Col 5:10; 2. J. Northey, Ser 5:14; 3. M. Burroughs, Was 5:19; 4. M. Thompson, Col 5:22; 5. M. Hall, TM 5:27; 6. D. O’Donnell, WV 5:28.

3,200 — 1. A. Michaelson, Col 11:21; 2. J. Northey, Ser 11:24; 3. M. Hall, TM 11:25; 4. K. Mondl, ER 11:34; 5. M. Thompson, Col 11:40; 6. L. Blanchet, West 11:56.

100 hurdles — 1. C. Johnson, Dim 16.60; 2. T. Sims, Dim 16.80; 3. J. Williams, Ser 17.11; 4. L. Sandahl, Ken 17.14; 5. C. Stephens, Col 17.30; 6. B. Schindler, Ken 17.43.

300 hurdles — 1. N. Welling, TM 46.96; 2. T. Sims, Dim 47.36; 3. S. Warners, ER 47.66; 4. A. Devine, Was 48.34; 5. M. Winchester, WA 48.59; 6. N. Lautrup, Col 49.31.

400 relay — 1. West Valley 52.39; 2. Service 52.43; 3. Chugiak 53.09; 4. South Anchorage 53.25; 5. Kenai 53.71; 6. Lathrop 53.74.

800 relay — 1. West Valley 1:48; 2. Eagle River 1:52; 3. Chugiak 1:52; 4. Kenai 1:53; 5. Dimond 1:53; 6. West Anchorage 1:54.

1,600 relay — 1. Soldotna 9:59.42; 2. Lathrop 1:08.92; 3. Wasilla 10:09.07; 4. Eagle River 10:14.31; 5. West 10:25.08; 6. Bartlett 10:26.24.

3,200 relay — 1. Soldotna 9:59; 2. Lathrop 10:08; 3. Wasilla 10:09; 4. Eagle River 10:14; 5. West Anchorage 10:25; 6. Bartlett 10:26.

High jump — 1. M. Drange, WV 5-1; 2. S. Warners, ER 5-2; 3. K. Harding, Ken 5-0; 3. T. Kueter, Bar 5-0; 5. C. Johnson, Dim 4-10; 6. K. Skjold, Sol 4-8.

Long jump — 1. N. Welling, TM 16-6.75; 2. C. Stephens, Col 15-4; 3. C. Johnson, Dim 15-2; 4. D. Harris, Ser 14-10.5; 5. J. Nolden, Sol 14-6; 6. P. Nelson, Chu 14-5.5.

Triple jump — 1. N. Welling, TM 33-7.75; 2. Dimond 33-6.75; 3. C. Stephens, Col 33-4.25; 4. K. Treder, West 31-8.5; 5. K. Harding, Ken 31-5; 6. A. Reitz, Chu 30-10.

Shot put — 1. P. Tufi, West 36-2.75; 2. A. Lavern-Tosi, Dim 34-9.5; 3. T. Blake, Pal 34-0.75; 4. G. Fenumiai, Jun 33-1.75; 5. U. Foo-Chong, TM 31-8; 6. F. A’Asa, East 30-4.5.

Discus — 1. A. LaVern-Tosi, Dim 120-10; 2. P. Tufi, West 109-5; 3. M. Wong, Sol 108-3; 4. M. McVee, Chu 102-00; 5. S. Nelson, Ket 98-5; 6. J. Luhrs, TM 97-11.

4A Boys team standings:

1. Kodiak 87; 2. Dimond 84; 3. Chugiak 68; 4. Lathrop 56; 5. South 29; 6. East 28; 7. Eagle River 27; 8. Bartlett 26; 9. West 22; 10. 21; 11. Palmer 18; 12. West Valley 17; 13. Wasilla 11; 14. Service 10; 15. Soldotna 8; 15. Ketchikan 8; 17. Kenai 5; 18. Thunder Mountain 2.

100 meters — 1. H. Desmond, Lat 11.77; 2. J. Tufaga, Dim 11.80; 3. J. Bell, East 11.89; 4. D. Anderson, WV 11.89; 5. P. Kott, ER 11.97; 6. K. Lee, Lat 12.14.

