Scott Swanson
Of The New Era
It’s a rebuilding year for the Sweet Home track and field team, no bones about it.
Though the Huskies had 73 students out for the team, 45 boys and 28 girls, at the end of last week, many of them are newcomers to the sport.
“We are a very, very young team, a very, very inexperienced team,” said Head Coach Billy Snow.
On the boys side, Snow has six seniors, two of whom have experience in track. He has seniors back for the girls as well, though they are more experienced.
Though the Huskies have some veterans back, including three who have been to the state track championships, but they are going to be spending some time experimenting to figure out how best to use the rest of their talent.
Specifically, Snow believes, they are lacking sprinters and hurdlers on both the boys and girls sides.
“That is where we’re hurting the most,” he said. “We just don’t have a lot of speed out there. It just kills you as a track team because so much of it is built around speed.
“We need to find out where our strengths are and build on those. It’s going to be a season-long project, trying to locate kids and figure out where they can be of the most value to the team. We have to encourage kids to try things that might be a little bit out of their comfort level.”
It’s worked before for the Huskies, who discovered last year that Jess Keys could high jump and that Ashley Danielson could throw the javelin. Keys made the state meet in the high jump and Danielson, who previously had specialized in middle distances, turned out to be one of the girls team’s best javelin throwers.
Boys Team
For the boys, seniors Keys and Brandon Weist are back with state experience. Keys plans to focus on distance events, having led the Husky boys cross-country team to the state mee last fall. He also will high jump again this year. Weist, who is fresh off an appearance in the state playoffs with the boys basketball team, is expected to compete in both the high and triple jumps. He recorded a high jump of 6-0 last year to lead the Capital League, though he barely missed a trip to state in that event, and leaped 40-10 in the triple, in which he qualified for state.
In the sprints, the Huskies have lost both Ole Bond and Cody Shipp to graduation, leaving them with a void in the short sprints.
Junior Land Florek is back, after spending the fall running cross-country, and Snow hopes Florek will pick up where he left off in the 400, in which he had the ninth-fastest time in the Capital Conference, 54.29 as a sophomore running his first year of track.
Back also is junior Ramiro Santana, who had the ninth-fastest 800 time in the Capital Conference last year (2:08.97) and is also expected to run the 400 and throw the javelin.
From the cross-country team that made state, Keys, Peter VanDerlip and Rob Callaghan are expected to provide some experience in the distances, along with some other young runners who Snow is hoping will add some depth.
The hurdles are a question mark for the boys and Snow said they will have to try some athletes in those events and see if someone can step up.
The javelin may be the Huskies’ strongest event this season, at least as things get under way. Senior Nathan Whitfield, who threw 156-3 last year, is back and Snow hopes for big things from him, as well as one or two other Huskies.
“I could see (throws coach) Randy (Whitfield, Nathan’s father) having three guys over 160 (feet),” Snow said. “That would be awesome.”
One promising newcomer is Dakotah Keys, a freshman who is ranked third in the nation by one elite youth ranking organization and who threw 173-03 last summer at the national Junior Olympics meet.
Things are up in the air in the shot and discus, though Marc Callagan is back after throwing the shot 39-6 as a freshman, but Snow hopes some football players who have turned out, and other newcomers could provide some depth in the weight events.
Weist and Jess Keys will be leaders in the jumps, while KC Hanscam and Dakotah Keys look to be contributors in the pole vault.
Other members of the boys team, as of last Friday, are Anthony Albright, Steve Bergevin, Terran Burgess, Dustin Collman, Bud Daniels, Kyle Dauley, Marcus DeLong, Bryan Dowling, Jason Driver, Brandon Elliott, Stacey Fisher, Kelsey Fisher, Holden Greene, Kyle Gutierrez, Kyle Holmes, Casey Keys, Sam Macklin, Brandon McKendree, James Meyers, Daniel Mora, Eric Munts, Seth Pierce, Shawn Richardson, Josh Riggs, David Rinehart, Ethan Rowe, Travis Samson, Byron Sanders, Daniel Smith, Nikki Smith, Aris Somatis, Cameron Vasseur, Josh Ward and Zane Wise.
Girls Team
With only six seniors and a considerable number of rookies, the girls also are looking like a team that will need a sharp learning curve to be a factor at the district meet.
Leading the returnees are seniors Hannah McClaskey and Cassandra Schumacher. Schumacher surprised a lot of people by finishing second in the 3000 at districts and qualifying for the state meet, where she finished 15th. She followed that up with her second straight year of qualifying for the state cross-country meet and Snow hopes she builds on those experiences for another run at state. Hayley Belli of Philomath, who finished second in the state cross-country finals last fall, is the favorite to run away with the district 1500 and 3000 titles, should she choose to run those races, but based on last year’s finishes in the Val-Co League, Schumacher should be a strong pick for second in the district in either of those events if she and Belli stay healthy.
McClaskey, who was the team’s most valuable player last year after scoring big points in the throwing events all season for the Huskies, missed out on the state meet after finishing third in the shot and discus at the Capital Conference district meet.
With the top two district finishers qualifying out of the league, McClaskey will likely be facing strong competition from Krystle Forester of Newport and Sara Cole of Central, both seniors, in the shot and discus events. Cole (114-5) has thrown the discus farther than McClaskey (109-5), while Forester has thrown the shot 37-2 1/2, to McClaskey’s 33-9.
“She’s strong and quick for a big girl,” Snow said of McClaskey. “I expect her to do well. Having just fallen little bit short last year, hopefully she’ll be a little motivated from finishing third in those two events. Hopefully, she’ll get there.”
Also back for the Huskies is senior Erika Snow in the pole vault (8-0), junior Ashley Danielson in the javelin (96-8, right behind McClaskey’s 97-7) and the 800 and 400, and Ashley Bertucci in the triple jump (29-4 1/2).
Snow said Danielson has a lot of potential in the javelin, and event she tried for the first time last season.
“If she can add 20 more (feet) this season, that would put her in a different league,” he said. She’s got a quick release and she’s coachable. I see that as doable.”
The top mark in the Val-Co League last year was Cole’s 123-1, while Forester threw 115-3.
Juniors Sarah Rosa and Amanda Basham will provide some speed in the shorter sprints.
As with the boys, the girls are looking at a question mark in the hurdles with the departure of Hannah Swanson to graduation.
Other members of the girls team , as of last Friday, are Bryana Bittner, McKenna Burnett, Leah Dauley, Samantha Driver, Faith Helfrich, Amanda Hoover, Jill Mahler, Katie Nicholson, Sabra Perry, Natasha Perry, Kathryn Rynda, Vianney Santana, Jessica Snow, Catrina Stengrim, Whitney Stoner, Kerrie Streight, Reanna Thompson, Tee Whaley, Louise Wilcox and Brianna Wirth.
Snow is being assisted by Aaron Cloud, Randy Whitfield, Tony Ward, Mike Severns, Krystle Streight, Kambria Schumacher and Barb Snow.
The Conference
With the Huskies entry into the Val-Co League, Snow said he doesn’t know what to expect.
He does expect Newport, which usually has good sprinters, and Philomath, which generally fields strong distance, middle distance and relay teams, to battle for the boys and girls district titles. Both schools have dedicated pole vault coaches, which generally helps them produce good competitors in that event.
He expects Justin Cuellar of Central to be a factor in the javelin competition after Cuellar, who stands 6-7, whipped it 175-5 last season. But otherwise, he said, Central and Taft will be question marks until the season gets under way.
The Huskies will open their season on Thursday, March 15, at a four-way meet with Sisters and Junction City at Marist.