Your guide to the Oregon 5A girls track and field championships: Favorite, contenders, darkhorse for every event

Here’s an event-by-event look at the 5A girls meet.

René Ferrán | May 25, 2023

Your guide to the Oregon 5A girls track and field championships: Favorite, contenders, darkhorse for every event /

By René Ferrán

The OSAA track and field state championships take place this weekend at Hayward Field in Eugene. Here’s an event-by-event look at the 5A girls meet.

Photo (2022) by Leon Neuschwander

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100

Favorite: Pharalynn Dickson, Fr., South Albany

Contenders: Kensey Gault, Jr., Ridgeview; Brooklyn Anderson, Fr., Thurston; Abigail Fagan, So., Summit; Jasmine McIntosh, Jr., La Salle Prep

Darkhorse: Kirsten Kuenzi, Sr., Silverton

Dickson has steadily improved over the course of the season, shaving another three-tenths off her personal best to earn the Mid-Willamette district title. Anderson returned from a month absence to win the Midwestern district championship.

200

Favorite: Breanna Raven, Sr., Thurston

Contenders: Pharalynn Dickson, Fr., South Albany; Abigail Fagan, So., Summit; Kensey Gault, Jr., Ridgeview; Simone Tillman, Jr., Hood River Valley

Darkhorse: Alyse Fountain, Jr., Lebanon

We’ll give the nod to the defending state champion over the precocious freshman who took over the state lead by taking nearly six-tenths of a second off her previous best, winning the Mid-Willamette district title in 25.18.

400

Favorite: Pharalynn Dickson, Fr., South Albany

Contenders: Simone Tillman, Jr., Hood River Valley; Addilynn Pickles, Fr., Lebanon; Jaymi Dickinson, So., Caldera; Jailyn Arleth Becerra-Brigido, Sr., North Eugene

Darkhorse: Sage Winslow, So., Crater

Dickson cut nearly two seconds off her personal best and ran 56.99 in the Mid-Willamette district final, giving her the chance to become the first 5A or 6A girl to win all three sprints at the same meet since Kellie Schueler did it for Summit four consecutive years (2007-10).

800

Favorite: Lindsay Siebert, Jr., Crater

Contenders: Lillian Weiss, Fr., Crescent Valley; Barrett Justema, Sr., Summit; Olive Nye, Sr., Bend; Haley Blaine, Jr., West Albany

Darkhorse: Kate Middleton, Jr., Corvallis

Siebert ran 2:14.71 in the prelims en route to winning the Midwestern district title. No one else in the field has run within two seconds of that time.

1,500

Favorite: Emily Wisniewski, So., Crescent Valley

Contenders: Haley Blaine, Jr., West Albany; Barrett Justema, Sr., Summit; Kenzie Bigej, So., Canby; Ella Thorsett, Sr., Summit

Darkhorse: Lillian Weiss, Fr., Crescent Valley

A lot about this race depends on how much Friday’s 3K takes out of Wisniewski, Bigej and Thorsett. Blaine, the defending champion, took advantage of a tired Wisniewski last year — Wisniewski faded to third in that race.

3,000

Favorite: Emily Wisniewski, So., Crescent Valley

Contenders: Ella Thorsett, Sr., Summit; Kenzie Bigej, So., Canby; Noemi Lundgren, Sr., Putnam; Emma West, So., Crater

Darkhorse: Skye Knox, Fr., Summit

Wisniewski moved to No. 6 on the all-time state list last week, when she ran 9:38.54 to win the Mid-Willamette district title. If Bigej and Thorsett, the only other runners in the field who have broken 10 minutes, decide to push the pace with her, a sub-9:30 time is possible.

100 Hurdles

Favorite: Sara Rivas, Jr., Bend

Contenders: Kenley Whittaker, Jr., Wilsonville; Isabel Zamora, Jr., McKay; Macy Taylor, So., Thurston; Flannery Lundgren, Jr., Ashland

Darkhorse: Greta Koegler, Sr., Crescent Valley

Injuries and bad luck winnowed the field around Rivas, who ran a state-leading 14.84 this month and is a full second faster than her nearest rival this weekend.

