Wasilla senior wins two state track titles

May 27, 2007

By MATT TUNSETH/ Frontiersman

WASILLA - Wasilla senior Hillarie Putnam was named the athlete of the meet after winning two events Friday and Saturday at the ASAA State Track and Field Championships.

&#8220It was a good weekend,” Putnam said Saturday evening after returning home.

That's putting it mildly.

Putnam's 34 points were good enough for fourth place in the team competition for the Warriors. She won the long jump and triple jump, placed second in the high jump and finished third in the 100-meter hurdles.

Putnam's coach, Joe Gardner, said her effort came as little surprise to anyone who has worked with the standout athlete, who also starred for Wasilla's state champion basketball team earlier this year.

&#8220She's just a champion at everything she does,” Gardner said. &#8220That's the girl you want on your side if you're going into battle.”

Putnam's meet overshadowed a stellar individual performance by Colony senior Ardrienna Everett, who placed second to Putnam in the long jump and triple jump and finished fourth in the 300-meter hurdles to help the Knights to a fifth-place finish.

Everett nearly bested her Valley rival in the long jump as Putnam won by less than an inch on her final try.

&#8220That's all she beat her by,” Colony coach Mark Doner said.

Doner said he was pleased with his team's effort, which also included two fifth-place finishes by Allie Grazulis (long and triple jump), as well as a fifth in the 1,600-meter relay.

&#8220It was a pretty good effort,” Doner said.

The Bartlett girls won the girls team title with 92 points, nine better than West Valley. On the boys side, Region III champion Kodiak dominated with 86 points, running away from second-place Kenai Central. Palmer's boys team finished in 10th place, while the Colony boys were 21st.

Temperatures in Fairbanks over the weekend were in the 80s, turning the meet into a tropical affair.

&#8220After the first day we had to hydrate a lot,” Joe Gardner said.

But the big story was the performance of Putnam, who now has won three state titles since March.

&#8220It feels so good, especially after having a really good basketball season,” she said.

After graduating from Wasilla last week, Putnam said the state meet was the perfect way to cap her high school years.

&#8220It felt really good to show up at the state meet,” she said.

Gardner said he'd like to be able to take credit for his athlete's success, but said Putnam's simply a natural athlete with a strong work ethic and desire to compete.

&#8220She's the coolest person to work with,” Gardner said. &#8220She just knows what she needs to do. Many coaches never get a chance to work with a kid like that.”

Contact Matt Tunseth at 352-2265 or matt.tunseth@frontiersman.com

ASAA State Track Championships

Friday, Saturday

at West Valley, Fairbanks

GIRLS

Team scores: 1. Bartlett, 92; 2. West Valley, 83; 3. Juneau-Douglas, 40; 4. Wasilla, 34; 5. Colony, 30; 6 (tie). Soldotna, ACS, 26; 8. Lathrop, 25.5; 9 (tie). West, Eagle River, 24; 11. Hutchison, 20; 12. Dimond, 18; 13. East, 15; 14 (tie). Kodiak, Grace, Haines, 12; 17. Skyview, 8; 18. Kenai, 7.5; 19. Sitka, 6; 20. CIA, 5; 21. Seward, 4; 22. Monroe, 2; 23. Chugiak, 1.

100 meters - 1. Jessica Jean, Bar, 12.68 seconds; 2. Cashaana Renfro, WV, 12.82; 3. Andrea Cook, Bar, 12.95; 4. Kim Wilson, Hut, 12.97; 5 (tie). Catherine Burch, Lat, Lierin Flanagan, Ken 13.12.

200 - 1. Andrea Crook, Bar, 25.92; 2. Jessica Jeans, Bar, 26.55; 3. Kim Wilson, Hut, 26.62; 4. Cashaana Renfro, WV, 26.72; 5. Candace Harris, Dim, 27.20; 6. Paige Green, EA, 27.27.

400 - 1. Andrea Crook, Bar, 57.67; 2. Gabrielle Todd, Bar, 58.96; 3. Candace Harris, Dim, 1:00.01; 4. Brooke Forsi, CIA, 1:00.02; 5. Lierin Flanagan, Ken, 1:00.06; 6. Maggie Miller, ACS, 1:00.49.

800 - 1. Samantha Davis, WV, 2:17.09; 2. Kayla Teslow, WV, 2:18.58; 3. Leah Francis, Jun, 2:22.49; 4. Brittany Mumma, ER, 2:25.78; 5. Nychele Fischetti, ACS, 2:26.59; 6. Alex West, Sky, 2:29.35.

1,600 - 1. Leah Francis, Jun, 5:01.90; 2. Samantha Davis, WV, 5:07.30; 3. Crystal Pitney, WV, 5:11.62; 4. J.J. Lende, Hai, 5:12.82; 5. Brittany Mumma, ER, 5:12.87; 6. Kayla Teslow, WV, 5:14.88.

3,200 - 1. Leah Francis, Jun, 11:06.23; 2. Crystal Pitney, WV, 11:20.27; 3. Ivy O'Guinn, Sky, 11:22.83; 4. Maggie Callahan, WV, 11:31.14; 5. Brittany Mumma, ER, 11:34.40; 6. Nychele Fischetti, ACS, 11:40.10.

