Scott Turns In 4-Gold Effort

GSL track and field

A little good weather is all the Greater Spokane League needs for a great track meet.

Headlined by Demetrius Scott’s four gold medals, the District 8 track meet concluded at Central Valley Friday night. The leading marks in the area were improved in more than half the events.

In almost every case, that put somebody from the GSL among the leaders, if not on top of the list, of state contenders.

First though, they’ll have to get out of the always-tough 4A Eastern Regional next weekend in Pasco. The top eight individuals and top four relays advance to regionals to face the Big Nine. The top four there move on to the state meet.

Scott, a senior at Shadle Park, won the long jump (22 feet, 6-1/2 inches) on Thursday and added the 400 meters (48.7 seconds) on Friday to go with two relay wins (42.6 in the 400, 3:21.4 in the 1,600).

“I’m in the best shape and I haven’t even peaked,” Scott said. “I ran 48.7 and felt like I had another gear.”

Scott was voted Male Track Athlete of the Meet, despite two blistering times by University’s Anthony Buchanan in the 100 (10.3) and 200 (21.3).

“I owe the strategic part to my coach,” Scott said. “He dropped me out of the 200, but you have to give it to Anthony. He’s the fastest runner in the state and I wanted to get something I can win.”

Both of Shadle’s relays are in the top four in state and Scott is fourth among 4A long jumpers. His 400 time is No. 2, the same standing as his 200.

“I always knew I was a 400 runner,” Scott said. “They told me when I was little I had a natural stride. My dad was a 400 runner. I didn’t want to believe it. The 400 is a man’s race and it hurts.”

Cameron Summers of Central Valley was named Male Field Athlete of the Meet. He won the high jump (6-4) and was fourth with a PR in the long jump (21-7) on Thursday. He improved his season triple jump by 17 inches (44-5-1/4) to finish second to Lewis and Clark’s Erik Coleman by an inch.

The Female Athletes of the Meet were Ferris’ Jennifer Kennedy and Central Valley’s Heather Harding.

Bush ran the state’s fastest handheld 200 (25.0) to nip North Central’s Jennifer Kennedy by .1 seconds, reversing the order from the 100 when both were timed in 12.1, tying the state’s best hand time. The Saxons also put their 400 (49.3) and 800 (1:45.4) relays into fourth place in the state.

Harding won the shot put (40-2) and discus (120-9).

Boys

Let’s clear this up now. Matt Blaine’s time of 1:52.9 in Thursday’s preliminaries was actually a 1:59.2, but it was recorded wrong. However, the Gonzaga Prep senior proved that typo isn’t out of reach, winning the final in 1:54.2.

“Counting today, that’s the third time I’ve run it,” Blaine said, a 300-meter intermediate hurdler until a week ago. “I wanted to do both because I didn’t understand what the 800 was. The coach said no, I had to make a decision.”

The decision was hard but obvious; Blaine is now No. 1 in the state.

“I’ve hurdled since I was a sophomore, it was hard (to decide),” he said. “(My coach) says stay in contact with the leaders or you can’t make it up. I just run with everybody and take off at the end. If second place is 2:08, I’ll probably run 2:07; if second is 1:54, I’ll probably run 1:53 until I learn what my race is.”

Shadle Park’s Michael Kiter erased Cameron Schwehr’s state lead in the 1,600 (4:13.9) on Thursday but Schwehr returned the favor in a terrific 3,200. Schwehr, from Mt. Spokane, lowered the lead 3 seconds (9:08.4) with a 59-second last lap. He beat Kiter by a second… . University’s Max Schmidt had an 18-second PR in the 3,200 (9:13) and finished third in both distance races… . John McKinnon won the 300 hurdles in 38.7, the second straight day the LC senior produced the state’s No. 1 hand-held time… . U-Hi sophomore Tyson Beyers went 15 feet in the pole vault again.

Girls

Mt. Spokane picked up its first-ever district title by a girl when Missy Becker won the 100 hurdles (15.7). It took three years for the girls to do that, compared to just one sports season for boys - when Tom Becker won in cross country.

“That’s pretty cool. I think about him constantly,” Missy Becker said of her older brother. “I want to make it to state so bad for him. He’s like my hero. I honestly think he wasn’t the most talented but he worked so hard. Like me. I’m not the fastest but I work hard. It makes me think one day I can be like that.”

Tom Becker went on to win state cross country as a junior and went to Oregon this year on a scholarship.

Missy Becker wasn’t thinking district title.

“I was hoping for second or third,” she said after winning a photo finish with U-Hi’s Ali Russell. “I was surprised. Those girls are fast. I haven’t beaten them. I was intimidated. I’m like that, I never expect the best from myself.”

Prep’s Carly Barnes was a double winner in the 800 (2:20.5) and the 1,600 (5:17.0)… . University freshman Heidi Bunkowski was just .2 seconds off her 300 prelim time in winning the 300 hurdles (45.8) in a state-best hand-held, and she needed it because Shadle’s Amy Ridings had a PR of more than a second to finish .1 back… . CV freshman Charlene Gannon had a strong 400 (59.1) and pulled U-Hi sophomore Kati Morton under a minute (59.4)… . East Valley’s 1,600 relay team is now fourth (4:02) and pulled CV (4:03.1), Mount Spokane (4:04.5) and U-Hi (4:04.5) into the top 10.