Track opens in Oroville

Raider Track opened the 2016 season in Oroville on the Saturday at a low-key event where many teams were short some athletes and were trying members in different events to find the best combination for them.

Okanogan won the meet on both the boys’ and girls’ sides.

The Lake Roosevelt boys finished 10th with 15 team points, and the LR girls finished 13th with two team points.

Robert George took home the only Raider first place from Oroville. George took first in the triple jump with a hop, skip and jump of 34-5. In the 300-meter intermediate hurdles, George finished fifth in 50.07 seconds.

Nathaniel Hall started the season with seventh–place in the 100-meter dash in the time of 12.83 seconds. Later, in the 200, Hall placed fifth in 25.9 seconds.

Nathan Morrell placed in two of his three throwing events at Oroville. In the shot put, Morrell placed seventh with a throw of 34 feet, 2 inches. Later, at the discus, he took eighth with a throw of 86-5.

The Raiders 4x100-meter relay team of Will Friedlander, Nathaniel Hall, and Cameron and Matthew Tillman finished seventh with the time of 49.81 seconds. That is a good starting time, and with more practice Lake Roosevelt can be a competitor at later meets. In the triple jump, Friedlander also contributed to the Raider team score by placing sixth with a jump of 32-9.

Keianna Vera was the only placer for the Raider girls at Oroville. Vera placed seventh in the 100 in 15.49 seconds. Jonell Denchel came close to placing in both the shot and discus, and she showed promise for later meets.

LR track will be practicing this week for the Ray Cross Invitational in Ephrata on Saturday. The Raiders will be looking to have a full squad at Ephrata, picking up those who did not travel to Oroville. The big invite will feature 37 teams from all classifications from all parts of Eastern Washington. The meet will begin at 11 a.m.