Suri Sardinia Caps PHS Career With State Championship; First Among Fellow Seahawk State Winners

Her competitors were posting personal records early in the finals. The pressure was building. Peninsula Seahawks senior Suri Sardinia watched — and then answered.

Her throw of 145 feet, 6 inches won the WIAA Class 3A girls discus championship May 29 at Mount Tahoma High School in Tacoma, capping a season where she repeatedly rewrote her own school’s record book, and completing a journey that began with a fourth-place finish at the same meet a year ago.

“Everybody else pushed me to get that 145,” Sardinia said. “The anticipation is a big thing that weighs on you, but it also really pushes you.”

The winning mark landed more than 10 feet beyond runner-up Ena Dodik of Lynnwood, who finished at 134-10. Sardinia had placed fourth at last year’s state meet with a throw of 126 feet, 2 inches, meaning she improved by more than 19 feet in a single year.

She didn’t do it quietly. Throughout the season, Sardinia broke her own shot put record several times, won league and district championships, and extended Peninsula’s discus record before surpassing it again on the state stage.

“Really, it’s just a lot of practice,” she said. “My coach and I practiced about two hours or more, five days a week, and then I’d go out on the weekends and practice by myself. I think my numbers really went up this year because of my mindset and because I was so focused going into state.”

Peninsula throwing coach Mason Hyde said the championship reflected something beyond a single season.

“Suri’s performance is the culmination of years of relentless hard work,” Hyde said. “Watching her peak at the exact right moment to win a state title and finish runner-up was incredible.”

Sardinia also had a strong showing in shot put, finishing second at 41 feet, 4¼ inches — missing the title by just 5½ inches. She was quick to credit champion Jordyn Robarge of Kelso.

“Jordan has put a lot of effort and time into shot put, so I think she really deserved it,” Sardinia said. “I’m really happy with my second place.”

Her shot put career traced a similar arc of persistence. She picked up the event as a sophomore, failed to reach the state finals as a junior, then returned this year to finish on the podium.

Hyde said Sardinia leaves behind something larger than her medal count.

“She stepped into the Peninsula discus ring as a freshman and left with an undeniable legacy,” he said.

Sardinia was not the only Seahawk to find success at state.

Emma Young earned a seventh-place medal in the triple jump at 35 feet, 10½ inches, and also competed in the high jump.

Wyatt Harding placed sixth in the boys 800-meter run in 1:56.60 – the fastest time in the state this season for a sophomore and good for second place in the Peninsula record books.

Emi Hansonsmith and Peninsula’s girls 4x100 relay team of Aliya Cook, Ali Jacobson, Annie Jensen, and Norah Sutherland also qualified for the meet.

Sardinia’s championship and runner-up finishes accounted for 18 of the team’s 20 points, lifting the Seahawks to an 11th-place tie among more than 50 teams competing at the championship May 30. 

The Gig Harbor girls track and field team came in second.

Sardinia plans to attend Utah State University in the fall, where she hopes to walk on to the track and field team while studying finance.

She ends her prep career having broken school records so often that the distinction wasn’t a surprise, but it never lost its luster.

“It’s nice,” she said of repeatedly breaking her own record. “Every time I’m resetting a school record, I’m also getting my own personal record, which is pretty cool. It’s kind of like I’m double-dipping, I guess.”