10A
THE DAILY ASTORIAN • WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 16, 2017
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Gary Henley | Sports Reporter
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TRIATHLETE — GINNY SOLLER MEADWAY
SWIMMING, BIKING
AND RUNNING TO WIN
Former Seaside athlete
has newfound career
Ginny Soller Meadway
runs in the “Hotlanta”
marathon last year in
Atlanta, Georgia.
By GARY HENLEY
The Daily Astorian
A
t Seaside High School, her big
sports were soccer, basketball and
track.
Now, Ginny Soller Meadway is
winning awards for swimming, biking and
running, and usually all on the same day.
The former Seagull star took up mar-
athons, half-marathons and triathlons last
year, and has taken to triathlons like … well,
a gull to water.
“I started triathlons last year,” said Mead-
way, who now lives in Seattle. “My hus-
band thought it would be a good idea to do
all three sports instead of just running. Lit-
tle did he know how expensive the triathlon
world is.”
Meadway has competed in events from
the East Coast to the West, from Canada to
the southern U.S., and recently came up big
in the eighth annual Lake Meridian Triathlon
last Saturday in Kent, Washington.
Out of 78 females entered in the “Olym-
pic Wave” triathlon (nearly 32 total miles
of competition), Meadway fi nished fi rst in
a total time of two hours, 23 minutes, 11.1
seconds.
Meadway, 35, completed the 1,500-meter
swim in 27:00.1. She had the best time in the
bike portion (1:09:32.3, over 24.8 miles),
and the second-best time in the 6.2-mile run
(43:55.0).
Second place overall was Kari Vreugden-
hil, in 2:23:52.8.
“It’s an all-out sprint, plus endurance dis-
tance,” she said of her most recent event.
“You need both. I have done two 70.3 (mile)
Ironmans this summer. I placed on my sec-
ond in Canada, which is the biggest accom-
plishment of my racing so far.”
In one of her most impressive fi nishes,
Meadway was the fi rst female fi nisher (and
second overall, men and women) in the Jail-
house 5K run in Hampton, Georgia. Out of
357 fi nishers, she crossed the fi nish line in
20:27, second behind Tom Dillard (18:51).
Meadway was also the fourth female fi n-
isher in the 2016 Hotlanta Half-Marathon in
Atlanta.
In a return to the North Coast last spring,
she took fi rst in the Astoria Run on the River
Half-Marathon, in 1:31.34; and in “Ironman
70.3,” July 30 in Whistler, British Colum-
bia, she fi nished fourth in her age group (and
16th overall female).
Meadway ran in her biggest event April
17, taking part in the Boston Marathon,
which she completed in 3:22.44.
Up next for Meadway is the “Full Iron-
man” competition in the annual Coeur
d’Alene Ironman event, Aug. 27 in Coeur
d’Alene, Idaho.
It’s a 2.4-mile swim, 112-mile bike ride,
and a 26.2-mile run, said Meadway, a former
sprinter and pole vaulter in her days at Sea-
side High School (she still owns the third-
best pole vault mark, 9-6, in school history).
Of her new career in triathlons and mara-
thons, Meadway has “podiumed” or come in
fi rst in almost every race she has entered the
last two years.
“I freakin’ love it,” she said.
Above: Ginny Soller Meadway, third from right, following
her latest win, last Saturday at Lake Meridian.
Left: The top spot on the awards stand — a familiar place
for Seaside High School grad Ginny Soller Meadway.
Submitted Photos
Carroll supports Bennett while
saying Seahawks should stand
Associated Press
RENTON, Wash. — Seattle Sea-
hawks coach Pete Carroll said Tues-
day that he supported Michael Ben-
nett’s decision to sit during the
national anthem while also saying
he believes players should stand for
“The Star-Spangled Banner.”
Bennett’s actions were a primary
topic of conversation for Carroll two
days after Bennett sat on the bench
during the anthem before the presea-
son opener against the Los Angeles
Chargers. Bennett didn’t inform Car-
roll or his teammates of his decision
to sit while the rest of the Seahawks
stood locked arm-in-arm on the side-
line Sunday.
“It’s easy for me to support him
in his issues. But I
think we should all
be standing up when
we’re playing the
national anthem,”
Carroll said.
Bennett said after
Michael
the game that the
Bennett
violence in Char-
lottesville, Virginia, including the
death of a woman who was struck by
a car deliberately driven into a group
of counter-protesters, solidifi ed his
decision.
“I can appreciate a man that no
matter what the circumstances are, no
matter what people are going to think,
no matter what people are going to
say, his morals and what he thinks is
right to him, he’s going to stand up for
it,” teammate Cliff Avril said.
Carroll said he’s met with Bennett
on a couple of occasions since Sun-
day to talk about his actions.
“We’ve talked a lot about all that
is going to come to him and listened
very carefully to people’s perspective
and stay very true and stay very much
in the middle so he doesn’t get cap-
tured one way or the other by some-
body else’s concerns, somebody
else’s issues,” Carroll said. “I’ll con-
tinue to support him and help in every
way. We’ll visit regularly and hope-
fully all make sense of the things that
come his way.”
Bennett was at least the third prom-
inent NFL player to protest during the
anthem in the fi rst full week of pre-
season games.
Albers earns fi rst win in four years
Associated Press
SEATTLE — Andrew Albers’
perseverance paid off for himself
and the Seattle Mariners.
The left-hander earned his fi rst
major league win in four years,
pitching fi ve effective innings as the
Mariners beat the Baltimore Orioles
3-1 on Tuesday night to snap a fi ve-
game losing streak.
“You come up that fi rst time and
you think this probably isn’t going
to be the last,” said Albers, called
up from the minors earlier in the
day. “All of a sudden you go a cou-
ple, three years without it happen-
ing, and you certainly appreciate the
opportunities more as they become
fewer and fewer.”
The 31-year-old Albers (1-0) set-
tled down after giving up Jonathan
Schoop’s 26th home run in the fi rst
inning. He allowed six hits for his
fi rst victory since Aug. 12, 2013,
when he went 2-5 in 10 starts with
Minnesota.
Acquired in a trade with Atlanta
last Friday after going 12-3 at Tri-
ple-A Gwinnett, Albers made one
relief appearance for Toronto in
2015 and did not get a decision in
six appearances last season with the
Twins.
He retired the fi nal eight hitters
he faced Tuesday, and four Mariners
relievers set down 12 straight over
four scoreless innings. Edwin Diaz
pitched a perfect ninth for his 26th
save in 30 opportunities.
“It means a lot, but at the same
time, it’s more important right
now just winning ballgames,” said
Albers, also aided by a fi rst-inning
double play. “Whether I get the
W or somebody else gets the W, it
really doesn’t matter. Coming in
here and getting to be part of a pen-
nant race or wild-card race, that’s
pretty awesome.”