Track teams leap into 3rd at NWAACC Championships
by BLAKE THOMASON
sports editor
Last week the Clackamas
Cougars? track season came
to a close with the NWAACC
Championships at Spokane Falls
Community College, where both
the men’s and women’s team fin
ished third.
It’s the 11th time in the past 10
years the men’s or womens team
finished in the top three in the
league championships, and the
fifth time in the past three years.
The usual stars for the Cougars
shone at the championships. For
the men, it was Seth Buck, Thomas
Sutherland, Justin Cornejo,
Dillon Hoecker and Zach Rial.
For the women, it was Jordyn
Searle, D’Nara Jones, Emma Hill
and Elizabeth Venzon. Tiffany
Richeson was one of the Cougars’
stars and looked good in the pre
liminaries, placing third in the
100-meter hurdles. However, she
was disqualified in the finals after
falling while in first plaice!
The men’s team had 16 top
three finishers in 13 different
events. Buck finished second, in
the decathlon, Sutherland finished
second in the 100-meter dash and
was on two first-place relay teams,
Cornejo finished third in the 100-
and 200-meter dash as well , as
being on the first-place 4x100 ieiay
team. Hoecker finished third in the
110- and 400-meter hurdles and
also was on the first-place 4x100
relay team. Rial finished second
in the 200-meter dash and first in
the 400-meter dash and ran with
Sutherland on both first-place
relay teams.
The women’s teams had 11
top three finishers in 10 different
events. Searle finished third in the
triple jump and 100-meter dash
and first in the long jump and ran
on the second-place 4x100 relay
team. Jones finished second in the
200-meter dash and ran on the
second-place 4x100 relay team and
the third-place 4x400 relay team.
Hill finished second in the triple
jump and also was on the second-
place 4x100 relay team. Venzon
finished second in the high jump
and first in the heptathlon as well
as being on the third-place 4x400
relay team.
Next season the men’s team will
look to return several athletes from
this year’s team since 26 are only
freshman, including Cornejo. The
women’s team has , 31 freshman
on this year’s team including Hill,
Richeson, Searle and Venzon.