Adam Dirks (above) won the javelin and led the Trojan boys to fourth place in the league meet Friday. The Marion boys took second. Marion’s Erin Carr (right photo) ran in three league-record races and paced the Warrior girls to a first-place finish. The Hillsboro girls took second. Don Ratzlaff / Free Press. Click images to enlarge.
Marion’s Ben Leppke (right) edge’s Hillsboro’s Ishmael Morris (center) at the finish line to win their preliminary heat for the 100-meter dash at the MCAA league meet. In the finals, Leppke nipped Morris once more, taking fifth in 11.49 seconds to Morris’s sixth-place finish in 11.65. Don Ratzlaff
The girls’ track teams from Marion and Hillsboro finished 1-2 while the boys placed second and fourth, respectively, at the Mid-Central Activities Association track meet at Marion on Friday.
Marion’s Erin Carr tied the league record in the 100 meters (12.20 seconds) and broke the record in the 200 (25.50) to pace the Warriors, who rolled up 114 points. Both marks are school records. Carr also anchored the 4x100 team that set a new league record (50:56) .
For Hillsboro, who amassed 103 team points, JuliAnne Chisholm set a league record and tied her school record in the high jump (5 feet, 9 inches) and set a league record in the 300-meter hurdles (45.68). Chisholm also won the 100-meter hurdles (14.99).
Also winning a gold medal for Hillsboro was Hannah Marsh in the pole vault (10-0).
For Marion, Danielle Cope won the 3,200 meters (12:12.55), Julia Zeiner won the long jump (17-1⁄2) and Kalaya Jackson won the triple jump (33-8).
The closest rival to the Warriors and Trojans was Smoky Valley with 85 points.
For the boys, Marion was paced by Emmanuel Jackson’s gold medal in the long jump (20-1). The Warriors scored 82 points to finish as the runnerup to Sterling with 109.
“We were obviously thrilled to have competed so well at league,” Marion coach Grant Thierolf said. “Our kids have been really working to get to this point of the season and are excited about the competition that we are facing.”
Adam Dirks won Hillsboro’s only individual gold with a throw of 164-7 in the javelin, but the Trojans swept all three relay titles.
The 4x100 team of Jacob Yoder, Michael Suderman, Michael Tisdale and Ishmael Morris won in 44.1, which ties the school record.
The 4x400 team of Yoder, Sean Leihy, Morris and Spencer Brown crossed the finish line first in 3:32.9 while the 4x800 team of Brown, Nathan Vogel, Cody McMillen and Leihy won in 8:24.7.
Hillsboro finished with 73 points to trail third-place Hoisington with 76 and lead fifth-place Smoky Valley with 57.
“I feel our kids did a good job at the meet, both boys and girls teams finishing in the top four,” Hillsboro coach Dennis Boldt said.
“We had 10 or 12 personal-best throws, jumps or times on the day, and I think the warm weather finally allowed the athletes to compete at a higher level today.”
Coming—Hillsboro and Marion will try qualify entries for the state track meet on Friday by competing at the Class 3A regional at Cheney. Events begin at 3 p.m.
Joining those three schools will be Conway Springs, Eureka, Garden Plain, Southeast of Saline, Halstead, Haven, Hesston, Bluestem, Sacred Heart, Remington, Wichita Collegiate, Wichita Independent and Wichita Trinity.
