Multiple Tornados were crowned league champions over the course of the 2023 South Sound Conference championship track meet on May 11 and May 13.
As a team, the Yelm boys team finished in first place with a score of 177, while the girls finished in second place with a score of 132.5.
“What the kids did at (the SSC Championships) was astounding,” Coach Chris Stovall said. “To score (what we scored) is bananas.”
The boys were followed in the standings by Gig Harbor (169), Central Kitsap (87), Timberline (79), Capital (67), Peninsula (53), North Thurston (25) and River Ridge (5).
Gig Harbor finished in first place in the girls field with a team score of 148.5 points, followed by Yelm in second place. Other results included Central Kitsap (124), Peninsula (120.5), Capital (64), North Thurston (57.5), Timberline (29) and River Ridge (26).
During the SSC league championship meet, junior Brayden Platt finished in first place in the shot put competition with a throw of 62 feet and 4.75 inches. His teammate Isaiah Patterson finished in fourth with a heave of 46 feet and 1.25 inches, while Tyler Blevins finished in sixth with a throw of 45 feet and 7 inches.
Platt finished the discus competition in first place as well. He recorded a throw of 174 feet and 9 inches to set a new school record. Patterson finished in second place with a throw of 170 feet and 3 inches. He is second all-time for Yelm discus, while Tyler Blevis finished in sixth with a throw of 128 feet and 6 inches.
Two Tornados placed in javelin, as Platt finished in second with a throw of 183 feet and 4 inches and Sam DeJacomo finished in fifth with a throw of 145 feet and 11 inches.
Platt also finished second in the boys 100-meter dash with a time of 11.14 seconds, while Nathan Ford (11.44 seconds) and Anthony Kiamco (11.45 seconds) finished in sixth and seventh place, respectively.
Deegan Golden was the lone Yelm representative in the 200-meter dash, finishing in eighth place with a time of 22.51 seconds.
Like Golden, Alex Hurd was the only representative in the 400-meter competition. Hurd finished in 11th place with a time of 54.62 seconds.
Paul Manwiller finished in third place in the 800-meter competition with a time of 2:02.94, while Zach Walsh placed first in the 1600-meter race (4:16.7) and in the 3200-meter race (9:24.31).
Three Tornados placed in the 110-meter hurdle competition as Jordan Lasher (15.13 seconds) placed first, Kyler Ronquillo (15.61 seconds) placed third and Collin Davis (17.69 seconds) placed sixth.
Latrel Fabian (42.48 seconds) placed fourth in the 300-meter hurdle competition, while Dominic Jones (46.23 seconds) finished in ninth place.
The boys 4x100 relay team, made up of Shawn Bankston, Jacob Ford, Golden and Kiamco, finished in fifth place with a time of 44.59 seconds.
Two Tornados placed in the high jump competition, as Onyx Carter took first place with a jump of 6 feet and Mekoa Fatuesi ended in ninth with a jump of 5 feet and 6 inches.
Tyler Allen and Mason Embry tied for second in the pole vault competition, with a leap of 10 feet and 6 inches. Their teammate William Burton-Crow finished in sixth place with 10 feet.
Trevontay Smith finished in first place in the long jump competition with a jump of 21 feet and 3.75 inches. Ronquillo finished in third with a jump of 20 feet and 10.5 inches, while Lasher finished in fifth with a jump of 19 feet and 9.75 inches. Jacob Ford placed sixth with a jump of 19 feet and 7.5 inches.
Smith also placed first in the triple jump event with a leap of 46 feet.
For the girls, Bethany Venuto placed 10th in the 100-meter dash competition with a time of 13.4 seconds. Her teammate Ayla Danner-Bunn placed 16th with a time of 13.67 seconds.
Kailey Slevin finished in 15th place in the 3200-meter dash, with a time of 12:43.49.
Three girls from Yelm placed in the 100-meter hurdle competition, as Eliana Lewis (16.93 seconds) finished in first, Hailey Briggs (17.5 seconds) finished in fourth and Breanna Hurajt (17.51 seconds) finished in fifth.
Venuto placed first in the 300-meter hurdles competition with a time of 43.37 seconds, while Chloe Baublits (49.49 seconds) took third, Hurajt (48.61 seconds) secured fourth and Briggs (49.16 seconds) finished in fifth place.
In the 4x100 relay, Yelm’s girls took fifth place with a time of 51.72 seconds. The team was made up of Venuto, Isabella Zurfluh, Danner-Bunn and Hurajt.
In the 4x200 relay, the team finished in sixth place with a time of 1:52.46. The team consisted of Baublits, Zurfluh, Ariana Murillo and Danner-Bunn.
Jayde Connally finished first in the shot put competition with a throw of 32 feet and 8.5 inches. She was followed by her teammate Tatiyanna Wadley (31 feet and 1.5 inches) in fourth and Madelyn Lawson (29 feet and 10.25 inches) in fifth.
Nolah Wofford finished in first place in the discus event with a heave of 97 feet and 2 inches. Wadley and Lawson finished in fifth and sixth place with throws of 90 feet and 2 inches, and 86 feet and 5 inches. Lily Lawson finished in seventh with a throw of 83 feet and 8 inches, while Alivia Leduc finished in 10th with a throw of 75 feet and 6 inches.
Wofford also finished in fourth in the javelin event with a throw of 97 feet and 8 inches. She was followed by Isabelle Arena in seventh place with a throw of 87 feet and 8 inches. Amailee Niz finished in 11th place with a throw of 69 feet and 9 inches.
Wofford also finished the high jump competition in third place with a leap of 4 feet and 10 inches.
Kiana Neir took first place in the pole vault competition with a distance of 9 feet, while Destiny Mathews placed third with 8 feet.
Danner-Bunn placed second in the long jump competition with a jump of 16 feet and 5.75 inches, while Hurajt recorded a jump of 15 feet and 9.75 inches.
Hailey Briggs took eighth place in the triple jump event with a leap of 32 feet and 5.25 inches.
