The Camas boys and girls track and field teams combined their efforts to finish in ninth place out of the 46 high schools who competed at the Oregon Relays Friday and Saturday, at Hayward Field in Eugene.
“The atmosphere and ambiance of that meet is so big,” said head coach Alisa Wise. “We want these kids to experience a big meet type atmosphere so they learn how to control their emotions and adrenaline. You can be physically prepared, but if you’re not disciplined mentally, you’re going to be all over the place.”
Amber Corbett was one of the many Papermakers who thrived in the spotlight.
“It’s a big stadium and tons of people are watching. You’re right in the middle of it all,” she said. “It’s intimidating, but a great experience at the same time.”
Corbett clinched second in the javelin with a throw of 126 feet, 7.5 inches. She also took 13th in the shot put with a toss of 33-5.5.
“I looked over at my parents and my coach and they were all smiling back at me. It was amazing,” Corbett said. “I still have a lot more to learn. I just want to take the adrenaline from throwing that far and carry it throughout the rest of the season.”
Alexa Efraimson finished first in the 1,500-meter run by setting a new meet and school record time of 3 minutes, 43.23 seconds. Efraimson, Austen Reiter, Kimi Knight and Camille Parsons placed second in the distance medley (12:12.11). Knight, Efraimson, Alissa Pudlitzke and Savanna Joyce notched 11th in the 1,600 relay (4:12.67). Rachel Martschinske took third in the hammer (122-8.75), Sydney Allen soared to fourth in the triple jump (35-9.5) and Pudlitzke earned eighth in the freshman 3,000 (10:41.77).
On the boys side, Triton Pitassi snagged second in the hammer (175-3.75) and 14th in the shot put (46-5.25). Cole Zarcone finished fourth in the freshman 100 (11.78). Zarcone, Kyle Schrader, Josh Golden and John Doyle grabbed fourth in the sprint medley relay (3:41.95). Doyle, Schrader, Jackson Cutler and Tucker Boyd took ninth in the distance medley relay (10:49.8). Andrew Kaler claimed ninth in the 3,000 (9:00.05) and Taryk Boyd notched ninth in the freshman 3,000 (9:43.68).
