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Grizzlies Richardson runs to state ASHLAND - After pacing in third place for most of the boy's 3,000 meter finals, Ashland's David Richardson was able to outkick teammate David Morgan to gain his first trip to the state track and field meet. "That's been my goal for the whole season," Richardson said after lying in the grass to catch his breath. It's my first time for state in track." Richardson was in fourth place, behind teammate Andy Wright after the first heat. Wright was considered by many to be the favorite to make state for Ashland in the event. But Wright finished back in the pack, as Richardson (8:57.93) and Morgan (9:02.76) followed Klamath Union's Kevin Pellegrino (8:57.12) to the tape. Richardson nearly caught Pellegrino, who led every lap but the opening, then collapsed to the grass on the infield of the track. "It didn't feel like much," Richardson said of knowing he made his first trip to state. "I was about to pass out." The boys pole vault was the marquee event on the opening day of the SOC meet, but the combination of adrenaline and warm weather generated some other outstanding marks. North Medford junior David Faaeteete improved his lifetime best by nearly 14 feet in the discus and posted the state's third-best throw at 167-6. Teammate Dan O'Brien, also a junior, finished second at 161-2 and improved his previous best by a whopping 22 feet. Black Tornado sophomore Steve Johnson chipped in with a 152-foot toss, good for fourth place. South Medford also got into the act with long jumpers Tyler King and Jonathan Klenke, who went 1-2 in that event with personal-record leaps of 22-0 and 21-7 . On the girls' side of the coed affair, Eagle Point's Alyssa Lee reached an all-time best of 38 feet to win the shot put. But the main stage belonged to Johnston, who shattered the previous meet record of 15-2 set in 1996 by Roseburg's Gary Vance. Interestingly, Johnston cleared his record height on a pole he borrowed from Roseburg vault coach Jim Moyer. The Roseburg pole was a bit stiffer than the one Johnston had used earlier Thursday. "It made a difference," Johnston said. "It sprang me higher. "And he (Moyer) told me to keep it for the state meet." After clearing 16, Johnston raised the bar to 16-4 and was over it on his third attempt, only to come down on top of it. "I wasn't able to bend the (Roseburg) pole quite as much as I'd like," Johnston said. "I probably should have moved the standards in a little closer and then I probably wouldn't have hit the bar on the way down. "But when you do that, you run the risk of landing in the box, and that can get ugly." Klamath Union's Jon Fay finished second with a vault of 15-0 while Grants Pass' Victor Daugherty hit the state qualifying standard of 14-6 for third place and will join the other two at the Class 4A state meet next week in Eugene. Faaeteete, meanwhile, registered his winning throw on his final attempt after O'Brien had led the discus competition most of the way. Faaeteete credited improved technique for his big throw. "I've had a tendency to throw before I've gotten my left leg down, and that was taking away all my power," the 6-foot-3, 270-pound Faaeteete said. "Today, I got my hips and shoulders into my throws a lot better. "It felt great." O'Brien also polished up his technique, North Medford throws coach Mike Schaan said. "Dan's had trouble staying balanced, but he's been throwing well in practice lately and it carried over to today," Schaan said. "He kept an upright posture and that allowed him to use those long levers of his. "It looked like Dan was going to pull this thing out but David's a great competitor and he got him on his last throw. It was fun to watch them go at it." South Medford's King and Klenke waged their own friendly duel in the long jump and upset top-seeded Kory Mahr of Grants Pass along the way. "Last year I came in with the No. 2 ranking and got seventh - that wasn't going to happen today," said King, a junior whose mark of 22-0? Thursday was a lifetime best by 7? inches. "I came in a lot more confident this year." While King's victory wasn't much of a surprise, Klenke getting second was. His best mark prior to Thursday was 20-1. "I've been chopping my steps and taking off way behind the board all season," Klenke said. "This is my first year long-jumping and it takes time to get everything down. "Today, it all came together." Eagle Point's Lee PR'd by a foot to upset North Medford's Crystal Worthington and Rachel Munyon and win the girls shot put. Klamath Union's Stevie Dunton also hit a big PR - 36-10? - to finish second and punch her ticket to state. Worthington settled for third (36-6? ) and Munyon was fourth (35-8). Lee offered a succinct answer when asked how she was able to come up with the winning throw: "I'm sick of losing." In other finals events Thursday, Klamath Union's Zach Tucker cleared 6-4 to win the boys high jump; Grants Pass' Patina Taylor won the girls javelin with a throw of 123-4; and North Medford's Danielle Jordan outkicked Klamath Union's Katie Leary to win the girls 3,000 in 10:21.92. The North Medford girls suffered a potentially costly setback Thursday when star sprinter Brittany Hodges pulled a hamstring muscle during a qualifying heat of the 400. Hodges won that race and later won her qualifying heat in the 200, but had a noticeable limp. Hodges also runs on both of North Medford's relays that are seeded No. 1. "I would say she's questionable for Saturday," said Mark Hodges, the Black Tornado coach and Brittany Hodges' father. "We're just going to keep our fingers crossed." The Tornado girls lead the team race with 43 points, followed by South Medford with 28 and Klamath Union with 24. In the boys team standings, Klamath Union took the first-day lead with 33 points, followed by Crater with 31 and North Medford with 29. LINKS: DAILY TIDINGS: Main | News | Sports | Obituaries | Opinion | Columnists | AP News | Subscribe | Archives | Weather | Classifieds | Contact Us | Privacy REVELS: Main | Calendar | Dining | Movies | T.V. OTHER: Road Cams Copyright 2003 Ashland Daily Tidings 541.482.3456. 1661 Siskiyou Blvd., Ashland, OR 97520. Ottaway Newspapers, Inc. - Advertisers -