Unexpected points lift Cobras to title.

Byline: CHRIS HANSEN The Register-Guard

OAKRIDGE - According to Central Linn coach Dave Martin's form chart, Lowell was at least a four-point favorite to win the Trico League girls track and field championship at Oakridge High School on Saturday.

Instead, the Cobras got the performances they had to have from their "anchors," as Martin put it, and they also received some unexpected points in several events which combined to give Central Linn the league title with 158 points.

Lowell was second with 123, followed by the host Warriors in third with 106 1/2 and Mapleton a distant fourth at 37 1/2 .

"We had several girls exceed expectations," said Martin, who will take five individuals and both relay teams to the Class 2A state meet at Western Oregon University next week.

"Kids stepped into events where they had never scored before, and with only 10 girls on the team, that's what we had to have happen."

Central Linn sophomore Candace Knuths set the tone on Friday when she scored wins in the discus and javelin. She continued that success Saturday with a win in the shot put and a third-place finish in the triple jump.

"That's what I was looking to do," said Knuths, who repeated as the league shot put champion and improved upon her second-place finishes in 2001 in the javelin and discus. "I would have liked to have PR'd in each event, but so does everybody. So I just wanted to throw far enough to get to state."

Her sister, junior Darlene Knuths, followed with wins in the 200 and 400, and freshman Michelle Wyatt won the triple jump, as well as posting a second-place finish in the 100 hurdles.

But individuals like Kate Anderson earned Martin's highest praise.

Anderson placed second in the pole vault and scored points with a fourth-place finish in the triple jump and fifth-place finish in the 300 hurdles, despite having not competed in those two events this season.

"Kids were doing that for us all weekend," said Martin, in his first season at the helm of the Cobra program. "Everyone else just held form."

Lowell had no individual winners on Saturday, although Meghan Townsend (high jump) and Breann Carter (pole vault) had victories on Friday.

Shalene Fine of Oakridge and Missy Nickerson of Mapleton both won a pair of individual events.

Fine claimed league titles in the 800 and 1,500, and also ran on the Warriors' winning 4x400 relay team.

Nickerson won both the 100 and 300 hurdles, and also qualified for the state meet in the javelin with a second-place finish.

Big Fir League District Meet

Judith Burnett of North Douglas won the discus with a Class 2A state best of 122-8, and Amanda Boice cleared 5-6 to equal her 2A state best in the high jump in the district championships at Glide High School.

Oakland won the team title with 161 points, followed by Pacific with 132 and Glendale with 131.

Burnett also won the shot put with an effort of 34-5 1/2 . Other double winners were Joanna Burkhalter of Glendale (100 and 200), Pacific's Audra Loeber (300 hurdles and 400) and Jenny Herbage of Gold Beach (1,500 and 3,000).

Casco League District Meet

Mohawk had four individual champions en route to 87 points and third place at Catlin Gabel High School in Portland. St. Paul won the team championship with 145 1/3 points, followed by Life Christian with 103.

Winners for the Indians were Michelle Cosby in the shot put (36-7 1/2 ), Danielle Bean in the high jump (5-0), Loraine Downard in the 300 hurdles (51.41) and Nicole Brainard in the 1,500 (5:42.57).

Nicole Jones of Life Christian had the top mark of the meet when she won the javelin with a Class 1A state-best 131-6.

Skyline League District Meet

Canyonville Christian Academy finished with a total of 168 points to easily capture the district title at Sutherlin High School.

CCA dominated the distance events as Reyna Quiroz won the 1,500 and 3,000, while teammate Carrie Banducci captured first place in the 800. Canyonville also swept both relays.

Emily Peterson of Umpqua Valley Christian was the meet's only triple winner with victories in the high jump (5-2), 200 (26.9) and 400 (1:01.7). Elkton finished in seventh place overall with 27 points.