Efraimson’s Dream Mile

A dream freshman year for Alexa Efraimson continued Saturday when she got the opportunity to represent Camas at the Adidas Grand Prix track and field meet, in New York City.

The Papermaker held her own in the Dream Mile against 13 of the best high school runners in the country. She finished in fourth place with a personal best time of 4 minutes, 42.21 seconds.

“The competition was there and I was able to do my best,” Efraimson said. “It was like the perfect race.”

Camille Chapus of Los Angeles won the race with a time of 4:39.64. Angel Piccirillo of Homer City, Pa., placed second in 4:39.94. Ali Cash of Shawnee Mission, Kan., took third in 4:39.98.

Efraimson said her favorite parts of the race were staying on the inside of the track and outkicking Lily Williams of Tallahassee, Fla., for fourth place.

“I’m glad I was able to do that in such a big race,” Efraimson said. “Going to New York and racing against the best girls in the country was such a great opportunity.”

Efraimson qualified for the Dream Mile by winning the 1,500-meter run at the Jesuit Relays on May 4. She also won the 1,500 at the Oregon Relays on April 28.

On May 26, Efraimson lost the 800 state title race to Amy-Eloise Neale of Glacier Peak High School in Snohomish by two-tenths of a second. On Saturday, Efraimson beat Neale by 1.41 seconds.

Efraimson enjoyed her first trip to New York City. She visited the Statue of Liberty, Central Park, Ground Zero, Rockafeller Center and Times Square.

She wanted to thank her teammates for writing personal letters, which she read on the day of the race.

“They did everything they could to let me know they were there for me,” Efraimson said.