Sehome's Munson Claims 3,000m Title, Second in Mile
SPOKANE - It was only a matter of time before the Lilac City got its own indoor track facility.
The city that helped put Spokane high school running on the map debuted its first-ever high school indoor meet at The Podium on Sunday, Jan. 16, with some of the top athletes from around the West Coast, as well as the entire country.
The boy's 3,000-meter final headlined the day with Sehome's Zack Munson and South Medford's and Gonzaga commit Michael Maiorano duking it out on the track for the first time since racing at the Stumptown Twilight back in early June. Maiorano won that 3,200m race in 8:51.38 and Munson was fifth running 8:57.14.
“Earlier in the morning, I was too focused on what times I should run and got a little rushed," said Munson. "But it was more about enjoying the racing.”
Munson, representing Galbraith Track Club, raced controlled and sat on Maiorano for most of the race before making his way up front with about five laps to go.
Just under two laps to go, Maiorano made his move and appeared to be well on his way to win. Under 50 meters to go, Maiorano tripped up on the home straightaway, and Munson went past him for the win, clocking in 8:41.24.
Maiorano would have broken 8:40 had he not fallen, but still managed to get up and finish with a second-place time of 8:44.03. Zac Knapp from Enterprise finished in third, running 8:54.38.
“Today was about getting some experience since it’s early in the year,” said Munson. “Racing Mike (Maiorano) was super fun and being able to show the work a bit was good to experiment with.”
One of the big questions heading into the spring was whether Munson would run for Sehome again this track season. Munson was on Sehome's last state cross-country team his freshman year when the Mariners won back in 2019 but did not race with them this past fall as Sehome finished third at this year's state meet.
According to him, he will be returning to represent the green and gold.
“Going back to being a high school athlete and getting that experience I think is going to be huge for me,” said Munson. “I have some opportunities laid out for me I want to make sure I can get, and there are some really good guys out there I missed racing.”
Washington's top returning 800m runner, Arlington's Aiden Emerson, took care of business in the boy's mile using his speed to run 27.9 seconds on the final 200-meters to out surge Munson in the earlier distance race, clocking in a time of 4:19.37.
Munson's second place time was in 4:24.12. William Heslam from Roosevelt out of Oregon finished third in 4:25.96.
White River's Cole Riley won the 800m title in 2:00.36 over South Medford's Connor Singer (2:01.56) despite being slated in the second heat of the boy's final. The heats were set up to be fastest to slowest but heat one's top runner finished third overall, running 2:02.30 in Newport's (Bellevue) Sam Jacobsen.
Squalicum's Andre Korbmacher took care of business in the 60m hurdles final winning the boy's title in a new personal best 7.92 seconds beating out Silas' Jaylen McCabe time of 8.10.
"Me and Jaylen (McCabe) started off pretty even," said Korbmacher. "We were even with each other to the second hurdle, but I eventually got out of there. It was a really good race for me."
Last summer was Korbmacher's first season running at the high school level for the Storm, and he was one of the top hurdlers in the state, specifically in the 110m, clocking in the third fastest time of 14.19 and earned an AAU Junior Olympic All-American honor. He returns as the top 2A hurdler in Washington.
"I want to do really good in state, but I want to get my 110 time down to 13.7," said Korbmacher.
Korbmachers's Ready-Set-Go teammate and Sehome rival Carter Birade was fourth overall, running a personal best 8.27.
After competing with college athletes at the Spokane Invite in mid-December, Hazen's Miguel Rosario III came in more than ready than any other athlete to race in the boy's 60m, and it showed as he won in a time of 6.88 seconds beating out Rocco Marshall (6.92) from Wilsonville in Oregon.
Eastlake's Aaron Heisser ran a massive personal best in the boy's 400m clocking 50.12 seconds to beat Squalicum's Josh Bates (50.78). Last spring, Heisser's best 400 run was a 51.45 at AAU Junior Olympics.
"I did a little bit better than I thought I would since I haven't raced in a while," Heisser. "First race of the year was a great start in my opinion."
Federal Way's Isaiah Davis had himself a day in the sprints finishing third in the boy's 60m running a personal best 6.99 seconds, and then placed second in the 200m running 22.67.
On the girl's side, Tahoma's Brooke Lyons, another top Bears sprinter to watch for this spring, had a pair of top eight finishes in two of the sprint races.
Lyons started the day with a sixth-place run in the final of the 60m placing sixth overall in 7.96 seconds. Four hours later, she came back for the 200m and was fourth running 26.03 seconds.
"I felt pretty good for an opener," said Lyons. "I'm just happy to be out here to be honest because it's been a tough couple of years, so to have a regular meet is nice."
Entering her junior year, Lyons, who represented Ford Sports Performance, comes in with the fastest returning 100m time in Washington of 11.97 seconds and the second fastest 200m time of 24.96 - both marks ran at the USATF Pacific Northwest Youth Championships where she won the 100 final and finished second in the 200 final for 15–16-year-olds.
"I just want to keep getting better," said Lyons on her goals this spring. "I definitely want to set some PR's and work on my block starts because that's something that sets me back."
Lyons' FSP teammate and Issaquah's newest athlete Shanthi Hall also qualified for the 60m final placing seventh in 8.06 seconds. Before that race, Hall finished fourth in the 60m hurdle final in 9.50 seconds.
Sehome's Jayda Darroch was the runner-up in the 400m clocking in a time of 60.04 seconds. Code Black Elite's Zoe Ray won in 57.84 seconds.
Seton Catholic's Alexis Leone, this year's 1A state cross-country state champion, was the lone winner for Washington athletes as she took the mile title in 5:13.94. Lewis and Clark's Audrey Thronson finished second to Leone running 5:14.48.
Ashlee Gallegos from J Serra Catholic in California put up a dominating run in the 800m running 2:18.98. Thronson, again, was second running 2:26.68. Mead's Charlotte Cullen was third in 2:28.54.
Post Falls' Samantha Wood finished up the night winning the 3,000m in 10:10.49. East Valley's Logan Hofstee was second running 10:30.59.
What's Next?
The Washington state high school track and field season is set to begin on Feb. 28. The state championships will be held at Eastern Washington University (1B/2B/1A) and Mount Tahoma High School (2A/3A/4A) May 26-28.
For more photos from this meet, click here.
For more results from this meet, click here.