TACOMA — Paityn Gagnon once laughed at the idea of her potentially qualifying for state in her three jump events.
In hindsight, the Timberline senior was right to chuckle. Her destiny wasn’t to qualify for state in three events.
Her destiny was to medal in all three.
Gagnon made a living on the podium this weekend at the 2A/3A/4A state championships at Mount Tahoma High School. She kicked off the state meet by finishing in a four-way tie for sixth place in the high jump (5 feet, 2 inches) on Thursday, concluded her first year of long jumping by taking fourth (17-11.5) on Friday, and then shocked the triple jump field by placing fifth (36-8) on Saturday.
“It’s insane. Going into the season, I didn’t think I’d ever place at state because there’s always girls who are doing track year-round. I don’t do track year-round,” Gagnon said. “It felt like a breakthrough season in a way. I got a lot stronger. I’m still at a loss of words.”
Timberline girls head coach Zandrea Edenstrom, who specializes in coaching jumpers, said she’s never seen an athlete earn medals in three events in her 23 years of coaching the Blazers girls.
The most impressive of the three performances by Gagnon this weekend was undoubtedly the triple jump on Saturday, and it certainly didn’t appear headed in that direction at the start of the competition.
Gagnon had her work cut out for her as she threw fourth in the first flight. Fifteen jumpers entered the competition with a better seed mark than Gagnon, and the top nine jumpers were set to qualify for the finals, meaning she would need a great set in the first flight and for several opponents to fall apart in the second flight.
Her first set wasn’t particularly her best work, topping out at 34-10.75, and she sat down in second place as the second flight began. Gagnon went on an emotional rollercoaster while helplessly watching the entire second flight compete. She was temporarily convinced she wouldn’t get to jump again.
“I was very stressed. I had gotten down. All the girls in the other flight were predicted to jump 35 or 36, and I was sitting at 34,” she said. “Watching each and every jumper go through was nerve-wracking, especially when it came down to the final jumps.”
If eight jumpers passed 34-10.75, Gagnon’s hunt for a third state medal would be kaput.
Her prayers were answered. Eight jumpers reached 34-10.75, but one tied with Gagnon, allowing both to compete in the finals.
Shortly before the second flight was complete, Edenstrom yelled to Gagnon that she would be in the finals. As she warmed up, Gagnon uttered two words.
“My redemption.”
Gagnon knew the adjustments she needed to make in order to capitalize on her second chance at a medal. Edenstrom harped on running through the board and getting her arms out, and Gagnon focused on visualizing each attempt.
What proceeded was three of the best jumps Gagnon has ever had in her prep career.
She started the finals logging a mark of 35-7, just a half inch from her personal record. She leaped 36-8 on her penultimate attempt, beating her PR by over a foot.
“I’ve been chasing at least a 36 for all three years,” Gagnon said.
She ended the day by jumping 35-11 to secure her fifth-place finish in her main event. This was Gagnon’s third trip to state in the triple jump but first medal, as she took 15th in 2025 and 10th in 2024.
“I can’t believe I just pulled that out,” Gagnon said after her final jump.
Edenstrom credited Gagnon’s coachability and athleticism for her performance this weekend. She was impressed with how the senior was able to go from sitting down without a lot of confidence, to warming up and making her necessary adjustments before performing at her very best in the finals.
“That’s not normal for kids. Most kids would not be able to switch the gear and do better,” Edenstrom said. “A lot of kids lose their adrenaline. But she did it. She had the mindset. That mindset, over anything, is so important for jumpers because they know how to jump. Now they have to bring it to their mind. Their mind has to do the rest of the work.”
Gagnon hadn’t previously considered trying to compete collegiately in track and field, but her stellar run through her final prep season has her confident that she has a shot to walk on at a collegiate track program. She’s eyeing Grand Canyon University and said she has met the program’s recruiting standards for the high jump and the long jump.
“I’m just gonna email them and see if they would even consider having me,” she said. “You never know if they want me. If they want me, cool. I’ll go do it, but if not, it’s OK, and I will just enjoy what I had in high school track.”
The Timberline girls finished 22nd at state in the team standings with 10.5 points. Gagnon was responsible for every point.
Elsewhere in local girls finals on the last day of the state meet, Olympia freshman Leah Hennen pulled off a wild comeback in the 3,200 meters to finish in fifth place with a PR of 10:53.75. She entered the final 400 meters in 10th place, and she used a final-lap time of 1:09.94, by far her best of the race, to pass four runners before the finish line. No one in the race had a faster lap than 1:13.84.
Yelm senior Madelyn Lawson took 13th in the 4A discus at 104-6, barely missing out on the final round.
