Sun shines on inaugural Eastlake track and field meet

Seventy-degree temperatures and clear skies set the ideal stage for Eastlake’s inaugural track and field invitational on Saturday.

Wolves

girls first,

boys second

Seventy-degree temperatures and clear skies set the ideal stage for Eastlake’s inaugural track and field invitational on Saturday.

“A lot of people were walking around complaining about sunburns,” Eastlake coach Steve Jones joked.

The Wolves matched the near perfect weather with equally impressive results as the girls took first and the boys second out of 14 teams.

The Eastlake girls won the meet with 140 points, pulling away from the rest of the field. Kent-Meridian (82) and West Valley of Yakima (81) rounded out the top three.

“The girls overall were really strong,” Jones said. “We got a lot of strong second- and third-place finishes.”

Sophomore Chelsea Orr paved the way for the Wolves with two first place finishes, winning the 800 (2 minutes, 23.5 seconds) and the 1,600 (5:16). Orr is currently ranked No. 2 in the KingCo 4A in the 1,600 and No. 5 in the 800. Senior Lan VoBa finished in a tie for first place in the long jump, going 15 feet, 1 1/4 inches.

Wolves who finished in second place included: sophomore Erin Blodnick, 3,200 (12:09.30); sophomore Sarah Talbot, 800 (2:27.86) and junior Elizabeth Kirsten, shot put (32-1/34).

The Skyline girls placed sixth Saturday with 61 points. Senior McKenzie Gelber took first in the javelin (111-5), senior Barbara Holladay took first in the high jump (5-2) and senior Andrea Morgan took first in the 3,200 (12:07.53).

The Eastlake boys finished second with 80 points, ahead of Bothell (69) and Seattle Prep (65). Kent-Meridian took first with 141 points.

The Wolves were led by Dan Sloat, who took first in the 800 in a time of 1:56.41. The senior, who will attend Rice University next year, is currently ranked No. 1 in class 4A in the 800.

“He’s having a phenomenal season,” Jones said. “He could probably pick any event he wants to do.”

Sloat was also a member of the winning 1,600 relay team, which finished in a time of 3:29.08. Other team members included senior Jeff Postlewait, junior Patrick Gallagher and sophomore Paul Kupcis.

The Skyline boys missed out on third place by just six points, finishing in fifth with 63.

Junior Simon Sorenson finished first in the 1,600 in a time of 4:25.

The Spartan 400 relay also took first in a time of 43.72. The group is comprised of sophomore Dustin Bratten, senior Andrew Gray, senior Blake Springer and sophomore Alex Lee.

Jones said there were roughly 250-300 athletes and 40-50 volunteers participating in Saturday’s event, and that he couldn’t have been more happy with the way everything played out.

“It was just a great event,” he said. “We’re already looking ahead to next year.”

Final team standings

Boys

1. Kent-Meridian 141, 2. Eastlake 80, 3. Bothell 69, 4. Seattle Prep 65, 5. Skyline 63, 6. West Valley (Yakima) 57, 7. Lake Washington 46, 8. Ballard 37, 9. Bellevue 29, 10. Roosevelt 28, 11. Franklin 22, 12. Juanita 16, 13. Bellevue Christian 6.

Girls

1. Eastlake 140, 2. Kent-Meridian 82, 3. West Valley (Yakima) 81, 4. Seattle Prep 78, 5. Franklin 70, 6. Skyline 61, 7. Lake Washington 53, 8. Bellevue 42, 9. Bothell 27, 10. Juanita 26, 11. Ballard 17, 12. Bush 5