Dunn crushes TDHS record in Triple Jump; Track team kicking at end of season
Story by Jill Pearson
Photos by Ashley & Wendy Quisenberry
With all that happens at any given track meet, it can be hard to decide what and where to focus: at the same time the bar keeps rising higher for pole vault and high jump, flags mark the far-flung javelins, sprinters trade their tennis shoes for spikes for some last-minute drills, and the sand-pit gets raked time and again for another jump - the organized chaos is quite literally a field day on a grander scale. If you don’t know where to look, you might well miss the most exciting marks and times of the day.
Zoe Dunn, triple jumping at home.
Last week, however, at The Dalles’ final home meet and at the Dean Nice invitational in Gresham on April 29 - all eyes were on Zoe Dunn’s outstanding triple jump, which smashed her personal record by nearly three feet and obliterated the school record set by Sharon Engles in 1998 (36’3.75”) by over 8 inches at 37’1”. She now has the fourth farthest jump in the state.
Taylor Morehouse's quid pro quo 400 relay.
In other state leads, Senior Taylor Morehouse pole vaulted 14’9” at the elite Nike/Jesuit Twilight Relays, three inches ahead of Marshfield’s Jonathan Parks and fifth in the state.
Other highlights from Gresham
It was a fast day for the TD distance squad, with a 22-second PR for freshman Alaina Casady in the 3k (11:36.01) and an 11-second PR for newcomer Ruby Mora in the 1500 (5:44.8). Fiona Dunlop (2:50.77) and Gabrielle Kahler (2:49.64) also showed strong PRs in the 800m. Sophomore Leo Lemman placed third with a one-second PR in the 3000m at 9:04.85, closely behind Hood River’s Elliot Hawley.
The girls’ relay teams also had the chance to fine-tune their handoffs and splits before districts, with a third place in the 4x100 led by Lilly Adams, Zoe Dunn, Madelyn Harrison, and Amyrah Hill. They placed 5th in the 4x400, as a new configuration with Maisie Bandel-Ramirez, Hill, Harrison, and Adams at 4:20.72.
In the field events, sophomore Andre Niko continues to surprise and improve in the shot put, placing 7th with a PR of 41’1.25”. In men’s discus, fellow sophomore Orlando Mora placed 8th, with a massive 5 foot PR at 106’1”
Home Meet, April 26
The track seniors were honored at their last home meet: Alex Nipko, Conor Blair, Jaxon Pullen, Tristan Bass, Taylor Morehouse, Vivian Harrah, Ashley Quisenberry, Emma Krause, Caitie Wring, Moyra Dorzab, and Megan Lenardson
Earlier in the week, the Riverhawks hosted their final home meet, with a chance to honor the senior athletes and their families. While advertised as a small school invite, the results were anything but tiny.
Caitie Wring in the 4x400
Senior Caitie Wring won the women’s 3k at 12:44.94, followed by South Wasco County’s Sadie McCoy and senior teammate and constant improver Megan Lenardson. Juan Diego Contreras returned to win the 1500m (4:09.43) and 800m (2:08.02), leading his teammates to several substantial PRs as well. In the women’s 800, it was a 5 for 5 Riverhawk sweep, led by sophomore Ruby Jaimes Mora at 2:59.31
Finishing the 400m: Maisie Bandel-Ramirez, Lilly Adams, Madelyn Harrison, and Zoe Dunn. Those last 50m feel as tough as they look!
The flexibility of a smaller meet allowed athletes to try new events, with some notable successes. Sprinters Madelyn Harrison, Zoe Dunn, and Lilly Adams swept the mid-distance 400m at 65.35, 65.47, followed closely by teammate Maisie Bandel-Ramirez. In exchange for Taylor Morehouse running the first leg of the 4x400 (with a respectable 57 second split, leading to a combined time of 3:49.52), Conor Blair ran the 100m and placed third behind Anthony Jara (11.9 seconds) and Andre Niko.
Out at the high jump pit, River McClure won the the men’s side with an all-time PR of 5’6”, while Jazmine Cruz and Zoe “try anything” Dunn both cleared 4’4”, tying for first with Wishram’s Hannah Beeks and South Wasco’s Macy Bell.
Last, but certainly not the very last (since I had to finish measuring jumps and get back to coaching)- The Dalles’ Nolan Cates (17’2.5”), Adrian Rodriguez (17’2”), and Anthony Santana (16’6.25”) all saw massive multiple feet PR’s in the long jump, placing third through fifth.
Middle School highlights
Wisely scheduling their home meet the day after the high school’s, The Dalles Middle School also hosted a home meet last week. From my biased perspective at the long jump pits, the greatest PR’s were in the sand…and only in the hard copy, I turned into the timing shed. You’ll just have to take my word that The Dalles won with a 2 foot PR.
In events with digital records, 7th graders Isaac Pitt and Allen Uhlenhopp won the 100m at 13.43 and 13.51, while 8th grader Rokiah Notbohm took first in the 200m with a rocking PR of 24.82.
The girls’ 400 had an excitingly close finish, with teammates and sisters Lilyana (1:14.1) and Ariana Gonzalez (1:14.79) split by Wy’East’s Savina Davis (1:14.3). On the boys’ side, 8th grader Noah Preston won at 1:04.
These Wildcat records, while brief, certainly give plenty of hope for the future. After all, they’re only going to get faster!
On Thursday, The Dalles JV heads to their last meet in Hood River. For the varsity athletes, the season continues at Rex Putnam this Saturday, and then in Crook County for the IMC District meet next weekend. You can find the rest of the Riverhawk schedule and records on athletic.net
