Champions on the track: Comets make school history at state meet
Published 5:10 pm Sunday, May 31, 2026
YAKIMA — Champions!
Naselle High School’s track girls and their coaches celebrated with gusto after being presented the 1B team trophy.
It was the first in school history.
A season of achievements ended on the WIAA podium soaking up applause, cradling the trophy and holding up a “state champions” sign.
Saturday’s final day saw sophomore June Miller retain her state championship in the 400 meters and join sister Halle, junior Sophia Colombo and lone senior Mylee Dunagan in winning the 4x100m relay.
June Miller also placed second in the 200m, her third race with barely an hour between starts. A day earlier, she had become state champion in the high jump, clearing 5-feet-2.
Her time in the 400m was 57.64 seconds and 200m was 25.29.
Halle Miller and Colombo earned medals in both hurdles races. Miller was fifth in the 100m (in 16.83) with Colombo seventh (17.55); in the 300m, Colombo was sixth (50.65) and Miller seventh (51.31).
The final day saw Karsen Green add a seventh-place medal in the triple jump (31-8) to add to her third-place pole vault medal. The sophomore cleared 9 feet and was one of three Comets on the pole vault podium with junior Shaylee Suomela tied for sixth (7-6) and Colombo and freshman Mercy Schell tied for eighth at 7 feet.
Naselle girls shared the top trophy with Pope John Paul II School in Lacey, which had a similar points total, earning team points placing third in the last 1B girls’ event, a 4x400m relay for which the Comets did not qualify.
Coach Scott Smith and assistant coach Jack Osadchey were delighted.
“They have been competing in every event,” said Smith. “The kids worked hard —every point counted.
“I didn’t talk about it with the team, but we were pointing toward this for a long time and they responded really well to the changes we made in the training program. We did a few things differently and it paid off.”
With only Dunagan graduating, he said he looked forward to more success next season.
“We are ‘locked and loaded.’ They are just getting the confidence they really need.”
Freshman Kenzie Larson qualified to run in the 3,200m, but did not place, finishing in 14:23.24. The winner set a 1B record with 11:27.86.
Four Comet boys qualified for pole vault and two earned medals. Junior Bo Dunagan cleared 11-6 for fourth place and senior Jason Gardner cleared 11 feet for fifth. Two freshmen participated. Romain Garcia was ninth and Bowen Burkhalter 11th; both cleared 9-6.
Junior Andy Rosas had a triple jump leap of 36:5.25 but did not place.