Gant, Pullman enjoy big day at districts

There was a hint of disappointment in Ashton Gant’s voice, probably more than you’re usually going to hear from a four-event winner at a track meet.

The Pullman senior had hoped to break meet records in the 100- and 200-meter runs and long jump, but he’d settle for winning all three and blowing out the field on the second leg of the Greyhounds’ victorious 4x100 relay team at the District 7 2A meet at Riverside Friday.

“It was definitely good to come here and win everything and get four events sealed up,” said Gant, headed to EWU next fall to play receiver. “I wanted the long jump record, I wanted to break my own record in the 100 and I wanted the 200 record, but I’m still proud of myself.”

Last year, Gant won the long jump at the state tournament and finished second in both sprints.

“Hopefully, there’s big things coming,” he said. “I’ve definitely got (those marks) in me.”

Pullman swept the team titles, both scoring 206 points to knock off second-place Lakeside (Nine Mile Falls) on both sides, with the Eagles boys scoring 150 and the girls 169.16.

Big marks and district records came consistently through the meet, interrupted early by a nasty thunderstorm.

Colville junior Brittney Williams added to her 3,200 win in the first portion of the district meet on Tuesday with a career-best performance in the 1,600.

Williams had a previous best of 5 minutes, 23.5 seconds, but blew that and the meet record away by carving off 15 seconds and coming in at 5:08.

“I don’t know (what happened),” Williams said. “I usually run the 3,200 before and today just must have been a good day. It was just being able to stay with (defending state champion) Cory (Druffel of Pullman), and at the end, it hurt really bad, but at the same time, I felt really good.”

Lindsay Myron, a Pullman junior, was a triple winner and set a pair of meet records, one in the 300-meter hurdles (45.2 seconds) and another in the triple jump (37-4 1/2).

Her other win came in the 100 hurdles as she edged out Caitlin McGrane of Colville, the defending state champion, by a tenth of a second. McGrane improved on her meet record in the 400, finishing it in 58.4.

Lakeside sophomore Gale Nelson swept the sprints and helped the Eagles to a win in the 800 relay.

Pullman’s Anna Albrecht also set a meet record in winning twice, throwing the shot 42-1, adding to a Tuesday discus win.

On the boys’ side, it appeared that Colville sophomore Justin Rose had won the 3,200 when he finished first, but he broke a national rule by wearing rubber wristbands and was disqualified.

“He knows the rule,” Colville coach Bill Carpenter said. “It’s just one of those things where you have it on all the time and forget to take it off.”

Lakeside’s Max Reeder became a triple winner after Rose’s disqualification, adding to wins in the 800 and 1,600.