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Kent made Grants Pass track meet special one By Don Hunt Grants Pass High track coach Roger Stewart finally found time to relax late Saturday afternoon following the 52nd edition of the Grants Pass Rotary Invitational Track and Field Meet. He sat along the first row of bleachers at Russ Werner Track and reflected on another successful meet that had drawn 44 schools and several hundred athletes from throughout Oregon and northern California. The weather was picture-perfect for runners and not too shabby for spectators - 68 degrees, little wind and barely a cloud in the sky. An unusually high six records had been set - remember, this meet has been going on for more than a half-century - including three by Churchill High sensation Jordan Kent. The senior sprinter and jumper hit marks of 24-31/2 in the long jump, 21.55 in the 200 meters and 48.02 in the 400. Many in the crowd may not have known it, but they had witnessed one of the top track athletes in state history. "You could put him in Southern California or Texas or Florida or any of the hotbeds of high school sprinters and jumpers and he would more than hold his own," says Stewart, who grew up in Southern California and spent 15 years coaching there. "He has a special gift, a special talent, and I think what you saw today is only the tip of the iceberg." As Stewart points out, Kent is breaking records with little competition. In the 400 Saturday, Reedsport's Nathan Baumgartner sped to a time of 48.85 - the second-best time in the state this spring, not to mention the eighth-fastest 400 ever run by a Class 3A runner - and yet trailed Kent by several meters at the finish. "When you're that dominant, you wonder if the kid has any adrenaline going at the start of a race," Stewart says. Kent is so dominant that he'll probably waltz through the Class 4A state meet later this month in Eugene and win titles in the 200, 400 and long jump, just as he did a year ago. He likely won't get tested until the summer, when he'll enter a series of national meets, including the Golden West in Sacramento, Calif., and the Junior Nationals at Stanford, Calif. High school records count through the summer months, and so if Kent hasn't already re-broken his all-time state bests in the 200 (21.03) and long jump (25-11/4), or broken Gus Envela's state record of 46.64 in the 400, there's a good chance he'll do so once he finds some tough competition. "Who knows, he might run 45-something (in the 400)," Stewart says. Kent's future would seem to be in track, but he's also a star basketball player and will do both sports when he heads to the University of Oregon in the fall. His father, Ernie, is the head hoops coach with the Ducks. Asked if he preferred one sport over the other, the 6-foot-4 Kent said, "No, not really. They present different challenges. "I don't know what the future holds." Kent said there's a good chance he'll redshirt in basketball next winter, which would allow him to focus on track during his true freshman year and then basketball during his redshirt senior year. Regardless of what Kent's future holds, friends and foes alike will be rooting for him. That's because he's as friendly and humble as he is athletic. Moments after Churchill lost to Grants Pass in the fourth-place game at the Class 4A state basketball tournament in March, Kent was the first Lancer in line to congratulate the Cavemen, offering a hug to many of their players. Moments after beating Baumgartner in the 400 Saturday, Kent helped the exhausted Reedsport runner to his feet and said, "Good race, man." In an era when sportsmanship often takes a back seat to bravado, Kent has his priorities straight. TWO OF THE BETTER marks at the Rotary meet were registered in the freshmen-sophomore division. Eagle Point's Robbie Johnston cleared a school-record 14-4 in the pole vault, while Reedsport's Tahari Brosi went 40-111/2 in the shot put. Both marks would have won the regular divisions. Johnson and Brosi are both sophomores. SOUTH MEDFORD'S boys basketball team will be the subject of a story on a national Web site today, www.studentsports.com. The story focus on the team's success on the court and in the classroom and will be one of the lead items on the site. THE EXECUTIVE BOARD of the Oregon School Activities Association had a busy day Monday. Among other items, the board voted to: Eliminate seeding at the Class 4A state boys and girls basketball tournaments. Enact the rally scoring system for Oregon prep volleyball. The system, under which a point is scored on every serve, will include a best 3-of-5 format. The board also voted to alter the format of the state volleyball tournament to include pool play during the first day of the two-day competition. The second day would consist of bracket play. Require all 4A and 3A state quarterfinal football games to be played at home sites. That's good news for area schools, which can draw far more fans at their home stadiums than they could at, say, Eugene's Autzen Stadium, where 4A teams have had to play quarterfinal games in recent years. KUDOS TO THE CRATER High and Cascade Christian softball teams, who were handed sportsmanship awards by the Rogue Valley Softball Umpires Association on Sunday. The local umpires established the awards, one for the 4A level and another for 3A/2A level, this season. The Comets and Challengers were each presented with trophies and checks for $50. Reach reporter Don Hunt at 776-4469, or e-mail [email protected] Mail Tribune Home | Ottaway Newspapers, Inc. | Dow Jones & Co., Inc. | Privacy | Contact Us Copyright � 2001 Mail Tribune, Inc.