Scott Matheson went to the Great Southwest Track and Field Classic with the Utah all-star team hoping to win regional recognition in the same event he'd won at the state championships.

"I felt pretty bad about not getting on the podium in long jump," said the Pleasant Grove senior, who won the event at the state meet with a jump of 23 feet, and ¾ inches. "I fouled almost every attempt and ended up eighth. ... I was really hoping to break 24 feet."

Matheson did earn a spot on the podium at the regional all-star meet held in Albuquerque, N.M., last weekend. But it was in an event he'd never tried in competition — the triple jump.

In fact, Utah high schools don't even offer the chance to compete in triple jump in sanctioned meets.

"I have had coaches tell me I should try it," he said of the event that asks athletes to jump off of one foot three different times. "I had to jump left, left, right. (If you're left handed, you'd jump right, right, left.) I didn't expect to do anything big. ... I just thought, it's my senior year and I'd go do it for fun."

He had a 30-minute practice and some instruction from his club coach, Tony Glover, as well as his high school coach, Glenn Larson.

"I was a little nervous," Matheson said. "I was seeded dead last. I didn't expect to go above 45 feet. All these guys knew it was my first time competing it. I surprised the whole field when I made it to finals."

And then he managed to lay down a 45-foot, 11 1/4 inch jump.

"It was a big relief to get on the podium," he said. "I'm really excited. I think triple jump might be one of my big things in college."

Ogden sophomore Jamie Stokes didn't have the pressure of going into her 1,500-meter race with a state title.

"I was sick on the day of the mile so I finished 10th or 11th," she said. "I was just really excited to get the opportunity to go (to the all-star meet). I had heard about it. And I thought it would be really cool."

She said she has a tendency to get boxed in at the start of the one-mile race.

"I have a hard time getting out at the start," she said. "The first lap was 81 seconds, which is kind of slow. Then the lead girl started to go."

Stokes followed her and then passed her on the final 100 yards to earn a first-place finish. Her time was 4:46.20.

"I was so happy," she said. "I was just really shocked and surprised that I had won."

Stokes said the experience was memorable, in large part because of the people she met.

"It was a really fun experience to meet all of the other athletes, not just the ones from Utah," she said. "To meet different people, from other states, and be able to compete with them was really fun."

Payson head coach David Rockwood coached the all-star squad and said it was a lot of fun bringing together a group of athletes who'd spent the spring competing against each other.

"Watching them form friendships with kids they competed against was really nice," he said. "They are all elite kids. They're out to have fun — they are still high school kids — but I don't have to baby-sit as much. They've learned some discipline. They're mature. That's something I really enjoy."

Other highlights:

Kelsey Brown, Mountain View, repeated as the winner of the 800-meter race with a time of 2:13.02.

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Max Scheible, West Lake High, took second in the Decathlon. He was in fourth place going into the final event, the 1,500-meter race. He ran so well, he moved from fourth to second place. He also ran the 400-meter portion of the competition in 49.32 seconds.

The Utah girls won the 4x800 meter relay. The team made up of Kelsey Brown, Mountain View, Avery Calton, Ogden, Andrea Chaves, St. Joseph, and Jennica Redd, Mountain View, surprised everyone when it outran the favorites from Texas and Colorado.

For complete meet results go to www.greatsouthwestclassic.com

e-mail: adonaldson@desnews.com

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