COTTONWOOD — (Track events) Colton Silveria and Joel Dumore are two of the Northern Section's best track and field athletes. If you want to determine which one is better, you might as well flip a coin. That's exactly how Dumore ended up taking home the Bob Russell award plaque after his stellar day at the Northern Section Track and Field Masters meet Friday. Dumore and Silveria were both named as the top male athletes and because the coin landed with heads pointing upward, Dumore got to take the plaque home and Silveria will get his in the near future. However long it takes the plaque to get to Silveria, it definitely won't be quicker than the Central Valley High junior's sprints. Silveria won titles in the 100-meter dash plus the 200 and also turned in a triumphant final leg on the victorious 400 relay team to earn his plaque. Dumore, meanwhile, earned his with wins in the 110 hurdles and 300 hurdles, plus part of a second-place finish in the 1,600 relay.

A week ago, Silveria lost to Foothill's Marcial Lawson in the 100 at the Division I Championships. On Friday, he wasn't going to let it happen again. "I was a little irritated. I knew I had to come ready to play this week," said Silveria, whose 11.02-second time edged Lawson's 11.05. "My start on the 100 felt the best it's ever felt. It was like I was shot out of a gun." It must have been the carryover from the 400 relay. Shasta's team led the first three legs before Silveria single-handedly demolished the Wolves' title dreams with a furious, jaw-dropping sprint that left Brett LaHorgue in the dust. "I've never run by someone like that," said Silveria, who won the 200 in 22.46.

Dumore had to run by someone late in the 300 hurdles to earn his section title. Enterprise's Anthony Williams led nearly the whole way but clipped the penultimate hurdle and gave Dumore the sliver of daylight he needed to earn the win. But it wasn't without drama. Dumore barreled through the final hurdle instead of going over it and barely holding off Chico's Corrie Emmons. Both took hard tumbles on the track as they crossed the line. Dumore was clocked at 39.71. "I tried to jump it the best I could. I knew I was going down," said Dumore, who will skip his graduation to compete at the CIF State Championships. "One of my coaches says if you hit the last hurdle, do whatever you can to get over that finish line." Dumore dominated the 110 hurdles with a 15.09 time, and he also helped the 400 relay team take third.

North Section track fans were treated to the third installment of an epic 800m dual between Red Bluff senior Erynn Rebol and Chico freshman Kody Atkins. Rebol won at the EAL Championships two weeks ago with Atkins returning the favor the following week at the Big School Championships held at Enterprise. Yesterday's race followed the same pattern as the previous two, with Rebol running a hard opening lap and hoping the developing gap over her youthful rival was sufficent to offset Atkins' brutal kick. Add to the drama that Aktins ran and won the 400m in impressive fashion a mear 20 minutes earlier. Rebol, with some early race pacing help from Oroville's Sarah Brandt, runs an opening lap of 67 to gap Atkins by nearly three second with one circuit to go. The gap between the two runners seems to close very little down the back stretch, but narrows quickly rounding the final turn with Atkins finally catching and passing her rival with a little less than 40 meters to go. Kody Atkins day is capped by being announced the winner of the Bob Russell award on the female side by her performances in winning the 800 (2:18.37) and 400 (57.7), plus she anchoring Chico's third-place 1,600 relay team.

West Valley's Michelle Johnson had a frustrating day, that at least ended on a satisfying note. She won the 1,600 in 5:13.02 as expected but couldn't find the energy to overtake teammate Corissa Storms in the 3,200. Johnson did do her part as a team player, though, helping the 1,600 relay team take first place with a 4:06.58 time. Corinne Hinkle, Taylor Lambert and Cassie DeBonis shared the win. "I ran it for the girls and I was scared because I was so dead after the two-mile," said Johnson, who was the defending champ in the 1,600 and 3,200. "I didn't run the 3,200 well at all. But it was everything I had. I felt so weak." Storms, meanwhile, was the surprise winner in the 3,200 with a solid time of 11:32.03, more than 11 seconds ahead of Johnson. The sophomore said she wasn't expecting the win and the berth to the state meet. "I just kept waiting for her to catch me but I was hoping she wouldn't," Storms said. "I was hoping for second, actually."

Enterprise junior Zack Kaylor set a personal record in the 1,600 and won in 4:24.69, then took the 3,200 title with a 9:53.46 time. Teammate Domenic D'Acquisto dominated the events last year but had to skip this season, so Kaylor said he was trying to keep the title in the hands of a Hornet. "Ever since Domenic got hurt, I just made sure to keep it at Enterprise," he said. "Since the beginning of the summer I've been looking forward to winning the mile and the two-mile."

