Ephrata track teams dominate CWAC meet

EPHRATA — Ephrata’s Hagan Nelson and Ethan Green went shoulder-to-shoulder down the back stretch, powering into a headwind on the final curve, clearly the class of the 800-meter field Thursday afternoon at the Central Washington Athletic Conference meet.

They turned it into two-man race from the very beginning and as they closed on the finish line, Nelson and Green gave the Tigers a nice little one-two finish. Nelson won in 2 minutes, 04 and Green was second in 2:05.50.

Nelson would later erase a 10-meter deficit at the handoff to lead the CWAC-leading Ephrata 4x400 relay to victory. Green won the 1,600 in 5:05.52, but for some reason the 800-meter race turned into the race of the day between two teammates.

“Racing with Ethan helps a lot because it gives me a lot more drive and makes me want it more when I have to work for it,” Nelson said. “It also helps having someone like Ethan to train with. My best time so far is 2:03, but I’ll get under two minutes by the end. Having someone like Ethan pushing me will get me there.”

The Tiger boys 4x400 relay is currently fourth in the 2A state rankings and holds the top time in the CWAC. On Thursday, they were a showcase of why they are contenders for a state title.

Chris Walker had some work to do on the first exchange with Nelson, getting him the baton in traffic. But Nelson regained the ground on the curve and established the lead down the back side and the Tigers never looked back. Michael Novitskiy ran a solid third leg, getting Anthony Evans the baton with a lead, which was like money in the bank.

Evans blew away the field and brought it home in 3:32.67. Green had intended on running the 800, 1,600 and 3,200 on an overcast day with just a puff of wind. He erased a 28-year-old school record in the 3,200 last weekend in Pasco when he clocked 9:32.20 (old record 9:34.10). It turned out he didn’t run the 3,200 on Thursday, but his winning time of 5:05.52 in the 1,600 was a steady workout for Saturday’s Quincy Invite.

“I was conserving a little today for the 800, so I took it easy in the 1,600,” the Tiger junior said. “Today I was just running to place. When I was running in Pasco, it was all about time.”

Ephrata dominated the boys team scores, beating Grandview 90-58. The Tigers defeated Othello 108-43 and handled Toppenish 93-57. The Othello boys competed well, losing to Grandview 88-54 and 85-52 to Topenish. Evans won the 200 meters in 23.59 and the 400 with a time of 50.80.

Othello’s Ethan Beshese defeated the 3,200 field in 10:53.98. Ephrata sophomore Brad Flanigan won the 110-meter hurdles with a time of 16.83. Michael Huntwork (132-feet-0) and Marshall Baker (111-0) gave Ephrata a one-two finish in the discus. Wesley Kliphardt won the javelin with a mark of 148-0. Griffin Munro cleared 11-feet to win the pole vault.

Patrick Walker marked with a jump of 41-2 to win the triple jump. In the girls’ meet, Ephrata freshman McCall DeChenne won both the 100-meter (17.38) and the 300-meter hurdles (48.92) to lead the Tiger girls to the trifecta.

The Ephrata girls beat Grandview 119-38, topped Othello 122-37 and handled Topenish 122-35. The Othello girls defeated Grandview 83-72 and handled Toppenish 106-48.

“I like the 300 hurdles. It’s a speed race in the beginning, but you have to have the stamina to get through it,” DeChenne swaid. “It’s really hard to keep your form through all 10 hurdles. By the end, you’re just trying not to trip. I PR’ed today with a 48.92, which means I’m improving.”

Ephrata freshman Mya Spencer won the 100 meters (13.75) and the 400 (1:01.90). Madison Youngers won the high jump (4-10) and the triple jump (33-3). Hailey Miller won the 200 (27.75). Karen Billingsley won the 800 (2:37.86) and Haley Hovland defeated the field in the 3,200 (12:12.24).

Anna Giles cleared 7-feet to win the pole vault. Ephrata’s Karlee Etter won the long jump (14-9).The Tigers won all three relays. Othello’s Crystal Arreola won the javelin with a mark of 95-feet.