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TACOMA -- Christine Kirkwood was adamant about it.
She was not going to be like her big sister Courtney.
She was not going to throw the javelin.
She was in seventh grade, and while Courtney was winning the first of her three state titles for Othello, Christine was ready to carve her own athletic path.
"Getting compared to Courtney is tough," Christine said. "I didn't think I would pick it up."
But this year, Christine decided to give it a try. And now, she'll definitely have to get used to the comparisons with her big sister.
Like Courtney, Christine won her first state title as a sophomore, throwing 151 feet, 10 inches Thursday to capture the 2A championship at Star Track XXVII at Mount Tahoma High.
She did it with borrowed shoes -- Hanford's Haley Tank happily lent her a pair after Kirkwood left hers in Othello -- and with a borrowed coach -- former Othello throws coach Nathan Cummings, now with Hanford, but who still works with Kirkwood when time permits.
Kirkwood took the lead in the second round of prelims, throwing a 148-4, then with the title sewn up, she popped her best throw that was a foot off Courtney's winning throw three years ago and less than 5 feet off her sophomore state record of 156-3.
"For a while, I was getting discouraged this year," Kirkwood said. "I hit that bump where I was just throwing in the 120s. Then, finally at subdistricts, I hit 132, and I started to believe in myself. It all came together right at the end."
Kirkwood's championship highlighted Day 1 of the three-day meet for Mid-Columbia athletes, who won six medals on the afternoon.
Richland senior Shaniae Lakes narrowly missed breaking her own school record in the 4A triple jump, taking second to Kansas-bound Andrea Geubelle of Curtis with a jump of 38-11 3/4.
Hanford senior Taymussa Miller relinquished her crown in the 3A high jump, but not without a fight, matching her personal-best 5-5 to finish third. Teammate Erin Hegarty moved up one spot on the medals podium in the 3,200, placing fifth in 11 minutes, 16.65 seconds after taking sixth as a freshman.
Southridge senior Andrew Gonzales matched his fourth-place finish of a year ago in the 3,200 meters, but this time doing it in 4A, going 9:13.48, while Kamiakin junior Evan Fiske took eighth in 9:16.63.
Lakes moved into second behind Geubelle in the second round of prelims with a 37-foot jump. Her first jump in the finals proved her best, "although that wasn't the one I thought would be it," she said. "My second jump in finals, that was my best jump, but I was behind the board by a lot."
Miller cleared 5-5 on her second attempt and nearly made 5-6 on her second try, barely clipping the bar with her heels as she sailed past. Shorecrest's Emily Corona ended up winning by going 5-7.
"I had a good attempt at 5-6, so I'm not too disappointed, but I am still disappointed," said Miller, who still has the long and triple jumps to go at the meet.
Hegarty felt similarly about her race. She went with eventual winner Carey Parker of Seattle Prep when Parker took off around the mile mark, but Hegarty began to fade with about 600 meters to go.
"I was hoping to stay with her longer, but it just wasn't my day, I guess," Hegarty said. "I'll just try to learn from it."
Gonzales wasn't baited into going with early leader Adam Thorne of Ferris, who ran a 61-second first lap in hopes of burning off some of the competition's kicks.
It didn't work as Central Kitsap junior Shane Moskowitz became the first runner in eight years to break 9 minutes at state, winning in 8:59.53. Gonzales couldn't answer when Moskowitz took off on Lap 5, but he passed two runners over the final two laps.
"Fourth place again. That seems to be my number," said Gonzales, who also finished fourth at state cross country the past two falls. "I ran a 4:32 first mile and felt OK, but those guys kept picking it up, and I just couldn't hang with them."
Fiske was shooting for Matt Topping's school record of 9:15.15 but couldn't hang on, getting passed by a pair of runners near the finish.
