Fallon senior Jessalyn Lewis won the Class 3A state triple jump title during Saturday’s meet in Carson City.
Anthony Mori | Elko Daily Free Press
Jessalyn Lewis knew if she cleared 35 feet in the triple jump, the state title would be hers.
Just like the night before when she saved her best long jump for last to take second after being seeded sixth, she followed up with an encore performance that sent her to the top of the podium in her final event of her career with the Greenwave. Lewis got to 35 feet and then some, leaping to 35-4 on her third jump to win the Class 3A state title by 11 inches at Saturday’s meet at Carson High School.
In the flight with seven other jumpers whose entered mark didn’t go past 35 feet – only Lewis and North Valleys’ Shaloni Walker jumped further than 34 feet last weekend – Lewis knew she had what it would take to bring home the gold.
“My competitors hadn’t reached 35 feet all year and I have a few times,” Lewis said. I’m glad I was able to do it at state. I’m very excited that I was able to end my high school career on top like this. I’ve been working really hard since sixth grade to achieve this and it’s nice to have all of my hard work pay off.”
Lewis’ state championship is the first long or triple jump state title for Fallon since 2017 when Whitney Skabelund defended both titles.
On Friday, Lewis eclipsed the 16-foot mark on her sixth and final jump, taking home the silver.
Lewis leaped 16 feet, 3.5 inches on her last attempt long after the sun set behind the Sierras and the final race of the evening concluded. Her long-jump mark edged Walker by 2.5 inches.
Friday, though, belonged to Lewis who entered the event with a season-best 15-1.25, which had her seeded sixth going into the first three jumps. With the 3A last in the lineup after delays in the 1A and 2A events pushed the 3A start time to 7:30, Lewis had a break after her first three jumps due to several competitors competing in the 4x100-meter relay adjacent to the pit. By the time it was Lewis’ turn to finish her last three jumps, the sun had set, but not on her performance.
On her last attempt, Lewis planted her right foot on the runway before leaping into the right side of the pit, landing more than a foot better than her top mark this season.
“I was shocked that I was able to come from behind and perform like I did in the long jump,” said Lewis, who added that coaches Kevin McElhinney, Allie Lister and Todd Wright helped push her during the season, and her parents Jake and Traci Lewis for their support the last six years. “I went in seeded sixth and have been struggling this last half of the season. So to end up with second was a huge accomplishment for me.”
Lewis wasn’t the only one to medal after Fallon qualified only three individuals in five events.
Sophomore Bransyn Wright tied for first in the high jump Saturday but finished second due to the tiebreaker after taking seventh in the triple jump Friday. Junior Edwin Ugalde finished second in the 800 meters Saturday.
Wright and Lowry sophomore Brent Kenison tied for first in the high jump at 6-5, but the Buckaroo jumper was awarded first for accomplishing the feat in fewer attempts. Wright finished seventh in the triple jump with a mark of 40-1 after Kenison won the event with a leap of 45-1.5.
Ugalde came 1 second shy of winning the 800 after North Valleys senior Austin Key crossed the finish line at the 1:58.99 mark. Ugalde finished with a time of 1:59.68 to take second by 1.15 seconds.