Track & Field Rounds Out Recruiting Class
CORVALLIS, Ore. – Extending its reach internationally while also maintaining its base of local talent, the Oregon State track and field program rounded out its most recent recruiting class with the signings of seven student-athletes, Head Coach Kelly Sullivan announced Monday.
The Beavers’ latest additions include Spanish hurdler Alba Villaronga, five Oregon natives in Ahsha Mootz (Cottage Grove HS), Kimberly Solberg (Roseburg HS), Amy Hilger (Banks HS), MaCaulay Wilson (Lane CC/Mountain View HS) and Jasmin McKenzie (Benson HS) and California middle-distance runner Kala Kopecek (St. Joseph’s HS – Lakewood, Calif).
The seven join an already stellar class consisting of twins Kerissa and Venessa D’Arpino (North Valley HS), McKenzie Byrd (Hermiston HS), Saskia McNairy (Lakeridge HS), Amber Peschka (Gresham HS), Sam McKinnon (Mountain View HS – Idaho), Nicole Goecke (Prairie HS – Washington) and Kara Hallock (Lane CC). In what is arguably the best class OSU has signed since the re-establishment of the program, it is also the first in which the Beavers have been able to address each and every event area.
“This incoming class has taken significant effort to put together and these final pieces show the results of those labors,” Sullivan said. “With the signings of these talented young women we now have a comprehensive track and field program and will be fully represented in each event area.
“None of this could have or would have happened if not for the hundreds of donors who helped us open the Whyte Track and Field Center in September of 2012 or the Whyte Family, which purchased the equipment used at last year’s NCAA Track and Field championships for us. It also would not have been possible without the dedication of those middle and long distance runners that formed the backbone of the program for so many years after it was re-introduced.
“All of the credit for this class has to start with assistant coach Travis Floeck, who has been the recruiting coordinator for the past three years and received immense help from assistant coaches Laura Harmon and Collin Cram. They went out this year and worked incredibly hard to fill the event areas with the talent and depth we needed and I know the current team has never been more excited and driven – they can see what we are building towards.”
Alba Villaronga – Spain
Personal Bests: 100m Hurdles – 13.61; 60m Hurdles – 8.64; 400m Hurdles – 1:04.02
Villaronga owns a PR of 13.61 in the 100m hurdles, which she ran at the Spanish U18 Championships in Durango, Spain late last June. She also competed for her country at the 8th IAAF World Youth Championships in Donetsk, Ukraine in July 2013. Her best in that event would have scored at this year’s Pac-12 Championships, qualified for the just completed NCAA West Preliminary Championships and be an Oregon State record.
Villaronga honed in on Oregon State during the recruitment process for a variety of reasons. She was “looking for a competitive Division I team that is building its program,” which gives her an “added sense of responsibility to perform and give her best.” She was also drawn to Corvallis because of a “sensitive staff, positive atmosphere and people truly invested in helping me grow.” Villaronga plans to study digital communication arts.
Ahsha Mootz – Cottage Grove HS/Oregon
Personal Bests: 100m – 12.45; 200m – 25.03; 400m – 59.42
At the 2014 OSAA State Championships, Mootz came in third in the 4A 200m with a PR of 25.03 and helped OSU to a clean sweep of the podium in that event. Future teammates Kerissa (24.34) and Venessa D’Arpino (24.42) of North Valley finished 1-2. Those three times would all be in the top six all-time at Oregon State. She also PR’d in the 100m, crossing the line in fourth with another PR of 12.45, and anchored Cottage Grove’s 4x100m relay squad which placed fifth (50.89). Mootz will combine with the D’Arpinos and current Oregon State sprinter Allie Church to form formidable relay teams for the Beavers in 2015. She plans to study psychology and chose OSU because, “It has always been a goal of mine to continue running track. I wanted to do that at Oregon State if they ever started a team to be the best that I could and reach my running potential.”
Kimberly Solberg – Roseburg HS/Oregon
Personal Bests: 800m – 2:15.87
Solberg finished her senior season strong at the OSAA 6A State Championships on May 24. Heading into the district championships on May 17, her 800m PR was 2:22.24 from 2013’s district meet. Solberg was able to claim the district title in 2014 by lowering that mark to 2:17.22 and improved even more in the prelims at the state championships with a time of 2:15.87. She finished eighth in the final (2:22.93) and will join the middle distance ranks at Oregon State.
Amy Hilger – Banks HS/Oregon
Personal Bests: High Jump – 5-6
Hilger won the 4A high jump crown with a clearance at 5’ 4”. She crossed 5’ 6” at the Banks Invitational on April 19, tied with two others for the best mark in the state in 2014 regardless of classification. Hilger chose to attend Oregon State because of its veterinary program and plans on studying veterinary medicine.
MaCaulay Wilson – Lane CC/Oregon
Personal Bests: 400m – 58.57; 800m – 2:16.61
Wilson joins fellow Lane transfer Kara Hallock, announced in February. She won the NWAACC 800m title, cruising to victory in 2:17.27, two seconds ahead of her closest competitor. Wilson’s 800m PR of 2:16.61 is sixth in Titans’ history. She was also a part of Lane’s 4x100m (47.29) and 4x400m (3:49.49) school-record relay squads. Both groups won 2014 NWAACC titles and the 4x100m school record came at the conference meet. Wilson and her Lane teammates ran the 4x400m record at the Oregon Relays in April.
"I chose to go to Oregon State because I really liked the school and the programs they offer,” Wilson said. “I also enjoyed meeting the coaching staff and team because they made me feel so welcomed. I am very excited to be a part of this growing team!" She plans to major in Exercise and Sport Science.
Jasmin McKenzie – Benson HS/Oregon
Personal Bests: 100m – 12.60; Long Jump – 17-8; Triple Jump – 35-3
McKenzie came in second in the 5A long jump at the OSAA State Championships three weeks ago with a mark of 17’ 3.50” and fourth in the 100m with a PR of 12.60. Her leap of 17’ 8” at the Nike/Jesuit Twilight Relays on May 2 is tied for the eighth-best mark in the state this season. McKenzie’s grandparents attended Oregon State and she chose the school because of its beautiful and peaceful campus. She plans to major in psychology.
Kala Kopecek – St. Joseph’s HS/Lakewood, Calif.
Personal Bests: 800m – 2:16.30
Kopecek will join pole vaulter Helen Ann Haun and high jumper Allison Jackson as the Californians on the Beavers’ roster in 2015. She sports an 800m PR of 2:16.30, which she ran at March’s Distance Meet of Championships at Azusa Pacific University. Kopecek came in fifth in the event at the CIF-SS Division 3 Finals on May 24 (2:19.73).
Hannah Troutman – Crook County HS/Oregon
Personal Bests: Shot Put – 42-1; Discus – 114-11; Javelin – 137-2; Hammer – 54-0
Troutman, who signed a volleyball scholarship with Oregon State in November, is also planning to compete in track and field in the spring. She was the 2014 5A state shot put champion with a PR of 42’ 1” and finished fourth in the javelin with a throw of 124’ 3”. Troutman’s shot put toss was the second best at the meet among all divisions and is fourth in the state this year. Her javelin PR of 137’ 2” from a dual with Summit HS on April 30 is eighth-best in Oregon in 2014. In December, Troutman was named the 2013-14 Gatorade Oregon Volleyball Player of the Year.
