Two years after the best sprinters to come through Union High School graduated, the impact Jai’lyn and Dai’lyn Merriweather made on Logan Nelson is still felt.
The Titans’ junior sprinter is the lone leg remaining from the 2017 state title-winning and state record-setting 800 relay when the identical twins were seniors. They’re now sophomores track and field athletes at Oklahoma, and Nelson still carries what she watched and learned training and racing alongside the multi-year state champions.
“Seeing them as athletes,” Nelson said, “gave me motivation to push and strive to be like them.”
It’s a new crop of girls sprinters at Union now, and Nelson leads the charge. Thursday, Nelson led a 1-2 finish for Union in the 4A girls 200, winning the district title in 26.08 seconds as part of an eventful two days for Nelson at the 4A District track and field meet at McKenzie Stadium.
Teammate Brinley Jackson was second a day after the Titans went 1-2-4 in Wednesday’s 100 meters won by Nelson in a personal-best 12.54. Union also won the 400 and 800 relays anchored by Nelson as Union captured the girls team title.
Surprisingly, the 200 meters is one of Nelson’s races where nerves tend to get the best of her, regardless of how she’s seeded.
“I was sitting over there with butterflies in my stomach,” she said. “It’s one of those races that I really want to do well in because I’m really hard on myself. I’m my own critic.”
The mid-80s temperatures at McKenzie Stadium didn’t get to Skyview’s Presley Timmons. In part, she used momentum of what she called a shocking race. She topped Camas’ Halle Jenkins, then turnaround to double in the 800 (2:20.38).
“I figured I had a chance at it,” said Timmons, bound for Idaho State, said of being a double-winner. “I thought that’d be awesome to go out with two titles in one year. … I’ve never won any big race.”
One athlete — Camas’ Lucy George — is headed to regionals in events she participated in for the first time this spring.
A left shin stress fracture forced George, one of 4A’s top hurdlers as a freshman last spring, shelved the sophomore for half of her sophomore season.
George won the long jump Thursday (16 feet, 8.50 inches) adding to her regional-qualifying javelin throw from Wednesday. She also competed in the 4A girls shot put.
But George hasn’t ran a hurdles race all spring because a left shin stress fracture shelved her for half the season. She returned to compete in limited events April 16.
She learned good lessons, she said, and is now thankful for every meet she competes in. She’ll have at least one more, qualifying for regionals in the long jump and javelin.
“That was my biggest thing,” George said. “Every meet is a blessing.”
Camas’ Daniel Maton, the two-time defending 4A state champion in the 800 and 1,600 meters, added an 800 district title (1:54.76) Thursday to Wednesday’s 1,600. It led a 1-2 finish for Camas, which won the boys district title.
