NC wins again

TACOMA – When a track team doesn’t have athletes in every event, maximizing potential points is pivotal to success.

That certainly was the case for the North Central boys Saturday.

Down to their final two athletes in the 1,600 meters, NC’s Indians needed everything that Ben Johnston and Casey Adams could muster.

Johnston defended his state championship and Adams took third, and it was just enough to allow North Central to capture its third straight State 3A championship as Star Track XXVIII, finished under cloudy but rainless skies at Mt. Tahoma High School.

North Central finished with 55 points, five more than coach Kelly Walters anticipated, as the Indians held off West Seattle, which ended with 53.

“Last year and the year before we came with the potential to score an incredible amount of points and things didn’t go as well, as they often do at a state meet,” Walters said. “This year I figured we’d score 50 and we finished with 55. That says a lot. Every single kid competed well. All the points were critical. I can’t say enough about our kids and their performances and their toughness all the way around.”

Johnston completed the distance triple crown by adding the 1,600 title to go with the 3,200 he won on Thursday and the title in cross country last fall. In the 1,600 he finished in a time of 4 minutes, 12.96 seconds – well off his season personal best (4:06.54). Adams finished in 4:18.55.

“It wasn’t the time I wanted,” said Johnston, who is headed to Brigham Young University. “The first lap I got boxed in pretty bad. There wasn’t a lot I could do. I found the gap and I took it. I was pretty tired (from Thursday) and my legs were pretty sore after I finished. But this was my last high school race. I wanted to go out with a bang.”

NC senior Luke Evans took second in the high jump, increasing his personal best by an inch (6 feet, 5 inches).

“I didn’t expect to take second,” said Evans, who took second in the javelin on Friday. “All I was going for was a PR (personal record).”

NC’s Alex Avila and J.T. Mellgren took third (1:54.08) and fourth (1:54.96), respectively, in the 800.

Indians freshman Katie Knight took second in the 1,600 (4:55.77) after placing second in the 3,200 on Thursday. She finished runner-up in both events to another freshman, Amy Eloise Neale of Glacier Peak.

“She doesn’t count as a rookie,” Knight quipped of Neale, who also won the state cross country title.

Rogers senior Cord’e Bailey had a pair of thirds in the 100 (11.47) and 200 (22.42) against a stout headwind.