Lambert almost had part of four section titles but settled for three. She took the 300 hurdles title with a flawless run of 46.82 and helped the 400 relay team win in 49.82 and ran a leg along with Johnson on the 1,600 relay. Her only fault was in the 100 hurdles, where she hit the final hurdle and allowed Wheatland's Amanda Menschel to sneak by and win with a 16.21 time. "I didn't expect (the 300 hurdles title) but I knew that if I just gave it my all and stayed in my pattern that I would do it," said Lambert, who set a personal best.

Another Eagle, Amanda Oliva, defended her reputation and her 2008 title in the 100 by blitzing past the field in a 12.79 effort, plus she helped on the 400 relay team. She'll skip the state meet in favor of graduation but said she still was happy she earned the reputation as a speedster. "I've wanted to have that reputation and I've worked hard to get it," she said. "I'm pretty proud of my performance." She almost won the 200 but converted distance runner Enterprise sophomore Delanne Bartlett proved stronger in the closing meters to eked out the win in 26.27, .07 seconds ahead of Oliva. "It was awesome. I just wanted to come in here and beat her," Bartlett said.

The other outstanding Enterprise effort came from Trevor Hope, Eric Parsons, James Williams and Anthony Williams, who set a school record in their 1,600 relay victory with a time of 3:24.85. American Christian's Bethany Rasmussen won the Norm MacKenzie Sportsmanship Award as well. Paradise's Tim Pullen earned the 400 title (49.97) and Chico's Dan Parker easily won the 800 (1:56.90). The winner from each event moves on to the CIF State Championships in Clovis, June 5-6.

FIELD EVENTS:
Boys long jump:
By far the most dramatic field event of the day. Lassen junior Darren Lee was the surprise early leader with a mark of 21-3 1/4. Red Bluff's Colter Hedden, the Division I champion from last week, fouled on his first three attempts before going 21-5 3/4 on his fourth try. Enterprise sophomore Jovon Cunningham was nursing a strained quad and pulled out after three fouls. Enterprise's James Williams tied a personal-best at 21-3 on his fifth attempt, then improved to 21-9 on his sixth and final try. "I made sure that I was behind the line so I could get a good jump in," Williams said. "When I heard my distance, I thought I had won." Not so fast, as there were two jumpers left - Shasta's Peter Roman and Lee. Roman fouled and wound up fifth at 20-8 1/4, but Lee delivered with a stunning 22-3 leap. "I don't even know how I did it," said Lee, who entered the day with a PR of 21-1. "It was a good competition. I was happy with getting a PR, but decided to go for it on my last jump. I knew it was good one going through the air." Williams congratulated Lee on his jump. Then, he turned his focus to his remaining field event, the triple jump.

Boys triple jump:
James Williams finally got his section title at the Northern Section Track and Field Masters at West Valley High School on Friday. It took nearly two hours longer than he originally thought. The Enterprise High School junior nearly won the boys long jump until the last leap of the event gave the win to Lassen junior Darren Lee. But Williams came back in the triple jump where his second attempt give him the victory with a personal best leap of 46 feet, 4 inches to win the competition by over three feet. Good thing too because he felt pain in his knee. So after one more try, he passed his remaining attempts and still won. Chico junior Jordan McDaniel was a distant second at 42-11 1/4 and Cunningham was third in 42-8 With that, he joins twin brother Anthony Williams as section champs (Anthony won the boys 800 as freshman in 2007). "I'm tied with him now," James said. "It will be my first time going to state, so I'm happy for that."

Boys discus
Anderson senior Derek Nichols took away any suspense with a 170-0 toss on his first try. Chico sophomore Taylor Lamott would finish a distant second at 143-3. "I was wanting 175 today," said Nichols, who signed with Chico State on Friday. "Hopefully, I can get 180 at state next week. I'm missing my graduation, so I've got to make it up somehow."

Girls shot put
Shasta junior Jazmin Porter repeated as section champ by throwing 37-7 1/2. Enterprise senior Amber Hall was second (35-4 3/4). West Valley sophomore Paige Adkins was third at 33-11 1/4.

Boys high jump
Foothill senior Eli Copsey barely missed his final attempt at 6-8 and finished second to Chico senior Russell Rabut due to fewer misses. Copsey still could go to the state meet since his personal-best mark of 6-6 met the state at-large qualification berth, but won't. "I can't go because I would miss graduation," Copsey said. "I still would have liked to clear 6-8. I thought I had it, but I must kicked the bar off with my leg."

Girls discus
Porter was disappointed with her marks, but she still easily won in 114-10. "My distance has been off this season compared to last year," Porter said. "I didn't do anything in the summer, so I lost some strength there. Hopefully, I'll get some PRs at state." Burney senior Ashley Carlton was second (105-2) overall, while Las Plumas sophomore Samantha Magneson was third (100-8).

