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javelin throwers are part of a Newberg phenomenon |
Rachel Yurkovich, Tiffany Zahn, Sarah Malone and Mallory
Webb are all shooting to qualify for the Olympics |
By B. Scott Anderson, Newberg
Graphic sports editor
E-mail Scott at banderson@eaglenewspapers.com
|
 What is going on with the girls javelin program at Newberg High
School these last few years?
That’s probably one of the most frequent questions three former
graduates and one current NHS student hear at track meets. Simply put, the Tigers are
winning.
Sarah Malone, Tiffany Zahn, Mallory Webb and Rachel Yurkovich have set
themselves from not only the rest of the state, but apart from other javelin throwers in
the country. Recently, all four returned to Newberg to mingle, share stories and talk of
the future.
Where did they meet? At the high school, on the javelin runway, of course.
“I was really able to get back to the track because that’s where it
all started,” Malone said. “To get all four of us together was great.”
Malone, a 2000 graduate, is the athlete who basically jump-started
Newberg’s dominance in the javelin by winning the state meet with a throw of
165-feet, 10-inches. In 2002, Zahn won the meet (145-1), and in 2003 Webb took home the
title (145-1). All three are in college now on full scholarships: Webb at Fresno State
University, Malone at the University of Oregon and Zahn at Washington State University.
But it’s the youngest of the four, Yurkovich, who could prove to be one
of the top throwers in Oregon high school history. As a freshman, she played on the
softball team. As a sophomore, she ascended to the top of the javelin field, only to be
narrowly defeated by Webb at the state finals. Webb won the meet with a throw of 145-4;
Yurkovich placed second at 143-8.
In June, Yurkovich also finished eighth at the 2003 USA Outdoor Track and
Field Championships with a throw of 141-7. She won the Golden West Invitational with a
throw of 146-10, beating out second-place Webb’s 141-9. After just her first season,
Yurkovich was ranked No. 3 in the country last year with a personal best throw of 157-9,
behind Webb and Angela Hoover of Bald Eagle, Penn., who had a throw of 159-7.
“She has the potential to be a two-time state champion in high school
and to hopefully get the state record,” Malone said of Yurkovich. “With the new
javelin, I’m sure she’ll get it.”
Malone
Malone is currently the University of Oregon’s most accomplished
thrower. She is the school record holder (179-2), a one-time All-American, two-time NCAA
qualifier and Pac-10 runner-up, and a three-time USA Champs qualifier (including a 2000
Olympic trials veteran).
She closed out her high school career with an eighth-place finish (156-11) in
the first of two qualifying flights in the 2000 Olympic trials in Sacramento, Calif. As a
senior she was ranked third nationally among high school athletes in the javelin and 38th
among all Americans. She placed second in 1999 (160-3) and 1998 (146-3), and ninth as a
freshman.
Malone’s accomplishment allowed her to keep the Newberg legacy alive.
She recruited her friend, Zahn, to try throwing the javelin. Zahn, in turn, helped to
recruit Webb who then convinced Yurkovich. All four are now All-Americans.
“We’re kind of a little mini-family,” Malone said. “Four
high school All-Americans is pretty special.”
Malone red-shirted last year at Oregon, saying she needed time for her body
to heal and recognizing that changes in the Oregon coaching staff had been made.
Her new coach is Lance Deal, a former Olympic silver medalist in the hammer.
Malone said her first two years at Oregon were not what she had expected, and she
eventually became tired of throwing.
“The first two years of competition have been a constant struggle just
because of differences in coaching and not really getting along with my old coach,”
she said. “So I didn’t lose touch with the javelin, but I wasn’t as
passionate about it as I was in high school.”
Malone said the struggles made throwing the javelin not fun anymore.
“It was very stressful and it became more of a job,” she said.
“Coach Deal has put that fire back in me and given me back that drive to truly
find my love for the javelin again.”
Visiting with her former teammates was something she enjoyed, Malone said.
“It kind of gives you that nostalgic feeling,” she said. “You
take a lot of pride in your school. It was good to revisit them and talk about the stupid
things at our competitions.”
