Sechrist lowers 2 school marks

Written by Don Ratzlaff Tuesday, 08 May 2012 15:04

Josh Richert leads the first leg of the 4x800 with a strong first lap. He pulled away in the second lap. Hillsboro went on to win with a time of 8:34.88.

Hillsboro got some strong performances in several events, but not enough to finish among the top teams in a strong 11-team field Thursday at the Hesston Invitational.

One indicator of the level of competition: Emily Sechrist lowered the school records she set earlier this season in the 3,200 and 1,600 meters, but won only one of the races.

In the 3,200, she defeated her nearest rival by 26 seconds with a time of 11 minutes, 47.18 seconds to set a new meet record while lowering her school record by 0.72 seconds.

In the 1,600, the freshman knocked more than 8 seconds off her previous school record, but was nipped at the tape by Janell Kidd of Sunrise Christian Academy by 0.39 of a second. Sechrist’s new HHS record is 5:23.98.

Callie Serene won Hillsboro’s other gold medal by taking the 800 in 2:26.35.

“The only disappointment was a late scratch by a Sunrise Academy competitor who had an entry time of 2:20,” coach Dennis Boldt said. “It would have been nice to have Callie pushed today. In order to bring her time down, she needs to be challenged on her final 200 meters.”

The girls, who had no other top-three finishes, compiled 39 points, placing them eighth among the 11 schools competing.

Douglass won the team title with 88.5 points and Garden Plain followed with 88.

The boys, meanwhile, managed two gold medals. Aaron Slater captured the shot put title with a heave of 43 feet, 10 inches, while the 4x800 team of Josh Richert, Grant Knoll, Avery Franz and Bret Mueller broke the tape in 8:34.88 for a 7.5 second win over runner-up Hesston.

“You have to be excited for Aaron Slater...he has been working extremely hard,” Boldt said. “The boys’ 4x800 posted one of their best performances today, largely due to not having any races, such as the 3,200 meters, scheduled prior to this relay.”

Shaq Thiessen won Hills­boro’s only silver medal with a leap of 21-81?4 in the long jump.

The Trojans brought home four bronze medals: Jesse Brown cleared 6-2 in the high jump, Richert ran 4:59.07 in the 1,600, Mueller ran 2:09.91 in the 800 and the 4x400 team of Mueller, Thiessen, Richert and Avery ran 3:35.53 in a race where the top five teams were within less than six seconds of each other.

As a team, the Trojans finished with 58 points to place sixth and trail co-winners Garden Plain and Marion with 79 each.

Coming—Hillsboro will compete Thursday in the Central Kansas League meet at Linds­borg. Events begin at 2 p.m.