A little motivation was all Mason Sallee needed during the long jump finals at the state track and field meet.

Already holding the lead heading into his final jump, Sallee decided to observe the final two jumpers before him. He watched as South Kitsap’s Albert MacArthur took the lead from him by more than an inch with a jump of 22 feet, 11 3/4 inches. MacArthur began to celebrate when the board showed the new standard.

“Once he got pumped like that, I knew I had to bring it all,” Sallee said. “It was my last jump as a senior in high school and I just gave it my all.”

As he landed his final jump, the crowd erupted in a frenzy. As he stood up and looked back, he too began to celebrate.

Before the official measurement was even done, everyone knew he had won.

The final measurement for his final jump was 23-08 3/4, a full eight inches better than his previous personal best. For the second time in as many days, Sallee was crowned a state champion.

“It was fun to see him have to overcome some adversity to be able to do this and see him do that,” said Federal Way jump coach Beckett Cordes. “That’s who Mason is. He’s a competitor.”

On day two of the State Track and Field Championships, held May 28-29, Sallee successfully defended his triple jump title. Again, he saved his best jump for last.

On his final jump, with the state title in hand, he leapt 48 1/2. It was another personal record for him, a goal he had set from himself.

“This feels way better than the first one,” Sallee said after winning the triple jump. “The first one I didn’t even know I won. I came here in 2010 to watch my brother compete in state and he didn’t even get a medal. That was big for him just to get to state. For me to come out here to win twice and sophomore year place fifth, that’s a big deal.

“For someone to go both long and triple, it hasn’t been done in 4A for six years now. It means a lot. At the beginning of the year I wasn’t even considering long jump to be something I could be a state champion in. I was focused on repeating in the triple. I’m just so speechless. I went out with a bang.”

Federal Way boys win third title in four years

Sallee wasn’t the only Eagle to soar at the state championships. As a team, Federal Way’s boys took home their third title in four years.

Last year, they were ousted from the top spot by South Kitsap and finished sixth.

A slew of seniors led the way for the Eagles’ victory. Along with Sallee’s two state titles, Alex Taylor, Jason Palmer, Marcus Tate, and D’Jimon Jones all placed in at least one event.

Junior K.J. Ridders and freshman Samuel Strok also helped out along the way.

“Last year was a little disappointing for us,” said Federal Way coach Chris Williams. “We were still in the top 10, and it was one of the best finishes in Federal Way history, but we felt like we left a lot on the table. We returned a lot of guys and they worked hard all offseason and all season. Our five senior boys really stepped up and led the other guys. It was a great performance, and they’re all very deserving of what they got this weekend.”

Taylor picked up a second-place finish in the 100-meter dash, a seventh-place finish in the 200, and he finished fifth in the long jump.

He, along with Sallee, Ridders, and Palmer, finished second in a close 4×100 relay, losing out to Graham-Kapowsin by 0.26 seconds.

Jones finished second in the high jump, clearing a height of 6-08. Palmer finished fifth in both the 200 and 400, while Tate took fourth in the triple jump.

Strok finished seventh in the high jump event, clearing 6-02.

Watson wins girls discus event

The city produced another state champion: Decatur’s Parris Watson earned the title in the 4A girls discus event.

“We’ve known for seven years that she was a phenomenal athlete,” said Decatur coach Sam Hunt. “To watch her develop all the way from Saghalie Middle School all the way up through high school has been such an amazing thing for our program to have that connection.”

Watson competed in the shot put event on day two but was unable to place. She bounced back in the discus with a throw of 128-09, beating Moses Lake’s Elly Johnson by a foot and a half.

“Shot put this year has been a tough one for her. She just hasn’t felt the groove she did last year,” Hunt said. “We knew that discus was her strength. I wasn’t worried at all that discus wasn’t going to be a good day for her, even after shot put.

“Hardworking kids can do amazing things. We’re a smaller school, a 3A school. To be able to step up from 3A to 4A and be competitive like she has for the past two years and win the state championship has been phenomenal for our program.”

She was one of only three Decatur athletes to compete at the state tournament. Kemuel Santana took eighth in the boys 400, and Gabrielle Boyd finished just 2 3/4 inches out of placing in the girls shot put event.

Federal Way’s girls team had two athletes place in the the triple jump.

Josephine Akinlosotu took seventh in the event with a distance of 35-03 1/4. Zayani Duncan-Graves placed eighth in the event with a jump of 35-01 3/4.

Thomas Jefferson’s Taylor Sterling was the lone athlete to place for the Raiders. She took seventh in the high jump event, clearing 5-03 in three attempts.

Todd Beamer’s Malik Messiah picked up ta seventh-place finish in the boys 110 hurdles and a fifth-place finish in the 300 hurdles. He ran times of 15.14 and 39.12.

Jalen Williams added another couple of points to the Titans’ total when he placed in the triple jump. His jump, at 44-02, was good for seventh place.

In all, 14 athletes from Federal Way took home medals at the state championships.