The 3,200-meter race that Kenai Central’s Allie Ostrander ran on Friday at Dimond High was not unusual for the 5-foot-1 junior. In fact, it didn’t even break her personal best.
But one thing it did count for, finally, was a new Alaska state record for high school girls.
With a time of 10 minutes, 13.87 seconds, Ostrander broke a 28-year-old mark that everyone could see coming from two miles away (pun intended).
“To me it seems like any other race,” Ostrander said. “I guess it hasn’t really sunk in. I think it’ll hit me when I see it on paper.”
Once she crossed the finish line, Ostrander erased a mark that had stood since before she was born. It was 1986 when Kodiak’s Kristi Klinnert set the standard that has held up under the Randall, Goldstein and Francis regimes.
Ostrander has never met Klinnert (now Klinnert-Waythomas), and she does not know a lot about her besides her long-standing record.
“I just know she had the record,” Ostrander said. “She was from Kodiak, so it’s not surprising she had that.”
Ostrander’s distance coach, Levi Sutton, and parents Teri and Paul were yelling her splits as she zoomed by each lap, and Ostrander credited Sutton for planning the right workouts and tapering days that set up a fast run Friday.
“Afterwards he’ll be like, that was a workout that Stanford (University) runs, and we’re like, oh yeah we did that,” Ostrander said.
Sutton said he was pleased with the consistency of Ostrander’s lap times, although the second and third laps could have been even quicker.
“She just told me now that she is kind of beating herself up because she knows her second and third laps could’ve been quicker,” Sutton said. “But overall, she ran smooth and smart, and I’m just proud she came in first and broke the record.
“All her teammates are supporting her and it’s really cool.”
Ostrander finished her opening lap at 1:16, then followed that up with laps of 1:16, 1:16, 1:18, 1:17, 1:18, 1:16 and finished with a bell lap of 1:14. Ostrander passed the halfway marker at 5:08 for one mile completed.
“That was just bad pacing on my part, I settled in a little too much,” she said. “It’s something to work on for next time.”
Ostrander had to deal with Eagle River senior Kaitlyn Maker for the first two laps. Maker hung right on Ostrander’s right shoulder at the start, but after 800 meters, Ostrander dropped Maker and pulled away to a comfortable lead. Maker ultimately wound up third, behind runner-up Maddie Hall from Thunder Mountain.
“It was really nice to have her there, someone pushing me a little bit for the first two laps,” Ostrander said.
On Friday, Ostrander said her team was creating decorative shirts with humorous nicknames for the boys team, and the chilled atmosphere helped ease her mind and forget about the pressure of going for a record.
“It helped take my mind off tomorrow,” she said. “This morning was just a lot of getting mentally focused. It was all I was thinking about since I woke up.”
Ostrander will also be going for a state record Saturday in the girls 1,600, a race that she won with a time of 4:54.60 at last week’s Region III meet.
Once the weekend is over, Ostrander will continue her track training, since she is preparing for the New Balance Outdoor Nationals in Chapel Hill, North Carolina on June 15, where she is hoping to run a personal best in the 3,200. Her current PR is 10:03.66, a time she ran at the Arcadia Invite in California in April.
“Her times keep us from being lazy,” joked Jonah Theisen, Allie’s distance running teammate.
Ostrander’s performance was followed up by second and third-place finishes from the brother duo of Jordan and Jonah Theisen in the 4A boys 3,200.
Jordan claimed second place with a time of 9:37.52, and Jonah nabbed third at 9:38.00. Both of them smashed their personal records, as well as the previous Kenai boys school record (9:45 by Trevor Baldwin).
“I felt like we paced that just perfect,” Jordan said. “The first mile wasn’t too fast, so that the second mile we could have a little speed left.”
Both Theisen’s ran nearly identical races, as they jockeyed for second place with a host of competitors. Ahead of them, Kodiak junior Levi Thomet set sail from the opening gun and won handily with a time of 9:31.59.
Thomet distanced himself by nearly a full 100 meters in the second half of the race, but by the time he was coming down the final stretch, the Theisens had gobbled up about half that distance.
“(Jonah) tried passing me,” quipped Jordan about what caused them to close in on Thomet. “I passed him, and he was trying to match it and it kept getting faster and faster.”
Kenai was not the only Peninsula school to claim victories Friday. Nikiski senior Seth Carstens took gold in the Class 123A boys high jump, picking up three inches on his old personal best along the way.
Carstens won with a leap of 6 feet, 3 inches, to pick up the win by a full seven inches.
