BELOIT – It was a successful day for the Thomas More Prep-Marian track and field teams at Thursday’s Class 3A regional action at Trojan Stadium.
By finishing in the top four of their respective events, the Monarch boys’ and girls’ teams qualified 13 athletes in nine different events for next week’s Kansas State High School Championships in Wichita.
Sophomore Adell Riedel qualified in four events – finishing fourth in the open 800 and 1,600 meters and helping two relays finish in the top four. The 3,200-meter quartet finished third, while the 1,600-meter foursome was fourth.
Senior Savannah Yost, who was part of the state-qualifying 1,600 relay, was the Monarchs’ only regional champion. She won the girls’ high jump by clearing 5-2.
Junior Emily Schippers also ran on both those state-qualifying relays, while junior Julia Werth was a member of the 3,200 relay and also placed third in the open 800 meters.
Other individual qualifiers for the Monarch girls were junior Paris Wolf, the long jump runner-up, and sophomore Jenna Rome, who tied for third in high jump. Other relay members were sophomore M.K. Dwyer (1,600) and junior Kiara Urban (3,200).
The Monarch boys had two individual state qualifiers in senior David McFarland and junior Ethan Lang. McFarland cleared a career-best 6-2 in high jump to finish second, while Lang placed third in the 1,600 and also helped the 3,200 relay finish third.
Other members of the 3,200 relay were freshmen Lucas Lang and Garrett Pfeifer and sophomore Blayne Riedel.
Ethan Lang nearly qualified in three events but lost a race down the stretch as the anchor of the final event, the 1,600 relay, and the Monarchs finished fifth.
Other fifth-place efforts for the Monarchs and finishing just one place out of qualifying for state was junior Sheldon Weber, who lost in a near photo finish at the line in the 3,200 meters, and the girls’ 400 relay, which finished fifth in a highly competitive race.
TMP’s girls finished fifth in team standings, while the boys were 11th.
Norton’s girls dominated the sprints, including a 1-2-3 sweep in the 200-meter dash, to edge Sterling out of first place by two points for the team title.
Junior Allison Engelbert won the gold in the 200, followed by sophomore Slayten Braun and senior Kara Frack. Those three joined freshman Courtney Jones for a first-place effort in the 400 relay, while Braun also was the runner-up in the 100 dash.
Other individual regional champs for Norton’s girls were freshman Hannah Bailey in the 800 meters and sophomore Jaida McEwen, javelin.
Scott City dominated the boys’ competition, claiming the regional team title with a whopping 110 points – 49 ahead of second-place Colby. Scott City won all three relays and placed in the top four of numerous individual events.