300 Hurdles

Favorite: Sara Rivas, Jr., Bend

Contenders: Isabel Zamora, Jr., McKay; Kenley Whittaker, Jr., Wilsonville; Flannery Lundgren, Jr., Ashland; Ray Heide, So., Woodburn

Darkhorse: Jillian Bremont, Jr., Redmond

Rivas finished fourth in both hurdles races at the 6A state meet last season.

4x100

Favorite: Thurston

Contenders: Summit, Lebanon, Wilsonville, Bend

Darkhorse: Dallas

The Colts and the Storm are the only teams to break 50 seconds this season.

4x400

Favorite: Summit

Contenders: Corvallis, Mountain View, South Albany, North Eugene

Darkhorse: Canby

Corvallis has the state’s fastest time but managed only a fourth-place finish at the Mid-Willamette district meet.

Shot Put

Favorite: Ofeina Pulotu, Sr., Parkrose

Contenders: Yazmeen Brown, So., Milwaukie; Avery DeVincenzi, Jr., Wilsonville; Megan McGuire, Sr., Mountain View; Bailey Tovey, Jr., Thurston

Darkhorse: Rylee Lemen, Jr., Putnam

The top three in the state reside in the NWOC, with Pulotu — second at state a year ago — having gone a state-leading 41-4 in late April.

Discus

Favorite: Lyla Gilchrist, Jr., Summit

Contenders: Megan McGuire, Sr., Mountain View; Yazmeen Brown, So., Milwaukie; Kylie Rankins, Sr., Springfield; Norah DeYoung, Sr., South Albany

Darkhorse: Avery DeVincenzi, Jr., Wilsonville

McGuire holds the state lead in the event, but Gilchrist is 2-1 head-to-head against her this spring — including a victory at last weekend’s Intermountain district meet.

Javelin

Favorite: Zowie Nunes, So., Ridgeview

Contenders: Bailey Tovey, Jr., Thurston; Aurora Torresi, Sr., Lebanon; Haley Bland, So., Crescent Valley; Rylee Lemen, Jr., Putnam

Darkhorse: Rose Koehler, Sr., Summit

Nunes, the defending state champion, has thrown eight feet farther than her nearest rival this season and owns a lifetime best of 138-2 when she won the title as a freshman.

High Jump

Favorite: Clara Bennett, Sr., Crater

Contenders: Isabella Sanderi, Sr., Summit; Rylee Lemen, Jr., Putnam; Claire Davenport, Fr., Crater; Flannery Lundgren, Jr., Ashland

Darkhorse: Grace Kelso, Jr., Wilsonville

Bennett hasn’t approached the heights that won her the state title last spring, but of the top contenders in the field, she and Lundgren (fourth in 2022) are the only ones who have been in the state cauldron.

Pole Vault

Favorite: Addison Kleinke, Fr., Churchill

Contenders: Madeline Obuchowski, Sr., La Salle Prep; Emma Gall, Sr., La Salle Prep; Ivy Phillips, Sr., Summit; Elizabeth Lancaster, Fr., Centennial

Darkhorse: Isabel Zamora, Jr., McKay

Kleinke owns the state record, clearing 13-1 at the Grants Pass Rotary this month.

Long Jump

Favorite: Breanna Raven, Sr., Thurston

Contenders: Caroline De la motte, Jr., Wilsonville; Kirsten Kuenzi, Sr., Silverton; Sadie Wendring, Sr., Central; Simone Tillman, Jr., Hood River Valley

Darkhorse: Hannah Ortiz, Jr., Summit

Raven moved to No. 5 on the all-time state list with her 19-6 winning effort at the Midwestern district meet last week — more than two feet farther than her nearest rival.

Triple Jump

Favorite: Breanna Raven, Sr., Thurston

Contenders: Caroline De la motte, Jr., Wilsonville; Amanda McArthur, Jr., Central; Jonette Singh, Sr., Hillsboro; Sadie Wendring, Sr., Central

Darkhorse: Isabelle Molebash, Jr., Summit

Raven has jumped 38-1 in her career; no other jumper in the field has broken 37 feet.

Team

Favorite: Summit

Contenders: Wilsonville, Thurston, Crescent Valley, Crater

Darkhorse: Lebanon

The Storm have 29 qualifiers in the field, a total that should overwhelm their nearest challengers in their return to the 5A meet after four years in 6A.

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