“It was just focus, getting my head ready and not defeating myself,” Carstens said. “I told myself, it’s your senior year, sell out, so that’s what I did.”
Carstens said he was confident enough that he could jump to such a height, but getting through his mental block was the biggest challenge.
“It’s the greatest feeling ever,” Carstens said. “Knowing that I did as well as I could, and everything I did was for myself and my community.”
After being celebrated on the podium, Carstens ran across the infield into the waiting embrace of family and friends.
“I could hear every single one of them cheering,” he said. “It made it all the more special.”
Carstens is also competing in Saturday’s long jump event.
ASAA state track and field meet
Dimond High
Friday’s finals
Class 1-2-3A
GIRLS
3,200 — 1. Briahna Gerlach, Glennallen, 11:14.02; 2. Taylee Nyquist, Thorne Bay, 11:25.93; 3. Molly Mitchell, Homer, 11:42.26; 4. Elizabeth Balsan, ACS, 12:11.82; 5. Grace Walker, Petersburg, 12:28.64; 6. Joshephine Braun, Seward, 12:58.98; 7. Audrey Rosencrans, Homer, 13:02.98; 8. Victoria Joslin, Delta, 13:08.81.
Discus — 1. Laura Kromrey, Seward, 99-09; 2. Amir Williams, ACS, 94-02; 3. Ashley Logan, Grace, 91-07; 4. Isa Ramil, Sitka, 88-07; 5. Beth Hanson, Delta, 86-09; 6. Pekia Hueton, Su Valley, 84-07; 7. Hailey Olson, ACS, 78-03; 8. Madison Ealum, ACS, 75-10.
High jump — 1. Lina Heinrichs, Hutchison, 4-10; 2. (tie) Dallas Dickerson, ACS, Ayla Lopez, Su Valley, 4-08; 4. Andi Clark, Monroe, 4-08; 5. Mesa Rohrer, Valdez, 4-06; 6. Bernadette Hartley, Su Valley, 4-04; 7. Gabriella Cagle, Sitka, 4-04.
3,200 relay — 1. Glennallen 9:53.11; 2. Homer 10:10.23; 3. Petersburg 10:59.43; 4. Su Valley 11:13.14; 5. Seward 11:23.99; 6. Delta 11:31.31; 7. Houston 11:37.11; 8. Skagway 11:42.61.
Triple jump — 1. Izabelle Ith, Petersburg, 34-02.5; 2. Kayla Rowe, Grace, 34-00; 3. Annie VanderWeide, Grace, 32-08.5; 4. Madison Orth, CIA, 32-06; 5. Sarah Lucas, Holy Rosary Academy, 31-07.5; 6. Kasia Adams, Yakutat, 31-05.75; 7. Hayley Ramsell, Skyview, 31-02.25; 8. Beth Hanson, Delta, 30-10.
BOYS
3,200 — 1. Kaleb Korta, Glennallen, 9:44.58; 2. Daniel Serventi, Grace, 9:59.07; 3. Zach Young, Grace, 10:10.07; 4. Keaton Evans, ACS, 10:11.72; 5. Pedro Ochoa, Homer, 10:24.67; 6. Ethan Goebel, Skagway, 10:37.02; 7. Austin Monzon, ACS, 10:40.06; 8. Daniel Tatarenko, Delta, 10:50.95.
Shot put — 1. Liam Juhl, Tri-Valley, 46-04; 2. Zach Taplin, CIA, 43-07.5; 3. Howie Hubbard, Seward, 43-06; 4. Luke Johnson, Nikiski, 40-10; 5. Brian Peters, ACS, 38-04; 6. Asa Quimby, Nikiski, 38-03.5; 7. Conor O’Kelley, Monroe, 36-08; 8. Adam O’Guinn, Soldotna, 36-06.
3200 relay — 1. Skyview 8:37.06; 2. Grace 8:39.43; 3. ACS 8:44.03; 4. Seward 9:05.71; 5. Sitka 9:18.40; 6. Monroe 9:28.87; 7. Skagway 9:40.14.
High jump — 1. Seth Carstens, Nikiski, 6-03; 2. (tie) Patrick Stanton, Valdez, Lucas Button, Monroe, 5-08; 4. Devin Light, Haines, 5-06; 5. Austin Monzon, ACS, 5-06; 6. Billy Ware, Petersburg, 5-04; 7. Kyle White, Eielson, 5-04; 8. Dustin Drover, Su Valley, 5-04.
