Thursday, April 25, was a memorable day for the Yelm Tornado track and field program as 23 seniors were celebrated prior to the boys and girls teams sweeping the Timberline and Gig Harbor programs.
On the boys side, seniors Tyler Blevins, Pedro Bojorquez, Gavin Chen, Charles Cottle, Latrel Fabian, Jose Gallo Camacho, Anthony Kiamco, Jordan Lasher, Aiden McBride, Dominic Padilla, Samuel Robbins, Hewitt Smith and Matt Walsh were recognized prior to the meet and surrounded by friends, family and some YHS staff members.
On the girls side, seniors Chloe Baublits, Laci Becktold, Hailey Briggs, Jayde Connally, Jeanne Drabowicz, Sophie Hurschler, Erika Johansen, Kiana Neir, Shay-Lah Squally and Isabella Zurfluh were celebrated.
“We’re definitely going to miss this bunch,” boys head coach Richard Houghton said. “With the seniors, they’re finally developed to the point where they’re very competitive, and we end up losing them and building up another class. On the character side, they’re really nice kids, too. It’s been a pleasure, and we’re definitely going to miss them.”
Girls head coach Shannon Gubser said she couldn’t say enough about the senior class of 2024.
“I love them so very much,” Gubser said. “This group has led with maturity and work ethic in a special way, for sure.”
At the home meet, Yelm boys defeated the Blazers, 82-62, and the Tides, 106-37, according to athletic.net. The girls also took care of business, beating the Blazers, 81-60, and knocking off the Tides, 90-42.
“We definitely had some [personal records], and it was nice to be able to do it with home field advantage,” Gubser said.
Houghton added, “Things went pretty good. I wasn’t here for the first home meet. I was in Texas for the eclipse. I’ve been talking with the other coaches, and they said it went a whole lot smoother this time around.”
With top five finishes in the boys 100-meter dash, Jacob Ford took first place after being timed at 11.51 seconds. His teammate Mister Rabang-Davis finished in second place with a time of 11.62 seconds.
In the 200-meter dash, Alex Segarra finished in second place with a time of 25.2 seconds, and Armando Lopez placed third in 26.28 seconds.
In the 400-meter dash, Gavin Taber-Thomas finished in fifth place with a time of 1:00.17.
The Tornados had a strong showing in the 800-meter dash, as Matt Walsh placed first with a time of 2:06.29. His teammate Hewitt Smith finished in second place in 2:09.62, while Patrick Walsh took fourth with a time of 2:11.99. Gideon Tolman finished in fifth place with a time of 2:13.89.
Two Tornados placed in the top five in the 1600-meter dash. Pedro Bojorquez posted a time of 4:42.17, good for second place. Cristian Flores finished in fourth place with a time of 4:55.18.
In the 3,200 dash, Samuel Robbins finished first in 11:27.10, while Kingston Farmer posted a time of 11:34.19 for second place.
Jordan Lasher finished in first place in the 110-meter hurdles with a time of 15.5 seconds. He was followed by teammate Latrel Fabian, who posted a time of 16.4 seconds.
Fabian also took second place in the 300-meter hurdles with a time of 44.31 seconds. Rabang-Davis finished in fourth with a time of 45.63 seconds, while Lopez took fifth place with a time of 46.16 seconds.
Yelm’s A team in the 4x100 relay took first place with a time of 44.99 seconds. The team included Anthony Kiamco, Rabang-Davis, Jacob Ford and Deegan Golden. Yelm’s B team took second place with a time of 47.6 seconds, and featured Myles Lewis, Donovan Abkemeier, Ronald Russell, and Daniel Mendoza.
The Tornados A team in the 4x400 relay took first place with a time of 3:44.21, and featured Bojorquez, Josiah Hardie, Alex Hurd and Segarra. Yelm’s B team, composed of Lasher, Golden, Jacob Ford and Gideon Tolman, took second with a time of 3:48.01.
Tyler Blevins took first in the shot put competition with a throw of 49 feet, 10 inches and was followed by teammate Kaden Couliette, fourth place, who posted a 34’ throw. Adrian Cushman, fifth place, posted a throw of 33’6.
Blevins finished in second place in the discus after posting a throw of 116’6. His teammate Emery Clary finished in third place after a throw of 108’, and Stern finished in fifth place with a throw of 86’3.
Josiah Hardie finished in first in the high jump with a leap of 5 feet, 10 inches, while his teammate Jonas Moreno finished in third with a 5’2 jump.
Lasher took first place in the pole vault competition with a jump of 15’6, while William Burton-Crow took fourth place after vaulting 10’6. Caiden Carmody finished in fifth place with a vault of 9’.
Kiamco took third place in the long jump after leaping 18’8.5, while his teammate Jay Sumuch, leapt 18’2 for fourth place.
On the girls side, Baublits placed third in the 100-meter dash with a time of 13.34 seconds. Her teammate Brook Smith posted a time of 1:11.96 in the 400-meter dash for fourth place.
Two Tornados posted top-five finishes in the 800-meter dash, including Kailey Slevin, who posted a time of 2:34.67 for second place. Her teammate Deejay Taylor finished fourth with a time of 2:49.99.
Taylor also took first in the 1,600-meter dash with a time of 6:11.79. She was followed by teammate Kyla Poland, third place, who posted a time of 6:28.58. Ryleigh Curzon, fourth place, posted a time of 6:29, while Liberty Manley, fifth, posted a time of 6:35.29.
Eliana Lewis took first place in the 100-meter hurdles with a time of 15.97 seconds, followed by teammate Hailey Briggs, third place, who posted a time of 16.84 seconds.
Briggs placed first in the 300-meter hurdles with a time of 50.53 seconds, while Lewis placed third in 56.35 seconds. Marlee Sell placed fifth with a time of 1:00.05.
The Tornados 4x100 A team, featuring Squally, Baublits, Zurfluh and Briggs, placed first with a time of 54.09 seconds. The Tornados B team, featuring Sage Rough, Adrionna Gaines, Lilli Williams and Lewis, posted a time of 54.09 seconds for second.
Connally finished in first place in the shot put after posting a throw of 35’10. Teammate Madelyn Lawson placed third after posting a 28’ throw, while Jazmine Wedum placed fourth after throwing the shot 24’4.
Connally also placed first in the discus event after posting a throw of 97’. She was followed by her teammate Lawson, who tied for second place with a throw of 81’3. Wedum finished in fourth after throwing 77’7.
Connally finished in second place in the javelin competition after throwing 78’2, while her teammate Isabelle Arena took third place after posting a 77’6 throw. Lawson took fourth after throwing the javelin 73’3.
Squally placed first in the high jump event with a leap of 5’2, while Lewis took second place with a jump of 4’10.
Kiana Neir placed first in the pole vault competition with a vault of 10’6.
Briggs placed first in the long jump with a leap of 15 feet, 4.5 inches, while teammate Neir placed fifth with a jump of 14’4.
In the triple jump event, Zurfluh placed third with a leap of 30’10.5, while Haven Hodge jumped 30’10, and Hurschler leapt 27’10 for fifth place.
“One thing that’s been cool is the depth, in terms of we don’t just have a few people that shine and win first places,” Gubser said. “We have depth in almost every area across the field, which has been fun in points, coaching and PRs.”
The South Sound Conference championship track meet is set for Tuesday, May 7, and Thursday, May 9, at North Thurston High School.
