Mt. Hood shines on home turf

Mt. Hood Community College hosted the annual Mt. Hood Track & Field Festival on Saturday, where the Saints athletes made the most of competing at home with many good performances.

“The competition was fierce but the team stepped up as some of our athletes recorded some PRs (personal records) and being at home was a big plus,” said head coach Doug Bowman.

“Everybody is in a competition in trying to qualify for the (NWAACC league) championships in May and (Saturday’s) meet helped a lot of them who are still trying to qualify.”

The star of the day for the MHCC women was sophomore Caitlyn Safley, who earned first place once again in the 400-meter sprint and finished under the one-minute mark (57.88 seconds), nearly three seconds faster than in her previous meet.

Safley also finished fourth in the 200-meter sprint (26.27). Sophomore Whitney Warren grabbed 10th place in the 200-meter sprint (27.50), as did freshman Marley Yates in the 100-meter sprint (13.04).

Three Saints made the top five in the high jump as Yates took first place (1.67 meters) while freshman Xayna Robinson took third (1.62 meters) and sophomore Carrie Haguewood finished sixth (1.47 meters).

Sophomore McKenzie Warren had another impressive afternoon, as she earned the top spot in the hammer throw (49.07 meters), a second in the shotput (12.58 meters) and third in the discus throw (44.21 meters).

Another notable performance came from sophomore Megan Nelson, who finished third in the javelin throw (38.96 meters) but had a little bit of trouble in the hammer throw and came in last place, fouling out in the finals. Robinson also finished seventh in long jump (4.85 meters) and sixth in the triple jump (10.21 meters).

The men’s team also had a solid all-around performance as several MHCC athletes finished in decent positions.

In the 110-meter hurdles, freshman Devon Larson earned the top spot once again (15.15 seconds) and freshman Kingsley Mgbadigha came in third (17.03).

After sweeping the three top spots in the discus in the last meet, the Saints’ trio couldn’t continue the streak. Freshman Tyler Jackson placed fourth (42.19 meters), while sophomore Cody Quinton came in fifth (42.08 meters) and freshman Zach Kilgore earned ninth (39.67 meters).

Jackson also placed sixth in the shotput with 13.41 meters, and Quinton came right behind him in seventh with 12.93 meters.

Sophomore Justin Schlaht came in second in the javelin throw with 54.57 meters. Freshman Josh Visan surpassed his previous personal best as he finished third with 51.50 meters.

In the 100-meter sprint, freshman Janaree Porter ran for seventh place (11.40). In the 4 x 800-meter relay, freshmen Taylor Hybl and Brandon Raleigh provided the speed with sophomore Cody Beierle and Nathan Geiter to win second place with a time of 8.01.21 minutes. Raleigh also placed sixth in the 5000-meter race (15.53.02).

The Mt. Hood track and field teams will travel to Forest Grove this weekend for their next meet, their final tune-up ahead of the NWAACC South Region championships on May 10.

“It’s going to be a very competitive qualifying meet because some of the athletes are (on) the bubble of qualifying (for the NWAACC meet) and they want to end up in the highest rank possible,” said Bowman.

Freshman Josh Visan participates in the pole vault this past weekend at the Mt. Hood Track & Field Festival meet.

Advocate Staff