A lot of top notch performances competed for attention at the Seamount King Division track and field championships at Highline Stadium Friday.

Evergreen's Vicente Cordova was tops, taking the boys high jump at 6-2, the boys triple jump at 41-4 1/4, the boys long jump at 21.7 1/2.

But for now, the main talk will be about single event winners, like Tyee's Charles Serisier winning the 800 meter run in 1:59.85 and finishing second, barely, to Alex Smyth of Sequim.

Sequim? I didn't even know they ran track out there?

"I know," said Serisier, laughing. Kidding around aside, for Serisier, the unfunny thing was that Serisier thought he could have exuded more good things from himself in the 800.

"I didn't like my 800," he said. "I felt too good afterward. I should have ran harder down the backstretch."

The top eight go on to the district meet so Serisier is in for his two events. Another that is in, not from the Totems but from the Mount Rainier Rams, is Ryan Prentice. He's a sophomore but, boy, can he ever run distance.

Prentice really improved in this league championship meet race. He led wire to wire in the 3,200, setting a personal best by 10 seconds of 9:40.25.

"It is the sixth best time in Mount Rainier track and field history," said Brian Jacobson, who coaches the girls team but also distance.

Prentice had a goal this year.

"I had never run under 10 minutes before this season. My best time last year was 10:06, my goal at the start of this season was to run 9:50," said Prentice.

Added Jacobson, "No one has run the 3,200 that fast since 1992."

What's more, Prentice only dreamed of running races most of the season.

"He was out several weeks. He wasn't able to practice," said Jacobson. "At the beginning of the season, he was having a hard time staying with runners and now his times are getting back down."

Alison Vrbanac, a freshman for the Rams, did well, qualifying for districts in the 800, sixth in 2:31.78, the 1,600, fourth in 5:30.51, and, the 3,200, fourth in 12:10.10.

"Alison did well as did Whitney Hogan, going on to districts in the 100 and 300 hurdles and Olivia Bement in the 100 hurdles," said Jacobson.

Hogan was second in the 100 meter hurdles in 1.24 and fifth in the 300 hurdles in 50.86. Bement makes it on to districts after a sixth place 100 in 17.98.

Highline has what none of these others have had so far -- a state champion. Nkeiru (Nik-eer-oo) Ugwoaba won the triple jump as a sophomore. Now she's a senior, heading to Portland State on a scholarship, but before that is districts, and one can guess after that is state for her.

Ugwoaba won the triple jump at this league meet with a 36-2, she also took first in sprints, the 100 in 12.78, just ahead of junior teammate Kelly Mason in 13.08. A good curve run and stretch sprint nabbed Ugwoaba that victory, 26.47 to 26.51 over Mason.

The two are friends, believe it or not. Good friends actually, that kidded around with each other after the races.

"I don't like the 4x200," said Mason, talking with Ugwoaba.

"Yes, you do," said Ugwoaba. "OK, whatever you say."

"You like the 200," said Ugwoaba, playing it for all it was worth, whatever 'it' was, that is.

"I don't like it today, I missed beating you by so little," said Mason.

And, Ugwoaba, with her friend not around to kid, did then say, "It's good to have competition. She (Mason) was the closest she has ever been to me at the end of the 200."

The sprints for Ugwoaba are going well this year. "I think my form has gotten better. I have a new coach John Penton helping."

But her triple is something she is still working on forming.

"That's something I need to work on."

It's still good, she jumped a 37-10 at state her sophomore year and was third last year with a '37 something.' She jumped 36-2 in this league meet, so she's right there.

Ugwoaba was asked by Kaitlyn Heinsohn to make sure she mentioned the 4x100 relay.

"She's my manager," said Ugwoaba, laughing.

The mentionables, off a relay team that took first in this league meet, 50.06, a full second and a half ahead of second place Kennedy, are Mason, Ugwoaba, Whitney Wagner, and Heinsohn.

They are fast. They won state in the 4x100 relay last year, only losing one of those fast young ladies to graduation.

Oh, by the way, Ugwoaba had already chosen unselfishly to have mentioned all her 4x100 relay teammates before Heinsohn asked.

Moving on, to another fast bunch from Highline, the boys, in their 4x100 relay took second to Kennedy, respective times were 44.13 to 44.35. Thing is for Highline they have run faster.

"We have run a 43.9," said Anthony Watkins. "And that was with bad handoffs."

Speaking of bad handoffs, that's what the girls' Highline 4x200 relay team had. They were going good, only a few yards behind first and second with speedster Mason anchoring. When something happened that was bad, a slow handoff, it was too much for Mason to make up the 30 yards on the winner. Even though Mason did make up all but three yards.

