Pirates vault to head of the class (OR)

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http://www.theworldlink.com/articles/20 ... 051507.txt

Pirates vault to head of the class

By John Gunther, Sports Editor
Tuesday, May 15, 2007 1:36 PM PDT


Marshfield’s Andrew Simpson clears 13 feet in the pole vault on his way to winning the event for the Pirates at the Coos County Meet in April. World Photo by Lou Sennick.
COOS BAY - Marshfield's track and field program has become known statewide in recent years for the pole vault.

The Pirates have dominated the Midwestern League district meets and since 1998 have had 16 individual state placers, including four state champions.

But the Pirates did something last week they had never done before when they qualified five athletes for this week's state meet, four with personal records, during the district championships.

Andrew Simpson and Greg Eckes both broke the 15-foot barrier for the first time, clearing 15 feet, 2 inches, with Simpson winning based on fewer misses. Justin Kirk had a big personal best, getting over the bar at 14-1 to meet the automatic state qualifier.

For Marshfield's girls, Amber Wiley had a career-best 11-9 to break the league record set last year by then-Marshfield senior Muriel Roberge. Pirate sophomore Moriah Roberge, Muriel's younger sister, finished second to Wiley at the district meet.

In large part because of the success in the pole vault, Marshfield's boys won their first league title since the 1950s and the Pirate girls nearly beat Thurston for the girls crown.

Simpson said the pole vault, always one of the first events at district, lifts the entire squad.

“It gets the whole team excited,â€Â