Katie Lord Leads Redmond in State Track and Field

Katie Lord finished second in the 4A girls high jump competition to lead Redmond track over the weekend at the WIAA state track and field competition at Mount Tahoma in Tacoma.

Lord tied her season-best jump with a height of 5-5 to secure her highest-ever finish in the state tournament, finishing just behind state champion Audrey Ketcham of Wenatchee.

“I’m so happy with what I did today; I did a lot worse last year,” Lord said.

Redmond sent 11 athletes to the state competition, including the third-place finisher 4X400-meter girls relay team of Mandy Rusch, Amy Pumputis, Darcy Hardwick and Katherine Smiley.

Hardwick also competed in the long jump for the Mustangs, finishing just out of the top eight with a best jump of 16-4.

Miles Hille was the lone male competitor for Redmond, finishing 12th in the 1600-meter run with a time of 4 minutes, 24.57 seconds.

The tournament was hampered the first two days by inclement weather that brought heavy rain, casting a cloud over certain competitions. Nonetheless, a number of records were broken and several reigning champions repeated in their respective divisions.

Kasen Williams of Skyline provided highlights in the boys 4A division, taking home three state titles to cap off his remarkable senior season. The future University of Washington football player swept the long, high and triple-jump competitions, setting a state record in the triple–an event his father once owned the state record in–with a jump of 50-9 ¾.

“Me and my dad kept saying, ‘It’s got to come back in the family,’” Williams said of his record-setting jump. “So I threw something out there … and just gave it a shot.”

Perhaps the highlight of the three-day event came in the final field activity, the 4A boys long jump. Williams took home the win, but not before a spirited battle with a field that included Edmonds-Woodway’s Alec Fellows, Kentwood’s BJ Arceneaux and Justin Browne of Gig Harbor.

The Renton boys track team dominated the 2A field, taking first place behind a combined five state titles between P.J. Benedictus and Justin Bennett. Benedictus repeated as the triple-jump champion and finished second in the long jump and high jump, while Bennett took first in the 100- and 200-meter dashes, as well as anchoring the first place 4X100-meter relay team.

Alanna Coker of Juanita High School repeated as the 3A girls triple-jump champion and finished second in the 100-meter dash. Coker was seeded second in the 200-meter dash following the preliminary round, but finished fifth after suffering a minor leg injury in the triple-jump competition.

Overall team winners were as follows: 4A girls–Kentwood; 4A boys–Kent-Meridian; 3A girls–Holy Names Academy; 3A boys–North Central; 2A girls–Sehome; 2A boys–Renton.