The Haines track and field team won nine medals at the Alaska state meet in Anchorage on May 28 and 29. Sophomore Eric Gillham and senior Haley Boron earned first-place medals. Both athletes were given the honor of running 50 meters while waving the Alaska flag.

Gillham won in the discus competition with a throw of 124 feet. "When I had officially won state, I actually thought I was dreaming. It didn't seem real at all," said Gillham. "Up until my final throw, I was just looking at it as another meet. Then it hit me, 'I'm about to win state.' I walked into the ring on my final throw and I thought my chest was going to explode. It still doesn't feel very real. I'm going to give most of the credit to my coaches: Jim Stanford, Tyrell Horton, and Greg Brittenham. Without them, I wouldn't have even made it to state. They really helped me with my technique and how to approach each meet with the right mentality."

Boron won the shot put with a throw of 30'11.5". This was the first time Boron had thrown more than 30 feet. She placed second in the discus with a throw of 92'6," and placed fourth in the 100-meter dash. Boron was in the second seed behind Kenai Central High School's Denali Bernard, a position she thought she'd remain in.

"I was focusing on getting second," Boron said. "After our first throws we were a quarter inch apart. From there I knew it was going to be a battle for the first place spot."

Boron beat Bernarn in her final throw of the meet.

"I just turned to my team who was watching and I was like, 'I just won state.' It was the most incredible feeling," Boron said. "I definitely didn't expect that."

Senior Mark Davis placed third in the 300-meter hurdles. Davis ran a personal best of 43.29 seconds. Senior Carson Crager placed fourth, finishing 0.46 seconds behind Davis and a personal best. Crager also placed fourth in the triple jump. He jumped 38'11".

Junior Avery Williamson placed second in the 300-meter hurdles with a time of 51.26 seconds. Sophomore Grace Long placed second in the long jump with a distance of 15'3.75". This was the first time Long had jumped in the 15s. The third-place athlete was nine inches behind Long.

The girls' 4x100 meter relay placed fourth with a time of 55.96 seconds. Their 4x200 meter and 4x400 meter relays both placed fifth. The girls set a personal best by 10 seconds in the 4x400 meter relay. They ran a time of 4:37.57. This time is 3.30 seconds away from beating the school record.

Matt Davis

The boys' 4x400 meter relay placed fifth with a time of 3:52.18. At the regional meet, Haines lost to Sitka by 0.57 seconds. At the state meet, Haines beat Sitka by 6.06 seconds. The team also ran a personal best by 6.24 seconds.

The girls team placed fifth at the meet out of 16 teams. Seven Haines girls competed. The girls finished the meet with 48 team points. Homer, the fourth-place team, had 49 points. The boys team placed seventh out of 17 teams. Six Haines boys competed. The boys finished the meet with 27 points. Petersburg, the sixth-place team, had 29 points.