Boys shot put
Red Bluff senior Justin Hassel won with a throw of 52-0 to hold off Central Valley junior Dallas Wilson (49-3 3/4) and Enterprise senior Chace Taylor (48-6 1/2). "I decided to just put one out there," Hassel said. " I was fourth at Division I last week so winning today is just awesome."

Girls high jump
Central Valley sophomore Bre Mackie easily repeated as section champion with a leap of 5-4. "I should have started a little later because I was getting tired by 5-6," Mackie said. "I'm looking forward to state. I still think I have more in me." West Valley junior Cassie DeBonis was second at 5-2 while Chico sophomore Meagan Cochran went 5-0.

Girls pole vault
Etna senior Sarah Loogman was one of five to clear 9-6, but was the only one to then clear 10-0. Enterprise sophomore Kelsey Moynahan, last year's champion, was second because of fewer misses, while Yreka senior Kelsey Roberson was third.

Girls triple jump
Chico junior Kasey Barnett not only won this event with a section leading jump of 35-10 1/4, but claimed her first section title in the process. Yreka junior and Division I champion Carrie Turner was second at 33-8 3/4 while Las Plumas sophomore Arin Cahee was third in 33-0 3/4.

Boys pole vault
Sutter senior Dane Turner won the event at 14-0. Enterprise's Garrett Moore, expected to contend for the section title, broke his right ankle on his final warm-up attempt and had to withdraw.

Girls long jump
Chico junior Kasey Barnett, swept the jumps, by winning the long jump with section best leap of 17-3. Yreka senior Carrie Turner (16-5) took second and Las Plumas senior Angelica Cahee (16-4 1/2) claimed third.

COTTONWOOD (Chico ER) — There are going to be a few fresh faces at the state meet this year, but they'll be familiar to anyone who has been following the local prep track scene up to this point. Four Chico High Panthers and one runner from Paradise advanced to the California state meet after finishing first at the Northern Section CIF Track and Field Championships on Friday night at West Valley High. The state meet will be held at Clovis High in Fresno, and the Chico area will be well-represented, especially after the addition of Pleasant Valley's Gabrielle Finley. Finley, who took second place in the girls 100-meter dash to West Valley's Amanda Oliva, was offered the state berth after Oliva bowed out of the state meet to attend her graduation.

And while a number of locals shined at the section championships, none did it in more dramatic fashion than Chico's freshman phenom, Kody Atkins. Atkins took first place in both the 400 and 800, and earned the Robert F. Russell Award in the process — an honor given to the most outstanding male and female competitor of the meet. Atkins undoubtedly caught the eye of the deciding judges during her dramatic win in the 800, where the freshman pulled off another incredible come-from-behind win by passing Red Bluff's Erynn Rebol in the final 40 meters. "I didn't think I could do it," Atkins said after winning the race. "I was pretty far behind, but I just said, 'I gotta do this' and I just started gaining on her." Indeed, as the race unfolded, it seemed to many that Rebol had the race all but locked up, but Atkins' ability to dig deep into her reserves in the last stretch allowed her to make the improbable pass.

Another Panther who put on a stellar performance was Chico's Russell Rabut, who took first in the boys high jump after clearing 6 feet, 6 inches with relative ease, tying his personal best to advance to state. But giving Rabut a run for his money was Eli Copsey of Foothill, who also cleared the 6-6 mark, but wound up finishing second. Though the two matched each other's performances, the top spot went to Rabut since Copsey clipped the bar on an earlier attempt at 6-2 and neither jumper was able to get over 6-8 in three attempts. "It feels good to win," Rabut said after the event, "but I've been jumping against (Eli) since my freshman year, and I wish it didn't end on a technicality. It's good ending on a high note though."

Meanwhile, Chico junior Kasey Barnett went into Friday's meet ranked first in both the triple jump and long jump and wound up qualifying for state in both events. Barnett sailed to victories with distances of 35-10 1/4 in the triple jump and 17-3 in the long jump, and while expectations were high for the junior prior to the section championship, she wasn't about to look past any of her fellow competitors. "In those events all it takes is for someone to come up with one good jump to win," Barnett explained. "Usually I either have a good day in triple jump and an off day in long jump, or the other way around. Today I was able to do well in both. That's all I really wanted to do."

The final Panther to earn a state seed was Daniel Parker, who took first in the boys 800 with a time of 1 minute, 56.90 seconds. While Parker was elated after winning the section championship, he remained modest about his expectations down at Clovis. "I want to go down there and shoot for a P.R. (personal record)," Parker said. "You can't go into state overly confident. There are a lot of beasts down there, so I plan on trying to outdo my personal best. I'm just going to compete against myself."

Rounding out the local representatives is Paradise's Tim Pullen, whose time of 49.97 in the 400 was enough to edge out Durham's Daniel Hodge, who came in second.

To see additional section meet photos.