2026 WCD3/SWD4 Districts Day 2 Recap: 800m & 3200m Finals at French Field
Day 2 of Districts always brings a sharper edge. The stakes were noticeably higher, and the competition was dialed up across the board.
My morning started at French Field covering the 3A Girls pole vault. I don’t usually shoot field events, but I had a window of time and set up shop near the bar. Unfortunately, that sequence would be the last my Canon 1DX would ever see. Following a dreaded clunk, clunk, the infamous "Err 20" flashed across the back panel. I tried all the standard quick fixes, but the body was done.
Losing a camera right as the State Championships loom on the horizon is terrible timing. I had to pack it away and completely rewrite my playbook for the day. I committed to a primary lens for the faster action and mapped out a strategy to swap to my 420mm during the slower 3200m heats. It threw off my rhythm a bit, but you adapt and keep shooting.
The 800m: Fireworks and Photo Finishes
A razor-thin 0.02 seconds. Olympia’s Caden Durocher and Rogers’ Amin Fidaar battle to the literal last step in an explosive, photo-finish 4A 800m final.
The 3A Girls 800m felt like a direct sequel to the 1600m, dominated by the exact same powerhouses: Lejla Carlsson (Gig Harbor), Lillian Haas (Enumclaw), Maya Crane (Gig Harbor), and Maya Wentworth (Federal Way). With two seniors and two freshmen leading the charge, State is going to be electric. Kendall Griffin (Lakes) and Heidi Hallett (Bellarmine Prep) rounded out the top six to advance.
In the 4A Girls 800m, the Tahoma Bears put on an absolute clinic, sweeping the top three spots. Liliana Britain led the charge, tailed tightly by teammates Hollie Barkley and Jordan Daligcon. Camas’ Lila McCarthy, Violet Dixon (Sumner), and Carolina Schilter (Olympia) secured the final three tickets to State.
On the boys' side, Mana Voss (Central Kitsap) came out victorious in the 3A race, with Bellarmine Prep’s Luke Saalfeld and Capital's Jae Walz rounding out the top three. David McClain (Central Kitsap), Austin Messer (Todd Beamer), and Wyatt Harding (Peninsula) locked up the remaining spots.
The biggest story of the 800m, however, happened in the 4A Boys race. Amin Fidaar (Rogers) and Caden Durocher (Olympia) have been on an absolute tear lately, pushing the pace as far as humanly possible. Durocher commanded the race right up until the final kick, where Fidaar surged to edge him out by a razor-thin 0.02 seconds. Expect absolute fireworks from these two next week. A highly competitive pack followed right behind them, with Huckleberry Olson (Skyview), Michael Bulldis (Stadium), Asher Pepin (Curtis), and Jonah Neidlinger (Stadium) advancing.
The 3200m: The Mental Grind
Bonney Lake star Latham West was in a league of her own, pulling away from the start to win the 4A 3200m crown by a massive 20-second margin.
Eight laps on a track. Four hundred meters, over and over again, with zero change in scenery. The physical toll of the 3200m is obvious, but the mental load required to stay locked in for that long is staggering.
Imagine running those eight laps entirely alone. That’s essentially what Latham West did to take the 4A Girls crown, winning by a massive 20-second margin. The Bonney Lake star took off from the gun and never looked back. Behind her, Union’s duo of Ella Koch and Sara Thompson punched a 2-3 finish. Kate Westfall (Camas) secured a personal best of 10:51.17, followed by Sophia Rogers (Battle Ground) and Leah Hennen (Olympia). Hennen put on a brilliantly gutsy performance, hanging in the middle of the pack before darting out to ensure she punched her ticket. The Olympia freshman isn't just fast; she runs smart. Look for her to shake things up next week.
Union’s Ella Koch and Sara Thompson work in tandem, executing a perfect 2-3 finish to punch their tickets to State in the 4A 3200m.
Olympia freshman Leah Hennen hits the bell lap, closing out a brilliantly executed, gutsy performance to secure her spot at the State Championships.
In the 3A Girls race, Ella Savage (Gig Harbor) ran away with the victory. White River’s Paeton Poelman and Gig Harbor's Brynnlie Upchurch took second and third. Bellarmine Prep’s Marie Wiegman took an aggressive early lead before falling back, but expect her to regroup and challenge the front at State. Federal Way’s Abigail Collier and White River’s Maddi Larson rounded out the top six.
White River’s Paeton Poelman locks in and leads the chase pack on her way to a strong second-place finish in the 3A Girls 3200m.
The 3A Boys heat saw Jackson Fuller (Bellarmine Prep) make some aggressive, strong moves throughout the race, only to be overtaken in the final 200m by Gig Harbor’s Gavin McKeegan. Jack Greer (Gig Harbor), Joshua Minner (Gig Harbor), Ethan Huff (Central Kitsap), and Max Dower (Gig Harbor) claimed the remaining State spots, cementing an incredibly strong showing for the Tides.
The 4A Boys 3200m: A Statement Win (With a Catch)
The physical toll of the 3200m. Camas’ Cohen Butler completely emptied the tank, dropping a massive 11-second PR to secure the 4A victory in the blistering heat.
On paper, the 4A Boys 3200m results look cut and dry, but there is far more to this race than the leaderboard suggests. Featuring top-tier national talent, the anticipation on the infield was palpable.
Cohen Butler eventually took the victory after trading blows with South Kitsap’s Isaac Benjamin and Olympia's Quenton Lanese. Carson Stafford (Tahoma), Lord King Nana-Badu-Weah (Battle Ground), and Trae Copper (Battle Ground) rounded out the top six.
THE TAKEAWAYYes, Cohen Butler took the top spot at Districts, but he had to drop an 11-second PR to do it. It is an incredible feat for a runner who is already one of the nation's elite...
However, it took that massive 11-second PR just to beat freshman Quenton Lanese by a mere three seconds... and Lanese didn't even run a PR.
Just something to consider as we head into the State Championships.
