Individual success, team letdown

Baking under the hot sun on the campus of Sacramento State University, 18 Portland State Vikings went head to head with their conference foes last weekend at the Big Sky Outdoor Track and Field Championships.

Heading into the meet, head coach Kebba Tolbert was optimistic and excited about the Vikings’ chances, hoping to return to Portland with a small collection of first-place medals.

While some of Tolbert’s aspirations came to fruition, as the Vikings had some individual success, both the Portland State men’s and women’s squads finished in eighth place, with nine teams competing at the meet.

Of the 18 Portland State athletes competing, several Vikings were expected to finish at or near the top of their respective events. Tolbert, however, was also quick to point out that things do not always go as expected once the competition kicks off.

“That’s why they have the meet,” Tolbert said.

Over the course of the four-day meet, the Vikings were run through the gamut both physically and emotionally.

The multi-event portion of the meet, which took place Wednesday and Thursday, gave Portland State its first champion and a great boost of momentum heading into the weekend.

Nick Trubachik, a sophomore from Estacada High School, came up big during the two-day decathlon, winning the high jump, javelin and shot put en route to earning his first Big Sky Championship. Trubachik and fellow Viking junior Vince Kinney set new personal bests in the decathlon, with Kinney finishing third in the grueling event, a feat that did not go unnoticed in the sweltering heat.

“Nick’s performances, and Vince’s, too, were really inspiring,” Tolbert said. “Putting up those kinds of marks over the two days of 100-degree heat is pretty inspirational.”

Coping with the heat and competing in 10 events, Trubachik and Kinney made sure to take the necessary precautions between their events, enabling them to perform at their highest level.

“We tried to stay in the shade as long as we could, and took some ice baths,” Trubachik said. “We drank a ton of water and warmed up inside to try and stay cool.”

Expectations were also high on Friday, as the first event of the day featured acclaimed senior thrower Caressa Sims. Sims had been ranked first in the hammer throw all season, but struggled to continue her dominance in the sweltering heat of Sacramento.

Her first toss in the preliminary round slammed into the upper left side of the net cage protecting spectators from the dangerous objects. Her second throw slammed into the upper right side of the cage, becoming lodged in the netting.

With her hammer hanging in the net, preventing her from using it any further, and only one throw remaining to secure a spot in the finals, Sims had to borrow a hammer from a fellow competitor.

After struggling in her first two throws and now forced to throw with an unfamiliar implement, the pressure overcame her. She stepped in the ring, went through her routine and launched the hammer into the same spot on the cage she had on her previous throw.

Sims let out a scream, clearly frustrated at missing an opportunity to qualify for the finals in an event she had dominated all season.

“Caressa loves the hammer,” Tolbert said. “So not getting a mark was pretty hard. It can be really draining emotionally, but later that night she was back to her boisterous self.”

Sims was able to rebound on Saturday, as she would establish a new personal best and finish fourth in the shot put at 47’03”.

“To come back the next day and PR in the shot out, and earn a regional qualifying mark really shows her resilience and what kind of person she is,” Tolbert said of Sims’ weekend performance

As remarkable as Sims’ resolve was, the biggest story for the Vikings on Saturday was the performance of sophomore sprinter Jernise Saunders. Like Sims and Trubachik, Saunders came into the meet ranked first in her primary event, the 100-meter.

Sporting a fiery hairdo, Saunders smoked the field in the final Saturday, bringing home the championship in the 100m and finishing third in the 200m.

“Jernise is still getting healthy,” Tolbert said. “It was nice to see her progression from indoors, where she didn’t medal, to getting a championship and a third [place finish].”

Saunders’ victory continued Portland State’s domination of the 100m sprint after a short hiatus last season.

“Last year was the first year we didn’t win the 100, so this makes it four out of five years since I have been here. It is nice to get that back,” Tolbert said.