Zahn
Zahn, now a Husky, earned prep All-American honors from Track and Field News,
Accelerade, and was a USATF Junior All-American honoree. She was ranked fourth in the
nation by Track and Field News in 2002 and was a two-time top-10 finisher in the javelin
at the U.S. Junior Nationals, where she placed fourth in the event in 2001 and sixth in
2002. Zahn placed second at the Adidas Outdoor Nationals at North Carolina State
University in 2002 with a mark of 142-5.
Zahn said college life took a little getting used to.
“It was pretty big shock, I guess, because I didn’t know anybody.
But I think for me it was a good thing because I’ve made so many friends,” she
said. “Being an athlete, it’s kind of your own community ... I’ve really
enjoyed it. I know I made the right decision coming here.”
As a freshman, Zahn placed fourth at the Pac-10 Championships with a throw of
157-9, a personal best. Zahn was ranked sixth going into the meet and said she was happy
with her effort.
“I wanted to place coming into the meet (sixth) or higher so I was
extremely ecstatic about placing (fourth),” she said.
Webb
A freshman for the Bulldogs at Fresno State, Webb finished fourth at the
state meet as a junior and won the meet as a senior with a throw of 145-4.
At FSU, Webb has already been throwing well. She recorded a mark of 151-5 at
a preseason meet, called the Turkey Trials, on Nov. 19. In June, she finished fourth at
the 2003 USA Outdoor Track and Field Championships with a throw of 150-11.
“Things are going well,” Webb said. “We lift weights quite a
bit, so I feel stronger. I opened at the Turkey Trials at 151-5 and I was pretty excited
about that just because it’s not the outdoor season yet. It’s going really well.
I’m excited.”
Webb, who has a personal best throw of 159-2, is the third thrower in four
years to earn a javelin scholarship to a university.
“It amazes me that we have three javelin throwers in the last four years on
scholarship,” she said. “And we’re all going to compete against each other
at some time.”
Yurkovich
Yurkovich is the youngest of the Newberg quartet. As a sophomore last year,
in her first season throwing the javelin, she finished second at the state meet and eighth
at the 2003 USA Outdoor Track and Field Championships with a throw of 141-7.
Yurkovich, who was the Pac-9 Conference’s most valuable player during
the volleyball season, is still enjoying the high school experience. It’s likely she
will win back-to-back state titles in the javelin this season and the next.
“That’s a really good possibility unless somebody comes from out of
nowhere,” Webb said.
Yurkovich said her mind isn’t made up of where to attend college, noting
that she’s had 23 different colleges interested in her either throwing the javelin or
playing volleyball for them.
“I’m thinking about it, but I haven’t made any
decisions,” she said.
She said she received a lot of advice about college from her elder
counterparts.
“They just said it’s different and you can’t prepare for
what’s coming,” Yurkovich said. “It’s a change and they had to get
used to it.”
Not only was there advice given, but of course, Zahn, Webb and Malone tried
to persuade Yurkovich to attend their respective schools.
“There was a little bit of that,” Malone said. “Rachel is
still indecisive about where she wants to go. She’s got two years left and colleges
aren’t supposed to contact her until next summer anyway. But it would definitely be
great to see her come to her Oregon because you want your alma mater to be
successful.”
Perhaps the main reason why NHS has produced so many javelin throwers is
coach Joe Boutin. He keeps in contact with Malone, Webb and Zahn in college to see how
things are going and to offer a little advice when needed.
“He finds it kind of hard not to brag or to tell people about us, I
think,” Zahn said. “The amazing thing is that each one of us are so different in
our throwing and athletic abilities, but we all have awesome accomplishments.
“He takes what he sees in an athlete. He’s just an amazing coach.
Some coaches can be mean at times. He’s never yelled and you want to make him proud
and you want to give back to him with your throwing.”
If all goes as planned this year, all four athletes could meet at the Olympic
trials this summer. Four throwers emanating from the same high school would be practically
unheard of.
“I think it’s really possible,” Yurkovich said. “I’m
starting to do workouts now and I’m just preparing the best I can for the season.
It’d be really cool for us to give (Boutin) that.” |
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From Dec. 27,
2003, Newberg Graphic
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