200 — 1. T. Rhode, Chu 23.18; 2. J. Pudlo, Sou 23.35; 3. F. Bobo, Dim 23.62; 4. J. Bell, East 23.85; 5. T. Showalter, Bar 23.88; 6. P. Kott, ER 24.20.

400 — 1. C. Kveseth, Chu 50.74; 2. K. Thompson, Ket 50.87; 3. J. Pudlo, Sou 51.19; 4. L. Michael, Sol 51.71; 5. D. Remington, WV 51.88; 6. C. Brunelle, Dim 52.62.

800 — 1. L. Fried, Kod 2:00.18; 2. C. Kveseth, Chu 2:00.49; 3. L. Thomet, Kod 2:00.66; 4. C. Hannah, Kod 2:00.91; 5. B. Schafer, Col 2:01.51; 6. P. Noon, WV 2:01.78.

1,600 — 1. L. Thomet, Kod 4:25.83; 2. T. Turney, Ser 4:28.05; 3. C. Christiansen, Kod 4:28.82; 4. J. Theisen, Ken 4:29.54; 5. P. Noon, WV 4:30.63; 6. B. Schafer, Col 4:30.86.

3,200 meters — 1. L. Thomet, Kod 9:27; 2. C. Christiansen, Kod 9:39; 3. J. McCarthy, Kod 9:55; 4. J. Farr, East 9:57; 5. D. McPheters, Chu 10:00; 6. S. Mittelstadt, Ser 10:09.

110 hurdles — 1. L. Elliott, West 15.15; 2. T. Showalter, Bar 15.18; 3. A. West, Sou 15.57; 4. M. Rilatos, Was 16.46; 5. T. Gladden, Lat 16.53; 6. N. Jensen, Lat 17.87.

300 hurdles — 1. T. Showalter, Bar 39.27; 2. T. Rhode, Chu 39.33; 3. A. West, Sou 40.73; 4. L. Elliott, West 40.77; 5. W. Wllis, Sou 41.37; 6. M. Rilatos, Was 43.44.

400 relay — 1. Lathrop 44.45; 2. Dimond 44.51; 3. West Valley 44.70; 4. East Anchorage 44.85; 5. Kodiak 45.54; 6. Service 45.74.

800 relay — 1. Lathrop 1:31.90; 2. Chugiak 1:32.32; 3. Dimond 1:32.87; 4. Bartlett 1:35.18; 5. Eagle River 1:35.37; 6. Kenai 1:36.57.

3,200 relay — 1. Kodiak 8:23.19; 2. Dimond 8:38.34; 3. West Anchorage 8:44.90; 4. Chugiak 8:51.01; 5. West Valley 8:53.74; 6. South 8:59.02.

High jump — 1. C. Looney, Pal 6-1; 2. T. Gladdne, Lat 6-0; 3. P. Fullmer, Ch 5-10; 4. J. Ulen, Sol 5-10; 5. W. Stalker, Bar 5-10; 6. G. Both, Col 5-8.

Long jump — 1. S. Afoa, Dim 19-7.5; 2. B. Parish, ER 19-5.75; 3. M. Ma’inifo, Kod 19-0.25; 4. D. Schaffer, Dim 18-11.75; 5. S. Jones, Dim 18-11.25; 6. T. Jennis, Lat 18-0.275.

Triple jump — 1. T. Gladden, Lat 42-0.5; 2. G. Both, Col 41-2; 3. S. Afoa, Dim 40-9; 4. J. Black, Col 40-0.25; 5. B. Pietz, TM 39-1; 6. D. Schaffer, Dim 38-4.

Shot put — 1. M. Tosi, East 47-10; 2. H. Niekamp, Pal 45-2.25; 3. W. Harren, Was 45-2; 4. C. Criswell, Chu 44-7.25; 5. D. Coger, Lat 44-6; 6. L. Sega, Kod 43.5.25.

Discus — 1. D. Charoonsphonsak, Dim 133-10; 2. J. Brownlee, Chu 13-18; 3. E. Hall, ER 129-9; 4. B. Corpuz, Dim 129-1; 5. R. Reinbold, ER 124-8; 6. F. Summers, Col 123-2.