Dolphins Right on Track at Hamilton

By STEVE GALLUZZO | Sports Editor

Despite the absence of several top athletes the Palisades High track and field team got high marks during last Friday’s Western League tri-meet at Hamilton.

Even without two of its fastest sprinters, Chase Cobbs and Raynard Beckham, the Dolphins showed speed on the dirt oval, especially in the distance events.

City champion Marissa Williams won the varsity girls 1,600 meters in 5:25, followed by and Dolphins teammates Natalie Marsh (5:52), Hannah de Silva (5:55) and Shannon Lee (6:06).

Shane Brouwer won the varsity boys race in 4:53, Jakob Pollack and Connor Smith tied for second in 5:01 and Ben Hamer was fourth in 5:07.

Williams overtook Hamilton sophomore Emily Tash in the last 90 meters to win the varsity girls 800 in 2:28, Marsh was fourth in 2:42, Elizabeth Goodman (2:44) was fifth, Nicole Figueroa was sixth and de Silva was seventh.

Andres Gomez won the varsity boys 800 in 2:11, Brouwer was third in 2:17, Pollack was sixth, Hamer was seventh and Smith was  eighth.

Finn Cawley surged to the lead in the final 50 meters to win the frosh/soph boys race in 2:15 and Kimia Samandi (2:46), Claire Boldra (2:52) and Chelsea Levi (2:54) swept the top three spots in the frosh/soph girls race.

Mitch Thompson was fourth in the varsity boys 100-meter dash  in 11.33  seconds, Ashley Welch (14.72), Elizabeth Reyna and Miya Eberlein (15.40) were fourth, fifth and sixth in the varsity girls race and Julia Ide won the frosh/soph girls 100 meters in 13.11.  One of the best races of the day came in the frosh/soph boys 100, where Justin Hammond (11.75) edged teammate Stone Maderer by six hundredths of a second and won the 200 in 24.50.

Missing from the field events was junior Whtiney Yost, who tripled in the high jump, long jump and shot put the week before, but Pierre Kaku won the boys frosh/soph long jump in 16-8 and Innocent Okoh  was second in 15-9.

Okoh won the frosh/soph shot put with a throw of 42-1/2 and Marcellus Cole threw 37-10 in the varsity event.

Ryan Ashmore was fourth in the varsity boys long jump with a leap of 17-6 1/2, Kayla Poursalimi was third in the varsity girls long jump at 11-5 and Sophia Rothenberg (12-9) and Niara Brown (11-6) were first and second for the frosh/soph girls.

League prelims are today at 2 p.m. and the finals are next Thursday at Fairfax High.