Prep track and field: Alexis Hunt, Nathan Fifer take 2nd at state in high jump; Hanne Thomsen takes 4th in 1,600 but withdraws from 3,200

All four of Sonoma County’s individual competitors placed in the top eight or better in their respective events in Saturday’s finals of the CIF state track and field championships at Buchanan High School in Clovis.

Maria Carrillo senior Alexis Hunt and Montgomery senior Nathan Fifer placed second in the girls’ and boys’ high jump, respectively, while Montgomery sophomore Hanne Thomsen took fourth in the girls’ 1,600-meter race and Maria Carrillo senior Lily Mulligan finished eighth in the girls’ pole vault.

Hampered by a foot injury, Thomsen did not repeat as state champion in the girls’ 3,200. She withdrew two laps into the race.

In the relays, Montgomery’s girls’ 4x800 team finished 12th overall, improving on their seeding time with a new season-best time.

Here’s a closer look at each event.

Girls 1,600

Thomsen’s first crack at the 1,600 at the state finals did not disappoint.

She finished fourth in the event with a new personal best time of 4:43.63. That time is a new meet record for a Redwood Empire athlete and now stands as the second-fastest time ever in the event in area history, according to records compiled by redwoodempirerunning.com.

“I’m super happy I PR’d, but I just feel like I could’ve given it a little bit more,” Thomsen said. “But I think everyone feels like that when you’re a runner. Still, overall, I’m really happy about the PR. I wished I placed a little bit higher, but it’s my first time in the state 1,600.”

Only Julia Stamps has run a faster time. Her record of 4:42.79, set back in 1997, still stands. But Thomsen’s time unseated Stamps for the area meet record, which was 4:44.78, also set back in 1997.

“I’m pretty happy with that,” Thomsen said about her historical standing. “I’m definitely going for that empire record. I think I can get that.”

Nobody was catching Ventura sophomore Sadie Engelhardt, who won the event for the second straight year with a time of 4:33.45, a new state meet record and the third-fastest time in U.S. history.

Thomsen hung in the middle of the pack for most of the race and made her move on her final lap. She got up to second but fell back down the stretch. Ashlyn Boothby from Scotts Valley took second in 4:39.45 and Del Norte’s Hannah Riggins finished third in 4:41.42.

“I wasn’t surprised she was out there by herself,” Thomsen said of Engelhardt. “I was just trying to stay with the pack and then with 200 to go, I just didn't have anything left.”

Girls high jump

Hunt closed out her senior year with the best showing of her prep career.

The Oregon State commit cleared 5-foot-10 to finish second at state, shattering her previous personal best and landing at No. 2 all-time in area history. Her previous PR was 5-08. Only Sonoma Valley’s Mindi Wiley has jumped higher - 5-11, back in 2005.

“I’m really excited,” Hunt said. “Wish I could’ve had a better final attempt at 5-11, but glad I PR’d.”

Hunt twisted her ankle as she scratched on her third and final attempt at 5-11. She was helped off the field and had an ice pack taped to her foot as she talked about her performance.

She cleared 5-09 and 5-10 on her third and final attempts.

“I was super nervous, but I just try to take a deep breath and then right before I go I always say, ‘I can do this’ and then I jump, just to get my confidence up before I go over the bar,” she said.

It’s a true comeback story for Hunt. This was her first full year of track and field competition due to COVID and injury. She missed all of last season recovering from a torn ACL.

“I didn't think I would recover that fast or come back at the same level I used to be, but now I’m better than what I used to be,” she said. “It feels really good.”

Girls pole vault

Maria Carrillo’s Lily Mulligan, the best pole vaulter the Redwood Empire has ever produced, closed out a legendary prep career with a state placement.

She took eighth overall after scratching at 12-09.

“I feel like I was moving all my poles well,” she said. “I feel like I was doing everything I should have been doing, it’s just sometimes it doesn’t work out, and that’s OK - it’s kind of how the sport works.”

Mulligan is off to San Diego State next year as the all-time area record holder in the event. Her PR of 13-02.5 could stand for years, said Bruce Hotaling, Mulligan’s personal coach.

“Lily Mulligans come around once in a blue moon,” he said

Girls 3,200

The grimace on Thomsen’s face was hard to miss. As she worked to keep up with the lead pack, the discomfort eventually proved too much.

She had mentioned Friday after the 1,600 prelims that her left foot was bothering her a bit and mentioned it again after Saturday’s final.

Still, Thomsen had a sophomore season for the record books. Along with her No. 2-ranked 1,600 time this weekend, she also set the area record in the 3,200 with a 9:55.31 at Arcadia in April.

She’ll enter her junior year next fall with three state titles in track and cross-country and with a very good chance to break even more records.

Boys high jump

Fifer became just the second Sonoma County boy to place second in the high jump at state, the last being Gabe Manville from Santa Rosa in 1989.

Fifer came up just short of clearing 6-foot-07, which would have been a new PR, but cleared both 6-05 and 6-06 on his first attempts.

“Feels good,” he said. “I’m a little disappointed because I wanted 6-7. I clipped it off when I was over it, just hit it at the last minute. A little disappointed about that, but still excited about how I finished.”

Fifer was seeded 12th entering the meet and said he thought he’d be in contention for a placement, but second was a bit surprising.

The senior said he wants to continue competing next year but hasn’t decided where yet.

Girls 4x800 relay

A new state event this year, Montgomery was the fastest girls team in the area this season and continued that trend at state.

Their team of Seelah Kittelstrom, Hope Martin, Elizabeth Beiswanger and Amrie Lacefield came in 12th overall with a time of 9:26.27, a more than four-second improvement on their previous season best.

You can reach Staff Writer Gus Morris at 707-304-9372 or gus.morris@pressdemocrat.com. On Twitter @JustGusPD.