TACOMA — For several years, Cameron Hess and Payden Butler shared a dream: to stand side by side atop the podium at the state championships. They got awfully close Friday.
Senior teammates on the Lakewood High School track and field squad, Hess and Butler threw the javelin well enough to be among eight athletes who earned coveted spots on the awards podium after the Class 2A boys javelin event during the 2A, 3A and 4A boys championships at Mount Tahoma Stadium.
Instead of placing first and second, as they yearned to do, Hess and Butler finished second and third. But it still felt great, they said.
“We’ve wanted to (win it) since freshman year. Me and Cam (taking) second and third is pretty darn close,” said Butler, whose throw of 175 feet, 4 inches placed him third. Hess’ toss of 177-1 was second only to the winner, Toppenish’s Anthony Galaviz (182-6).
Throughout the event, the Lakewood teammates encouraged one another to perform better. It didn’t always work.
“We try to help each other,” said Hess, “but we’re both stubborn.”
Butler also placed third last year. For Hess, it was the first top-eight medal in three trips to state.
Entering the event, Hess was seeded 10th with a qualifying throw of 163-1. But in the first flight he launched the javelin 177-1, eclipsing his old personal record by about 9 feet — extra impressive considering Hess has been throwing with an injury. “My arm’s been damaged for about a month,” said Hess, who said he has a torn tendon.
The 2A, 3A and 4A meets conclude today. One of the best performances so far came Friday in the 3A javelin. Everett’s Malaki Seanoa placed seventh, but the big story was Bellevue senior Robert Hintz, who successfully defended his state title and smashed the meet record.
Hintz’s fifth throw flew an astonishing 211 feet, surpassing the old 3A meet record of 202-10 set by Renton’s Jason Harris in 2006. Everett’s Seanoa and other throwers cheered loudly for Hintz, as did the crowd.
“There’s a little competitiveness, but once he was throwing (so well) everyone was just rooting him on,” Seanoa said. “We wanted him to keep going and going and going.”
After heaving a school-record throw of 197-8 last week at districts, Seanoa was seeded first for state. His best throw Friday was 181-0, but he said he felt good about it in light of what happened last year: he finished 16th — dead last — with a top mark of just 159-7.
Just a junior, Seanoa hopes to return to state next year. Maybe he will apply tricks he learned from Hintz, Bellevue’s record-breaker.
“He’s pretty much the role model for every (javelin) thrower, especially after that performance,” said Seanoa. “I’m definitely going to take some notes on that.”
Other notable 2A and 3A boys
n Everett’s Bobby Rodgers finished fifth in the 3A boys shot put (149-11). Glacier Peak’s John Froland was eighth (143-11).
n In the 3A long jump, Shorecrest’s Jordan Brown took fifth (22-2) and Glacier Peak’s Devon Kiser was seventh (21-8).
n Cedarcrest’s Freddie Stevens placed sixth in the 2A boys shot put. His best throw was 52 feet, 0.75 inch.
n Lakewood’s Spencer Hulslander placed seventh in the 2A boys pole vault. He cleared 13-6. The winner, Ephrata’s Wes Chamberlin, earned his third straight title, clearing 15-8 and breaking his own 2A meet record by 3 inches.
n Cedarcrest’s Jackson Pleis cleared 6 feet and tied for seventh place in the 2A boys high jump.
n Lakewood’s Nikolay Borisov took eighth in the 2A 110 hurdles.
n Cedarcrest’s Adam Candland won his preliminary 400 heat in 49.74 seconds. He is ranked No. 1 in the event.
Mike Cane: 425-339-3471, mcane@heraldnet.com. Check out the prep sports blog Double Team at www.heraldnet.com/doubleteam.
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