Triple jump — 1. Nate Simmers, ACS, 41-00.5; 2. Matt Barron, Houston, 40-01.25; 3. Zach Martin, Seward, 40-00.75; 4. Uri Simmers, ACS, 38-10.25; 5. Thomas Zweifel, Seward, 37-01; 6. Zach Wassman, Skagway, 36-11.5; 7. Calem Collier, Susan B English, 36-02; 8. Kyle White, Eielson, 35-07.75.
Class 4A
GIRLS
1. Thunder Mountain 18; 1. Kenai 18; 3. Chugiak 17; 4. Colony 11; 4. Wasilla 11; 6. Lathrop 10; 7. Bartlett 7; 8. Ketchikan 6; 8. Eagle River 6; 10. West Valley 5; 11. Kodiak 4; 11. Soldotna 4; 13. East 3; 13. Dimond 3; 15. South 1.
3,200 — 1. Allie Ostrander, Kenai, 10:13.87; 2. Maddie Hall, Thunder Mountain, 11:11.89; 3. Kate Maker, Eagle River, 11:21.37; 4. Olivia Hutchings, Soldotna, 11:24.25; 5. Jenna Difolco, West Valley, 11:27.21; 6. Alex Mathis, Wasilla, 11:30.38; 7. Hannah Brown, South, 11:30.82; 8. Cathelyne Lowers, Colony, 11:49.90.
Discus — 1. To’a Levi, Lathrop, 123-01; 2. Abby Beck, Kenai, 110-11; 3. Shawna Nelson, Ketchikan, 105-01; 4. Richelle Walker, Kodiak, 104-09; 5. Dakayla Walters, Dimond, 103-04; 6. Megan Burbank, South, 100-10; 7. Jenna Luhrs, Thunder Mountain, 100-06; 8. Kate Benfield, Service, 99-09.
High jump — 1. Ceil Dunleavy, Wasilla, 5-02; 2. Samantha Cooper, Chugiak, 4-10; 3. Taylir Kueter, Bartlett, 4-10; 4. Jacklyn Jaranik, Colony, 4-10; 5. Allison Gonzales, East, 4-10; 6. Breanna Slater, West Valley, 4-08; 7. (tie) Lindsey Wong, Soldotna, Madeline Ko, West Valley, 4-08.
Triple jump — 1. Noami Welling, Thunder Mountain, 37-00; 2. Chase Stephens, Colony, 35-08.75; 3. Paige Nelson, Chugiak, 34-00; 4. Kassidy Murfin, Chugiak, 32-08.5; 5. Madeline Ko, West Valley, 32-09.75; 6. Sylvia Evern, Dimond, 32-03; 7. Kayla Clark, South, 31-11.75; 8. Alicia Reitz, Chugiak, 31-11.75.
BOYS
3,200 — 1. Levi Thomet, Kodiak, 9:31.59; 2. Jordan Theisen, Kenai, 9:37.52; 3. Jonah Theisen, Kenai, 9:38.00; 4. Christopher Lokanin, Dimond, 9:42.22; 5. Erich Hoefler, West Valley, 9:52.48; 6. Derek Steele, South, 9:56.49; 7. Riley Moser, Juneau, 10:06.42; 8. Spencer Milton, South, 10:07.27.
High jump — 1. Jared Welch, Lathrop, 6-06; 2. Bryce Hellman, Bartlett, 6-04; 3. Leroy Elliott, West, 6-02; 4. Cameron Bryant, Lathrop, 5-10; 5. CJ Parker, Dimond, 5-10; 6. Shane Hursh, North Pole, 5-10; 7. Brandon Nicholson, Colony, 5-08; 8. Michael Davis, East, 5-06.
Triple jump — 1. Leroy Elliott, West, 42-10; 2. Kade Bullard, Dimond, 42-06.25; 3. David Schaffer, Dimond, 42-05.75; 4. Jared Welch, Lathrop, 42-00.25; 5. Michael Davis, East, 41-11.75; 6. Lucas Jones, Colony, 41-06.5; 7. Devin Millington, Lathrop, 40-09; 8. Preston Weeks, Soldotna, 40-03.75.
Shot put — 1. Ed Hall, ER, 51-4; 2. Damian Coger, Lat, 50-7.75; 3. Leo Sega, Kod, 47-7.25; 4. Kordell Pillans, Kod, 47-1; 5. Fischer Summers, Col, 46-6; 6. Tarini Tosi, Eas, 44-11.25; 7. Joe Dickinson, Lat, 44-7; 8. Morgan Nichols, Th, 43-3.
