BOYS TRACK: Centennial’s McDonough matches personal record, wins Sunset pole vault

Trevor McDonough got involved with pole vaulting before he even stepped foot on the Centennial campus four years ago.

On Saturday morning, the senior solidified himself as one of the top vaulters in Southern Nevada.

McDonough cleared 14 feet, 6 inches to tie his personal record and win a second consecutive Sunset Region individual title at Del Sol.

The second day of both region meets is May 9 at Del Sol.

“I’m one of the main captains on the team,” McDonough said. “So it just feels good to see all my hard work over the last five years paying off.”

McDonough, who won his first region title last season by clearing 13-0, was followed by teammates in the next two spots.

Joshua Rudnick finished second after clearing 13-0, and Austin Brooks was third with a 12-6 for the Centennial, which got 25 points from the event. Blake Rhynes allowed the Bulldogs one extra point by finishing in eighth place with an 11-6.

“I’ve been hoping all season that we could go Nos. 1 through 3 and get all three spots at state,” McDonough said. “It just feels great that we all got it done. It’s definitely a huge help at state (with points).”

Silverado’s Micah Weber took the Sunrise Region pole vault by clearing 13-6.

Also Saturday, Centennial sophomore James Johnson took the Sunset triple jump with a personal record of 45-1¼.

“All my adrenaline is running right now,” Johnson said. “I had so many people cheering me on and I have family here, so I feel so good. I can’t wait until next Saturday.”

Johnson improved on his previous best of 41-2 on his second jump.

“He’s only been triple jumping for two months,” Centennial coach Roy Session said. “His upside is just so huge, we don’t know what he could do yet.”

Not only is he new to the event, but he was competing with new equipment.

“I was surprised by the length of the jump,” Session said. “We just got him a pair of shoes. He’s been trading shoes all year. He didn’t have his own shoes until Monday. He’s just a young kid, excited to compete.”

Canyon Springs’ Isaiah Johnson had a leap of 45-6¼ to win the Sunrise triple jump.

On his sixth and final jump Isaiah Johnson defeated second-place Matthew Arnold (45-1¼) from Silverado.

Cimmaron-Memorial’s Armond Whitney took the Sunset shot put with a mark of 47-5¼, and Liberty’s Darrell Kaanaana won the event in the Sunset (53-9½).

“All the throwers were surprised,” Kaanaana said. “Everybody expects (Green Valley’s) Brady (Williams) to win. He’s pretty much the favorite to win state, and I came out here and just popped one good one. I think I got into his head a little bit early.”

Centennial leads the Sunset meet with 49 points. Silverado, with 27 points, has a two-point lead over Liberty in the Sunrise.