The Marshfield Pirates dream of back-to-back state championships in track and field came down to one race. And what a race it was.
Entering the 4x400 relay, the Pirates stood in second place, 3.5 points behind Pendleton. To win a state title, the Pirates had to beat Pendleton by two spots to win a state title.
Jack Waddington, Drake Rogers, Alex Garcia-Silver put Marshfield in a good position when Body Lutes took the baton. Lutes, who won the 400-meter dash earlier in the day and set a state meet record at the same time, reeled in every running in front of him, finally passing a North Bend runner in the final straightaway to win the race and secure Marshfield’s state title.
Before the race, the Pirates asked their coach, “What do we have to do in the 4 x 400 to win it all?” Coach Steve Delgado said, “You boys need to win the 4 x 400.”
Along with the boys’ 4 x 400 effort in the finals, it was Alex Garcia-Silver, Body Lutes, Jonathan Parks, Trent Summers, Drake Rodgers and Jack Waddington scoring points in the two days to help secure the championship. For the girls, it was Daphne Scriven and Tori Cox who stepped up with outstanding efforts both in the Shot Put and Discus events.
INDIVIDUAL RESULTS - BOYS
Alex Garcia-Silver 1st 3000 (set a meet record)
1st 1500
1st 4 x 400 relay
Body Lutes 1st 400 (set a meet record set in 1997 and ran the fastest 400 time of all classifications)
2nd 800
1st 4 x 400 relay
Jonathan Parks 1st Pole Vault (defending two-time state champion)
Trent Summers 2nd Pole Vault
Drake Rogers 1st 4 x 400 relay
Jack Waddington 4th Pole Vault
10th High Jump
11th Triple Jump
1st 4 x 400 Relay
Mitchell George 12th Long Jump
INDIVIDUAL RESULTS- GIRLS
Daphne Scriven 1st Discus Throw- (defending two-time state champion)
3rd Shot Put
Tori Cox 3rd Discus Throw
6th Shot Put
Kera Crawford 9th Long Jump