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61 °F Forecast | Road Cams Friday, May 27, 2005 Today's News | Shop Our Valley | Tempo | Health | Community | Home Delivery | Contact Us SECTIONS Home Page Local News Sports Business Obituaries Life Opinion Tempo AP News Weather Classified Archives Site Map SPECIAL SECTIONS Since We Asked Britt Festival Outdoor Journal Menu Guide How To Guide Health Biz Connection Readers' Choice Real Estate Showcase Real Estate Guide Joy Magazine Homelife Magazine Wedding Guide Passport to the Rogue Valley SHOP OUR VALLEY AutoFinder HomeFinder JobFinder Classified Place an ad TOP JOBS EXTRA Ashland News NIE Personals Movie Times TV Times E The People Volunteer Moving here? eSouthernOregon CUSTOMER SERVICE FAQ's Advertise with us Home Delivery Employment Contact Us Media Kit Oregon Road Conditions & Cams Email Story to a Friend May 15, 2005 Crater�s Greg Dallaire sprints down the homestretch on his way to a win in the 800 meters. Dallaire also took home the title in the 400 meters. Mail Tribune / Andrew Mariman Crater boys, North girls nab titles Led by talented distance crew, Comets edge Roseburg in a team race decided in the final event By DON HUNT Mail Tribune Crater High track coach Hans Smith fidgeted as the final events wound down at the Southern Oregon Conference district meet on Saturday. Smith’s Comets were in a back-and-forth battle with Roseburg for the team title. Not until senior superman Greg Dallaire crossed the finish line in the 4x400-meter relay in fourth place — giving the Comets their final five points — could Smith take a deep breath and relax. Dallaire won the 400 and 800 and junior middle-distance ace Isaac Stoutenburgh shattered his own school record in the 1,500 to ignite the Comets to their second straight title on a day of magnificent marks at Bowerman Field. Advertisement "I felt like Roseburg had a little too much depth for us to handle going into the meet," Smith said, "but our guys battled like crazy, and fought for every point they could get. "I’m not sure I can go through too many more meets like this." Crater finished with 136½ points to Roseburg’s 132½ . South Medford grabbed third place with 91 points, and North Medford was fourth with 76. Stoutenburgh gave the Comets a big lift early when he dominated a 1,500 that was expected to be close. Stoutenburgh buried Ashland’s David Morgan — whom he had lost to in the 3,000 on Thursday — and Roseburg’s Gavin Weaver by running the final 800 meters in a blistering 2:02. Stoutenburgh’s final time of 3:56.5 broke his school by more than three seconds and ranks as the fifth-fastest clocking in the state this year. "I don’t think anyone expected me to take off like I did with two laps to go," said Stoutenburgh. "The plan was for me to run two minutes flat, and I almost did it." Crater distance coach Justin Loftus said Stoutenburgh actually kicked into a higher gear with 900 meters left, but he wasn’t complaining. "He got a little antsy and went a little early, but his strength brought him through," Loftus said. Weaver outkicked Morgan over the final 100 meters to take second in 4:00.23. Morgan was third in 4:01.43, while two other Crater runners — Jake Keyser and Geoff Donaldson — finished fourth and fifth, respectively. Dallaire, meanwhile, won the 400 for the third straight year in 50.61 and the 800 for the second consecutive year in 1:57.3. Dallaire’s times weren’t overly impressive most of the season, but he showed again Saturday that he’s a big-meet runner. "I didn’t take care of myself like I should have in the offseason," he admitted. "But I buckled down and did what I had to do the last few weeks. Today, I was able to get out faster and then sustain my speed. That’s the best I’ve felt in a long time." With Donaldson adding a third-place finish in the 800, Crater wound up scoring a whopping 51 points — 37 percent of its team total — in the three distance races. "I told Loftus before the meet that we needed 50 points from his crew, and they gave us 51," Smith said. Crater’s other big gun Saturday was Adam Goff, who won the 110 high hurdles in 15.02 and took second in the 300 hurdles in a lifetime best of 39.56. Roseburg’s Ben Sharp won the latter event in a state-leading time of 39.1. Also vital to Crater’s cause were triple jumpers Tyler Beck and Nick Nutting, who hit big personal records to finish 2-3 and give the Comets an unexpected 14 points in the event. Beck’s mark of 43-0½ was a lifetime best by more than two feet. "I don’t know where that jump came from," Beck said. "I just stretched for it, I guess." Crater qualified four competitors in eight events and Roseburg advanced eight athletes in as many events for next week’s Class 4A state meet in Eugene. Almost lost in the excitement of the Crater-Roseburg team chase were some outstanding marks from other individuals. Among them: North Medford’s Brian Beadle, who outperformed Eagle Point’s Jered McClellan in a dandy javelin duel. Beadle chucked the spear 199-5, some 25 feet farther than his previous best, while McClellan PR’d by nearly 10 feet with a mark of 198-1. The marks are No. 2 and No. 4 in the state. "The big thing for me today was throwing at the proper angle, which is between 27 and 33 degrees," Beadle said. "My coach (George Wheeler) tells me to throw it through the donut in the sky. "Plus, I just think the adrenaline of a district meet helped me throw like I did." North Medford’s Steve Johnson, who rebounded from his discus disaster on Thursday to heave the shot put 55-4, a PR by about 2½ feet. Eagle Point’s Jake Olson won the shot with a mark of 55-7, but both throwers punched their tickets to the state meet. "I’ve never seen Steve this intense or this angry," North Medford throwing coach Chris Cribs said. "He went out Friday and had 12 straight throws over 50 feet in practice. "He’s channeling his anger in the right way. I wouldn’t count him out at the state meet in the shot put." Johnson is the state leader in the discus but he threw fouls on all three of his qualifying throws Thursday and scratched out of the event. "More than anger, it was motivation," said Johnson, whose shot put mark Saturday ranks fourth in the state. "I’ve still got a state title in my sights." South Medford’s Bret Hamilton, who set a big PR to win the 200 in 22.67 and finished second to Klamath Union’s Matt Porter in the 100. North Medford’s 4x100 relay squad of Jacob Colmenaro, Almeir Barlow, Ryan Weisz and Josh Casebere, who entered the meet with only the fifth-fastest time but won from lane seven in 43.7. Reach reporter Don Hunt at 776-4469, or e-mail [email protected] Mail Tribune Home | Local News | Sports | Business | Obituaries | Life | Opinion AP News | Archives | Site Map | Community | Classified Copyright © 1997-2005 Mail Tribune, Inc. All rights reserved. Privacy Policy | Terms & Conditions | Website Feedback Free Music Downloads Conference Calls - $50/Month Home Security Systems Trunks, Footlocker, Trunk, Footlockers home equity loans helzberg diamonds Distance Education Diamonds Online Poker Auto Insurance Mesothelioma Slippers Student Loans tcg student loan consolidation teleconferencing Website Design & Marketing Memory Foam Mattress w2 forms Mortgage Calculator Free Home-Loan Referrals Payday Loans Advertisement s