WIAA State Championships - Day One

The first day of the State Championships wrapped up at Mt. Tahoma with some great performances by the Jags.

Freshman Asher Ogden continued his impressive season with a sixth place finish in the preliminary heats and earned a spot in Friday’s final in the 4A 110 meter hurdles. His season best time of 15.02 was into a stiff headwind and he will have a chance to improve upon it when he steps to the track tomorrow evening. Ogden will be the first freshman in ten years to compete in the 4A 110 hurdle final; the time is an improvement upon his #5 ranking in state history among freshman.

Roz Slichko was the next Jag to step to the track, and she executed her race plan to perfection. Ranked thirteenth going into the event, Slichko was instructed to take a risk that would give her an opportunity to earn a medal; she did exactly as she was instructed and raced for much of the blistering pace among the top-8 athletes and an opportunity to medal. While eventually succumbing to the pace and heat, Slicho nonetheless took a healthy risk and still finished in thirteenth, the ranking she held coming into the meet, and defeating three girls that had beat her a week prior at WCD.

Capping off the night for Emerald Ridge was the 4x400 relay team of senior Sydney Colbern, junior Sophia Brown, freshman Taylor Stilli, and sophomore Carley Huber. The team ran a season-best time of 4:06.64 out of lane eight and moved up a spot from their incoming ranking, finishing in twelfth place. Missing the final by less than two seconds, we were proud of this group for qualifying for state and excited that they were in the mix to make the final.

Carley Huber will return to the track Friday afternoon in the 300 hurdles and she will be joined by shot putter Jonah Mains, who will get action started for the Jaguars at 10:20 Friday morning.