Track Signs Six Standouts In Early Period
December 18, 2014 | Track & Field
SEATTLE – While the start of the 2015 track and field campaign is less than a month away, the Washington coaching staff used the recent early signing period to make some very key additions, as six high school standouts signed their National Letters of Intent to become Huskies. Four of the six signees already have state titles to their names with senior track seasons still to come.
Half of the early class is comprised of women's hurdlers, as the Huskies look to continue the recent success of second team All-Americans Gianna Woodruff and Kayla Stueckle. Morganne Hill from California, Carly Lester from Colorado, and Darhian Mills from Kenmore, Washington all ranked in the top-30 nationally last year in the 300-meter hurdles, and their 2014 bests all put them in the top-10 of the class of 2015.
The Huskies will also be adding a pair of Bothell High School student-athletes in distance star Charlie Barringer and his teammate, 400m state sprint champion Ryan Croson. Rounding out the six commits is the Idaho Track & Field Athlete of the Year for 2014, Emily Hamlin, a seven-time state champion in cross country and track.
“We are very happy with this first group of new Huskies, and fired up that they were ready to come on board early on,” said Head Coach Greg Metcalf. “This group really targets a few areas where we have had success in recent years and these kids wanted to be a part of that. We will hopefully have a lot to add to this class but already it is shaping up to be a fantastic group.”
Barringer (Bothell, Wash.) wrapped up a senior cross country season that saw him take runner-up honors at the 4A Washington state championships. He became the first Bothell runner in 41 year to win the individual KingCo Championships title. Last year on the track, Barringer made the finals in both the 1,600-meters and the 3,200-meters at the 4A state meet, taking fourth in the 3,200 and 10th in the 1,600. He ran PRs of 9:05.53 in the 3,200 and 4:14.42 for 1,600 last year.
Croson (Bothell, Wash.) ran a new career-best in the 4A state finals last spring, taking the 400-meters title in a time of 48.61 seconds in his first full season at the quarter mile. He previously broke 49-seconds for the first time to win the NW Regional title. Croson also ran a 200-meters PR of 22.40 at the 2014 Pasco Invite. He ran the third leg on Bothell's state champion 4x100m relay in 2013.
Hamlin (Boise, Idaho) was the Gatorade Girls Track & Field Athlete of the Year for Idaho last spring. The Boise native won the Idaho 5A state cross country title as a freshman, sophomore, and went out on top as a senior with a win this fall. She was seventh in the Nike Cross Nationals Northwest Regional, and 75th at the national championships. Last spring, Hamlin dominated the state track meet, winning the 800-meters, the 1,600-meters, as well as the 3,200-meters. She ran a mile PR of 4:54.55 at the Arcadia Invite last year that ranked 40th nationally, also setting best of 2:12.33 in the 800-meters and 10:38.25 at 3,200-meters.
Hill (Bakersfield, Calif.) reached the California state finals in both hurdle events both as a sophomore and a junior. Last season she capped her year with a fifth-place finish in the 100m hurdles and a fourth-place finish in the 300m hurdles with a new PR of 42.06 seconds, which ranked 22nd nationally. She also ran on the 4x400m relay squad that was third in the state finals. She ran a just slightly wind-aided time of 13.66 in the 100m hurdles last season, also one of the top times in the U.S. Among returners, Hill ranks ninth nationally in the 300m hurdles. She even ran some strong cross country during her career, finishing 47th at the 2013 CIF state meet as a junior.
Lester (Fort Collins, Colo.) set the new Colorado state record with her winning 300m hurdles time of 41.18 seconds in the state finals last spring. That was her second straight state title in the event, but Lester dropped more than two seconds off her PR from her sophomore to junior seasons. Her 41.18 time ranked fourth nationally last year, and ranks her third among returners this season and second among all seniors. She also has finished in the top-four in the 100m hurdles each of the past four years at the 5A state meet, running a best of 14.16 seconds. Lester ran at the 2014 U.S. Junior Track & Field Championships, taking 14th in the 400m hurdles prelims in a time of 1:01.30.
Mills (Kenmore, Wash.) rolled to her first Washington state track title last spring in the 300m hurdles, dominating the 4A level with 10 victories in 11 races. She saved a big PR for the state finals last year, going under 43-seconds for the first time, all the way down to 42.45, which ranked 28th nationally last year, 13th among returners and seventh in the class of 2015. Mills also was fourth in the state finals in the 100m hurdles and owns a career-best of 14.40. She ran at the U.S. Junior Championships, stepping up to the 400m hurdles, and finishing 20th in prelims.