100 hurdles - 1. Anna Simmers, ACS, 15.54; 2. Brandy Jayne, ER, 16.23; 3. Hilarie Putnam, WAS, 16.44; 4. Krista Soderland, WA, 16.49; 5. Phoenix Harlan, EA, 16.52; 6. Stacy Wheeler, WA, 17.17.

300 hurdles - 1. Kaylee Hornbeck, Lat, 46.50; 2. Stacy Wheeler, WA, 48.01; 3. Krista Soderland, WA, 48.60; 4. Ardrienna Everett, Co, 49.00; 5. Christine Hansen, Hai, 49.09; 6. Lorraine Knoxson, WV, 49.12.

400 relay - 1. Bartlett (Honore, Jeans, Washington, Todd), 50.50; 2. Kodiak, 51.92; 3 (tie). East, West, 51.92; 5. Dimond, 52.56; 6. CIA (Arneson, Cooper, Forsi, Smithwick), 52.73.

800 relay - 1. Bartlett (Honore, Jeans, Washington, Holdorf), 1:46.87; 2. Dimond, 1:47.39; 3. West Valley, 1:48.15; 4. Lathrop, 1:48.18; 5. Kodiak, 1:49.47; 6. ACS, 1:51.49.

1,600 relay - 1. Bartlett (Honore, Todd, Holdorf, Crook), 4:05.67; 2. West Valley, 4:07.94; 3. Juneau, 4:12.04; 4. Kenai (Watkins, Baldwin, Alsworth, Flanagan), 4:14.76; 5. Colony, 4:16.91; 6. ACS, 4:20.60.

3,200 relay - 1. West Valley (M. Rorabaugh, Bowers, Pitney, B. Rorabaugh), 9:42.03; 2. Juneau, 9:45.76; 3. ACS, 9:49.52; 4. Seward (R. Foldager, Barnwell, Oldow, D. Foldager), 9:50.20; 5. Kodiak, 10:07.67; 6. Skyview (Lucas, O'Guinn, Merkes, West), 10:14.12.

High jump - 1. Hannah White, Lat, 5 feet, 0 inches; 2. Hilarie Putnam, Was, 5-0; 3. Chelsea Wilbanks, Sol, 4-10; 4. Sierra Hodgson, Co, 4-10; 5. Gabrielle Todd, Bar, 4-10; 6. Phoenix Harlan, EA, 4-10.

Long jump - 1. Hilarie Putnam, Was, 16-7.25; 2. Ardrienna Everett, Co, 16-7; 3. Kelsea Johnson, Sit, 16-5.25; 4. Kim Wilson, Hut, 15-8.75; 5. Allie Grazulis, Co, 15-8; 6. Whitne' Blackburn, WV, 15-7.5.

Triple jump - 1. Hilarie Putnam, Was, 34-11.5; 2. Ardrienna Everett, Co, 34-9.5; 3. Kim Wilson, Hut, 34-9.5; 4. Malina Simmers, ACS, 34-8.5; 5. Allie Grazulis, Co, 34-8.5; 6. Ambrosia Wilkerson, Ch, 33-9.25.

Shot put - 1. Paige Blackburn, Sol, 40-4.75; 2. Alexis Arnold, Gr, 36-2.75; 3. Cierra Mickens, ER, 35-9.25; 4. Rosie Berg, Gr, 35-8.25; 5. Melissa Rima, Mon, 34-8.75; 6. Amanda Jackson, Ea, 33-11.75.

Discus - 1. Paige Blackburn, Sol, 123-09; 2. Jessica DeLaVega, Bar, 121-09; 3. Christine Hansen, Hai, 116-08; 4. Amanda Jackson, EA, 112-10; 5. Cierra Mickens, ER, 108-04; 6. Virginia Lozoya, EA, 107-06.

BOYS

Team scores: 1. Kodiak, 86; 2. Kenai, 51.5; 3. Bartlett, 51; 4. West Valley, 43; 5. Juneau-Douglas, 35; 6 (tie). Chugiak, Service, 27; 8. Lathrop, 23.5; 9. Soldotna, 22; 10. Palmer, 21; 11 (tie). East, Seward, 18; 13. Homer, 17; 14. Dimond, 16; 15. South, 15; 16 (tie). Eielson, Sitka, 12; 18. Grace, 9; 19. Haines, 8; 20. ACS, 6; 21. Colony, 5; 22. West, 3; 23. CIA, 1.

100 - 1. Damar Wilson, EA, 11.03; 2. Kelly Seggerman, Sol, 11.11; 3. AJ Allen, Lat, 11.24; 4. Derrick Wilson, EA, 11.33; 5. Marcus Mendez, Bar, 11.35; 6. Quenton Jennings, BAr, 11.39.

200 - 1. Ethan Hewitt, Ch, 22.66; 2. Demetrius Preston, Ser, 23.11; 3. Kelly Seggerman, Sol, 23.30; 4. Blake Arnold, Gr, 23.40; 5. Antuan Ziegler, Bar, 23.71; 6. AJ Allen, Lat, 23.85.

