‘There’s nothing like Hayward Field.’ Records fall as Oregon 6A, 5A, 4A track and field championships start with a bang

“It felt great today. It’s awesome. I loved every minute of it.”

By René Ferrán | Photo by Leon Neuschwander 

One state record.

Another that barely remained standing.

Five meet records set.

And that was just on Day 1 of the Class 6A girls meet Friday at the OSAA track and field championships at the University of Oregon’s Hayward Field in Eugene. 

The state record belongs to Oregon City junior Sophia Beckmon, who shrugged off her struggles on the long jump runway in her final attempt to become the first girl in state history to surpass 20 feet with a legal wind.

Her jump of 20 feet, 1½ inches, brought her to tears as she achieved a goal she’d held for quite some time.

“I’m a very goal-oriented person, and when I get a goal, it’s a big deal for me,” Beckmon said. “So, I was very happy, very emotional. I actually cried, but I’m good now.”

The near miss came in the 3,000 meters, where Lake Oswego junior Kate Peters came within 29-hundredths of a second of Ella Donaghu’s all-time mark, winning in a meet-record 9 minutes, 25.15 seconds. 

The other meet records were achieved in the prelims, with Lakers sophomore Mia Brahe-Pedersen winning the 100 in 11.66 and the 200 in 23.33, and Pioneers senior Harley Daniel moved to second on the all-time state 100 hurdles list with her 14.05 win.

Central Catholic used a 1-2 finish from junior Kyeese Hollands and senior Elliott Bush in the javelin to grab the first-day lead with 19 points. Lincoln junior Nicole Prall joined Beckmon, Peters and Hollands atop the medals podium with her victory in the pole vault. 

6A Boys

Tigard senior Elijah Jackman’s double in the shot put and discus — including a state all-time top-50 throw in the shot — helped propel the Tigers to the overnight lead, and Summit got a victory from senior Gavin Fleck in the pole vault to share second place with Sandy.

Tualatin senior Caleb Lakeman used a furious homestretch kick to pass South Medford senior Michael Maiorano in the final 30 meters and win the 3,000 title.

Glencoe junior Austin Stampflee became the Crimson Tide’s first boys state champion in the past 12 years with his victory in the long jump.

5A Girls

Thurston junior Breanna Raven won the long jump and was the top qualifier in the 200 meters to help the Colts take the Day 1 lead and position themselves as a top contender to take home a trophy Saturday evening.

Raven took the lead in the second round of the competition and jumped her winning mark of 18-0 in the fifth round.

“I just wanted to get in the 18s and beat myself,” said Raven, who came up just short of her career best. “It felt great today. There’s nothing like Hayward Field, getting to run on the runway. It’s awesome. I loved every minute of it.”

Other Day 1 winners were freshmen Emily Wisniewski of Crescent Valley in the 3,000 and Ridgeview’s Zowie Nunes in the javelin, and Crater junior Clara Bennett in the high jump.

5A Boys

Silverton took home titles in both Day 1 throwing events, with senior Orie Schaffers winning the shot put and classmate Sam Willis winning the discus with a personal-best throw of 159-5, to lead the team standings.

Crater got a meet-record time from junior Tyrone Gorze and a 5A freshman record from Josiah Tostenson in the 3,000 to sit second in the standings. Churchill senior Nathan Fields also won on Day 1, jumping a personal-best 22-5½ in winning the long jump. 

4A Girls

Senior Elizabeth Grandle was a one-girl scoring machine to lift Molalla to the lead after the first day of competition, winning the long jump, finishing second in the high jump and placing third in the javelin to amass 24 points.

She was runner-up to Cascade senior Emma Gates in the high jump. The University of Arizona signee was clean through 5-11 before going out while attempting a state-record 6-1¼, barely missing on her second try.

Philomath senior Sage Kramer, who was the state player of the year in basketball in leading her team to the championship, added a title in the javelin to her resume, and Phoenix senior Sophia Stubblefield ran a personal-best 10:31.00 in winning the 3,000.

4A Boys

Buoyed by a 1-3-4 finish in the pole vault, Marshfield grabbed the Day 1 lead with 32 points.

Sophomore Jonathon Parks won the competition by making 14-9 on his third attempt to best Henley’s Andrew Edwards and become the third consecutive Pirates pole vaulter (and fifth in the past six OSAA meets) to win the title.

“When it got to that moment, the only thing I could think about was the clapping from the crowd,” Parks said. “It was really weird running down the runway, because suddenly I remembered, oh yeah, I’m pole vaulting, and that brought me back into reality. It actually helped me to clear the bar.”

Classmate Danner Wilson finished third with a personal-best 14-3 clearance, and junior Trent Summers took fourth. 

“Because we train year-round, it gets mentally draining,” Parks said. “So, when we get here, we really try to push each other as much as possible, because we want them to clear the bar as much as we want ourselves to clear it.”

Astoria senior Colton McMaster was a double-winner on Day 1, taking home titles in the shot put and discus. Henley senior Eli Hayes won the long jump, and Phoenix senior Elwood Hosking ran a personal-best 8:34.56 to edge Marshfield’s Alexander Garcia-Silver by less than a second in the 3,000.

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Best photos from Day 1 of 6A, 5A, 4A Oregon high school track and field state championships