Document text
State's best to converge at Crater Classic By GREG STILES CENTRAL POINT - A variety of state track and field bests will be challenged in the 2001 Crater Classic Saturday at Dutch Meyer Stadium. A total of 23 boys teams and 22 girls squads are entered in the meet. Field events begin at 9:45 a.m. with running events going off at 11:45 a.m. In boys competition, South Eugene sports the top sprint crew, while Bend and Klamath Union liven up the distances. North Medford chips in with its best thrower ever - Scott Myers - while Lakeview's Derek Strubel is the state triple-jump leader for all classifications. The boys sprints feature a couple of South Eugene runners who are entered in events that aren't necessarily their specialties. Two-time Class 4A runner-up Eli Markstrom will try the 400 meters. He's gone 10.63 in the 100 and 21.7 in the 200. His teammate, Jan Olszowsky will run the 200. He's gone 1:53.8 in the 800 and 49.4 in the 400. The 800 features a group of runners who will dip well into the 1:50s. The 1,500 field includes South Eugene's Erik Heinonen, Klamath Union's Jacob Gomez and Oregon City's Kalen Abbott. The 3,000 field includes state cross-country champion Lane Neely of Bend, Oregon City's Matt Faulkner and Gomez. In the field events, Myers' 62-foot, 11-inch toss in the shot put earlier this week against Crater matched the sixth-best reported mark in the country this spring. Shawn Williams of South Eugene and Chris Dearmon of Crater are strong throwers as well. Strubel popped a 46-101/2 leap in the triple jump early in the spring. That's more than 2 feet farther than the next-best mark in the state. The pole vault field includes Bend's Joe Lelacheur (15-2) and North Bend's John Derby (14-7). The girls competition will feature familiar battles in the distances. The past two Class 4A girls cross country champions - Paris Edwards (1999) of Ashland and Liz Lindgren (2000) of Klamath Union - are entered in the 1,500 and 3,000. Class 3A cross country runner-up Bobbi Wright of Rogue River, South Eugene's Eleanor Gordon and Berth Jertberg of Henley strengthen the field. Klamath Union seniors Sam Gilbert and Sara Schaaf are primed for big days as well. Gilbert, last year's state runner-up, tops the 300 hurdles list, while Schaaf has bests of 56.79 in the 400 and 2:16.96 in the 800. She is slated to run the 800 and 1,500 Saturday. North Medford's sprint crew of Jennifer Abbott, Emily Dunn, Denali Tice and Brittany Hodges figures to score well individually and collectively. They have an eye on Benson's 48.84 state-best time in the 4x100 relay. Mail Tribune Home | Ottaway Newspapers, Inc. | Dow Jones & Co., Inc. | Privacy | Contact Us Copyright � 2001 Mail Tribune, Inc.