Jett Leavitt of Joseph races to a state title on May 16, 2024 in the 1A boys 3,000-meter race at Hayward Field in Eugene. 

EUGENE — Joseph Charter School’s Jett Leavitt capped a dominant season on Oregon’s tracks on Thursday, May 16 by claiming the state title in the 3,000-meter run.

And right behind him on Thursday at the 1A state track and field championship at Eugene’s Hayward Field was his teammate, Jonah Lyman, giving the Eagles a one-two finish atop the 3,000-meters award podium.

Leavitt led all the way throughout the race and won with another time under 9 minutes — 8 minutes, 55.76 seconds. Lyman, who came from the middle of the pack to grab second, finished with a time of 9 minutes, 12.09 seconds.

Leavitt, a junior, said he didn’t mind running in front for the entire race — adding that he got a charge from “the atmosphere here, which was crazy, like always.” He has faster times under his belt this season, and he said he would like to carve some time off his races. “I have next year,” he said of his senior year. “The time will go down.”

He said his recent victory at the elite Nike/Jesuit Twilight meet in Portland was good preparation for the state meet — especially in that it was held at an elevation similar to that at Hayward Field.

Lyman, a sophomore, said his strategy was to start near the middle of the pack and work his way up during the course of the race — and he followed that strategy perfectly.

Both runners had praise for their coach, John Roberts, who handed the two their medals during the awards ceremony. Lyman said Roberts was “old-fashioned,” in a good way. “He trains us hard, gets us ready for a race like this,” he said.

Other Wallowa Valley track and field athletes turned in memorable performances on Thursday, the first day of the state 1A and 2A track and field championships.

For Joseph, competing in the 1A division, junior Basey Dawson cleared a height of 4 feet, 9.75 inches to claim fifth place in the high jump.

Eagle sophomore Caleigh Johnson claimed sixth in the javelin, with a throw of 109 feet, 9 inches. 

Eagle Jenning Schiefelbein finished fifth in his 400-meter heat and qualified for Friday’s finals with a time of 53.57 seconds. 

Eagle Addy Page finished fifth in her heat in the 1A girls 200-meter dash with a time of 27.84 seconds. She missed qualifying for Friday’s finals by three-hundredths of a second. 

In the girls’ 300-meter hurdles, Joseph sophomore Annie Rose Miller finished second in her heat with a time of 48.92 seconds and qualified for the finals. 

Joseph senior Lakotah Steel finished 12th in the discus with a best toss of 85 feet, 2 inches. Sherman County’s Sophie Hulke defended her state title with a throw of 119 feet, 4 inches.

Outlaws score

For the Outlaws, competing in the 2A division, sophomore Zion Boyd rallied from the back of the field to claim fifth in the 2A 3,000-meter girls race with a time of 11 minutes, 12.15 seconds, a performance that drew praise from Enterprise coach Dan Moody.

Boyd said her strategy was “just to see what I could do. … God really blessed me. I’m thankful.”

East Linn Christian’s Daisy Lalonde defended her state championship with a time of 10 minutes, 26.5 seconds.

Enterprise senior Alex Rowley reached the podium in the 2A javelin contest, uncorking a toss of 113 feet on her final throw to finish sixth. 

Outlaw sophomore Emrys Hobbs finished 10th in the 2A boys long jump, with a jump of 18 feet, 05.75 inches.

Outlaw runners who qualified for final races on Friday include junior Nevaeh James in the 100-meter high hurdles with a time of 15.69 seconds, good enough to win her heat. James also qualified for a spot in the 300-meter hurdle final by winning her heat in that event with a time of 47.15 seconds.

Sophomore Owyhee Harguess finished second in her heat in the 400-meter dash with a time of 59.26 seconds and qualified for Friday’s final.

Harguess and her sister, McKenzie, both qualified for the Friday finals in the 200-meter dash. Owyhee Harguess posted a time of 26.34 seconds and finished second in her heat. McKenzie finished fifth in the heat, but her time of 27.31 seconds qualified her for the finals.

Outlaw freshman Kyra Brown finished third in her heat in the 800-meter run with a time of 2 minutes, 25.13 seconds. Outlaw sophomore Abigail Hurley finished her heat in fifth place with a time of 2:26.23. Both qualified for Friday’s finals.

Outlaw junior Andrew Nordtvedt ran his heat in the 400-meter dash in 52.92 seconds, finishing fifth. He did not qualify for Friday’s final.

Senior Ransom Peters finished fifth in his heat in the 100-meter dash with a time of 11.56 seconds and missed qualifying for the finals by five-hundredths of a second.

Peters did qualify for the finals of the boys 200-meter dash, with a time of 23.50 seconds. Freshman Emrys Hobbs just missed qualifying for the finals, with a time of 23.54 seconds.

In the 300-meter girls hurdles, senior Zoe Hermens finished her heat in third place with a time of 49.11 seconds and qualified for the finals. 

Competition for 1A and 2A schools at the state meet wraps up with a long day on Friday with events starting at 9 a.m. and continuing until after 10 p.m. Saturday’s events are reserved for athletes from 3A, 4A, 5A and 6A schools. 

This story originally incorrectly reported Nevaeh James’ school year. She is a junior. The story has been corrected.