400 - 1. Ethan Hewitt, Ch, 47.78; 2. Michael Melendez, Dim, 50.44; 3. Tyrone Hamilton, Eie, 50.50; 4. Demetrius Preston, Ser, 50.90; 5. Drew Edwards, Gr, 50.92; 6. Deonte Powe, Hom, 51.41.

800 - 1. Cory Pena, Kod, 1:56.42; 2. Travis Price, Sew, 1:57.77; 3. Alex Weissberg, Sit, 1:57.94; 4. Rob Wood, Bar, 2:00.02; 5. Eric Solie, WV, 2:01.28; 6. Kevin Smith, Pal, 2:01.63.

1,600 - 1. Cory Pena, Kod, 4:16.85; 2. Trevor Dunbar, Kod, 4:21.69; 3. Alex Weissberg, Sit, 4:25.99; 4. Aaron Fletcher, San, 4:27.35; 5. Chandler Kemp, Hai, 4:31.44; 6. Michael Adams, Ser, 4:35.91.

3200 - 1. Trevor Dunbar, Kod, 9:25.26; 2. Aaron Fletcher, San, 9:46.10; 3. Chandler Kemp, Hai, 9:56.30; 4. Lucas Fried, Kod, 9:58.00; 5. Cody Phelps, Ser, 9:58.11; 6. Josh Holly, CIA, 10:03.80.

110 hurdles - 1. Levi Benning, Jun, 15.04; 2. Garrett Jackson, WV, 15.34; 3. Shaun Ward, Ch, 15.34; 4. Stephen Wilson, Ken, 15.47; 5. Tommy Woolf, WV, 15.53; 6. David Breen, WA, 15.88.

300 hurdles - 1. Jed McGlasson, Ken, 41.21; 2. Mike Leath, Kod, 41.63; 3. Chance Renfro, Eie, 41.73; 4. Corey Rainey, Ken, 42.08; 5. Devan Andersen, San, 42.38; 6. Levi Benning, Jun, 43.12.

400 relay - 1. Bartlett (Rollins, Anthony, Mendez, Jennings), 43.90; 2. Kodiak, 44.42; 3. Palmer, 44.86; 4. East, 45.11; 5. Juneau, 45.62; 6. Lathrop, 46.23.

800 relay - 1. Bartlett (Rollins, Mendez, Ziegler, Jennings), 1:30.46; 2. Palmer, 1:32.71; 3. Kenai (McGlasson, Wilson, Flanagan, Sutton), 1:33.93; 4. Juneau, 1:34.19; 5. Kodiak, 1:35.36; 6. West Valley, 1:40.08.

1,600 relay - 1. Kodiak (Garcia, Fried, Leath, Pena), 3:30.28; 2. Kenai (Rainey, Flanagan, McGlasson, Sutton), 3:30.85; 3. Lathrop, 3:32.45; 4. Colony, 3:32.66; 5. Dimond, 3:34.20; 6. Service, 3:36.67.

3,200 relay - 1. Seward (Price, Spurr, Chase, Nyholm), 8:08.94; 2. Kodiak, 8:12.43; 3. West Valley, 8:12.62; 4. Palmer, 8:18.23; 5. Bartlett, 8:18.27; 6. Grace, 8:18.31.

High jump - 1. Will Egolf, Jun, 6-2; 2. Charles Scott, Lat, 6-2; 3. Ben Jackson, Ser, 6-2; 4. Tommy Woolf, WV, 6-1; 5 (tie). Casey Ellis, Ken, Caleb Severns, Lat, 6-0.

Long jump - 1. Tommy Woolf, WV, 20-3.25; 2. Aaron Kearns, Jun, 20-1.25; 3. Stephen Wilson, Ken, 19-9; 4. Bill Chimphalee, Ken, 19-5.75; 5. Blake Arnold, Gr, 19-4.75; 6. Jeremy Jurgensen, Co, 18-11.75.

Triple jump - 1. Tommy Woolf, WV, 44-5.5; 2. Stephen Wilson, Ken, 43-8.75; 3. Joel Richwine, ACS, 43-1.25; 4. Ben Jackson, Ser, 42-1.25; 5. Isaiah Hoyer, WA, 41-0; 6. Andrew Freed, Ser, 40-9.

Shot put - 1. Jordan Clarke, Bar, 60-1 (new state record); 2. Erik Rasmussen, Hom, 53-3.5; 3. Michael Odell, Kod, 52-5; 4. Ryan Shelton, Sol, 51-7; 5. Max Merick, Kod, 46-3.75; 6. Ian Rosario, Ch, 45-8.5.

Discus - 1. Jordan Clarke, Bar, 192-7 (new state record); 2. Erik Rasmussen, Hom, 166-9; 3. Rodney Kalifa, Dim, 153-7; 4. Ryan Shelton, Sol, 147-3; 5. Nathan Svedin, Pal, 144-7; 6. Gabriel Holland, San, 141-10.