"That's something we need to work on is handoffs," said Ugwoaba.

The baton's been dropped in the 4x100 relay as well?

"No," said Ugwoaba, adding, "But they (handoffs) could be less choppy."

The boys included Marlon Murray, winning the 100 in 11.32 and the 200 in 22.41. He came the closest individually to matching Cordova's three-event firsts.

Murray also ran a couple relays and he was thinking one thing after running the last, the 4x400.

"I can't do this, I'm dead," he said. He was lying on the ground seconds before breathing hard to prove he wasn't just trying to get a good quote in the paper.

Others that deserve paper mention include Chris Jones, third in the high jump, going 5-10, and , Cordova's teammate was second, jumping 5-10 too.

And the list of those going on to districts comes now. In the 100, Highline's Malcolm Dubose and Watkins go, and Watkins took third in the hurdles, too, in 42.07, so goes there too. Kennedy's Nate Williams goes, too, as well as James Dinwiddie. In the 200, besides Murray, Taylor Gustman, fourth, and Douglas Owusu of Highline, fifth, go, and also Tyee's Jeff Peterson and Mount Rainier's Dionte Cadogan. In the 400, Kennedy's J.J. Croteau goes. In the 800 run, none, besides Serisier. In the 1600, besides Prentice, Highline's Joshua Simmons made it in, seventh. In the 110 hurdles, Dubose and Brandon Tucker go on, fourth and seventh, respectively. In the 300 hurdles, Watkins, Dubose and Marc Neiman go on. In field events, Cordova, Mills, Jones and also Highline's Sharrod Cradle and Williams, all go on. In boys pole vault, Justin Gibson, fourth and Brad Steenvoort, fifth, both of Highline, go on. In the long jump Cordova, and also, Kennedy's Udoka Odoemente and Tyee's Sajryic Staples, fourth, and the Rams' Kyle Ehlers and Jones make it on. In the boys shot put, David Lopez, second with a 47-8 3/4 heave, goes on as well as Mark Airhart of Kennedy and Nathan McPeek of Highline and Ben Colbern of Mount Rainier, and Evergreen's Senio Kelemete, all go on.

In the boys discus, Kennedy's Evan Bates and the Rams Aaron Shoults, go on, sixth and eighth respectively. The boys javelin had only Highline's Corey Burcham going on.

In girls district qualification, besides Mason and Ugwoaba in the 100 , also Wagner and Kennedy's Kelly Johnson and Jackie Thomas and Lauren Donlin, go on. In the 200, Ugwoaba and Mason are joined by Johnson and Thomas and Donlin to districts. In the 400, Kennedy's Laniece Luster and Tyee's Kristie Bowler, fifth and seventh, go. In the 800 meter run, Vrbanac goes on and Lia Swartout of Kennedy too. in the 1,600, Vrbanac, again, along with Swartout, fifth, and Julie Miller of Highline, seventh, made it too . In the 3,200, Vrbanac, again, along with Miller, again and Swartout, again, all qualify for districts in that one. In the 100 hurdles, Chanelle Piper-Lewis, first in 16.47, goes, along with Rachel Johnston of Highline and Meagan Corbett of Kennedy.

In the 300 hurdles, Siri Berg of Highline goes along with Hogan of the Rams and Johnston of Highline. In the girls' high jump, Stephanie Slatt of Kennedy won that, 4-10, and Sally Phnouk jumped 4-10 as well for second. Kennedy's Kathleen Alquist, fifth, jumps at districts too. In the pole vault, Emily Herr of Kennedy, second, makes it along with teammate Katie Waltner, third, and Highline's Marissa Cowart, fourth, Kennedy's Elizabeth Giesbers, Highline's Nisha Schneider, and Lindsay Griffin and Kennedy's Melissa Stuckey. In the long jump Kennedy's Mykelanne Prato goes on along with teammate Jacklyn Ng, third and fourth respectively in the league meet. In the girls triple jump, besides Ugwoaba, goes Berg, fourth, and Prato, fifth , and Tasia Slish, eighth, making it. In the girls shot put, Evergreen's Naomi Afereti won it in 37-6 to go on and Kayla Taueli, second, for Highline and Violina Vili and Sue Hafoka of Evergreen and Melissa Yapp and Cynthia Chern of the Rams go. In the girls discus, Hafoka won it with a 105-3 3/4 throw and Vili, second, 104-10 3/4 and Aferiti, Yapp and Raelani Valaile all go. In the girls' javelin, Chelsey Smith of Kennedy won it in 100-7 and Hafoka was second, with a 98-5 toss, and Amanda Samms, seventh, gets the last congratulations for going to districts.