Continuously serving Kosciusko County since 1854
For the second time in a week, track and field athletes from all over Northern Indiana converged with a spot in the state finals on the line. This time, it was the boys' turn with Warsaw hosting the festivities. With over 40 athletes from five local schools in attendance, there was no shortage of action. When the dust settled, seven of those competitors were able to punch their tickets to the state finals.
Here’s how each area school fared:
WARSAW
Warsaw’s first state qualifier of the night was an expected one, as reigning state champion high jumper Jordan Randall made it four straight regional championships as he returned to state once again to defend his crown. Lakewood Park Christian’s Hayden Korte did his best to give him a run for his money, but was no match as Randall eventually went on to clear 7’2” en route to his victory.
Not long afterwards, fellow senior Jackson Gackenheimer punched his ticket as well in the 1600M run. The Indiana commit finished in third with a time of 4:16.98, almost three seconds ahead of fourth place finisher Andrew Strong of Eastside. Gackenheimer also competed in the 3200M, but has to settle for an eighth place finish with a 9:40.28.
Jackson Gackenheimer (L) of Warsaw gives chase on the final lap of the 1600 Meter Run...Nieter
Tucker Reed really had himself a night. He finished second in the long jump with a leap of 22’2.25” before going on to tie the school record in pole vault with a 15’3” jump. He was the lone local athlete to qualify in multiple events.
Miles Rager, competing in the 400M dash, picked up a second place finish to become the fourth Tiger heading down to Indy next weekend, timing out at 48.72. With less than a second separating first and fifth place, Rager was able to navigate through some serious traffic near the finish line to hold on to a silver finish. He also took 10th in the high jump.
Other notable performances that did not result in qualifications included NLC champion Zander Bail, who finished with a time of 14.62 in the 110M hurdles, to take fourth place an agonizing 0.05 seconds out of a qualifying spot. In the 300M hurdles, Samuel Allebach finished fifth. Parker VanDusen missed out on state by less than half a second, finishing fourth in the 200M dash.
The foursome of VanDusen, Isaak Kennedy, Rager and Allebach took fourth place in the 4x400M relay in another qualifying spot decided by less than a second.
Discus thrower Quinton Wilson appeared to qualify for state with a third place finish, but a scorecard that was filled out incorrectly was adjusted, giving the spot to Colson Yoder of NorthWood. Nolan Stump took sixth in the pole vault.
Benjamin Hart competed in the 100M dash prelims, finishing 10th with a time of 11.34.
As a team, Warsaw finished second at the meet with 67 points. Northridge won the regional championship with 72.
WAWASEE
The Warriors very narrowly missed out on qualifying for the state meet on the very first event of the night, the 4x800M relay. The team of Ivan Waikel, JohnDavid Stoffel, Mason Worrell and Jude Rhodes competed in the second heat, and spent a large chunk of the race leading it. However, on the final leg of the race Westview star Noah Bontrager, as well as Kingston Pumel of Penn were able to catch up to and pass Rhodes. With Northridge having already set a regional record in the first heat, the 8:01.50 time by Wawasee had to settle for a fourth place finish.
Wawasee's Jude Rhodes (L) takes the baton from teammate Mason Worrell during the 4 x 800 Meter Relay...Nieter
In the team’s second relay race, the 4x100M, the team of Dalton Young, Jaylen Loweryt, J’Ceon Evans and Konnor Sharp took an eighth place finish with a time of 43.41.
Jaden Price competed in both the 110M and 300M hurdles. He finished eleventh in the prelim race for the 110M before taking an eighth place finish in the 300 finals.
Derek Morrison was Wawasee’s lone athlete competing in multiple field events, throwing both discus and shot put. He finished seventh in the first event with a throw of 144’11”, as well as 16th in the second. His teammate, Parker Schmidt took 15th in the shot put with a throw of 43’.
TIPPECANOE VALLEY
Junior Owen Omondi was Valley’s lone competitor at this year’s regional, racing in both the 100M and 200M dashes. His night was short, as he competed in both preliminaries but did not qualify for either final. He finished with a time of 11.78 in the 100M before picking up a DNF in the 200M.
MANCHESTER
Carson Heath, the reigning regional champion in the 110M hurdles took a big step towards defending his crown by finishing the preliminary races with the top overall time of 14.55. He only got faster from there, shaving an additional two tenths of a second off of his time in the finals to win the race with a 14.32 to send him to the state finals as a back-to-back regional champion.
Making their way down the track during the 110 Meter Hurdles are (L-R) Jaden Price of Wawasee, Sebastian Harris of East Noble, Zander Bail of Warsaw and Carson Heath of Manchester...Nieter
Another early state qualifier was high jumper Korbin Presl. He hung around with Randall and Korte for as long as he could, but had to settle for third with a jump of 6’8”. It was still more than enough to qualify, as he beat out DeKalb’s Tanner Pomeroy by four inches.
Korbin Presl of Manchester clears the bar at 6'8" to claim third place in the high jump competition...NIeter
The Squires very nearly sent four more athletes down to Indianapolis in the 4x100M relay. Competing in the first heat, the foursome of Eli Metzger, Johnny Miller, Holden Poston and Heath won their race with a big fourth leg from the hurdles champion, finishing with a 42.85. However, Saint Joseph’s third place finish in the second heat was just 0.06 ticks faster than the Squires, placing them in fourth.
That wasn’t the team’s only fourth place finish, as Metzger took that 300M hurdles with a time of 38.91, just 0.14 seconds behind Benjamin Thomas of Angola. However, his time was two tenths of a second better than the three-participant standard, sending him to Indianapolis anyway. His teammate, Holden Poston, was right behind him, taking fifth (39.15).
The Squires rounded out a great showing with a fifth place finish in the 4x400M from Metzger, Poston, Clark Showalter and Heath. Their final time was 3:25.19 Oliver Fitzpatrick ran in the 1600M, finishing in 10th with a 4:34.96. Caden Young finished 13th in discus with a throw of 132’11”
TRITON
The Trojans competed in a variety of events throughout the evening, including the 4x100M relay. The team of Cayden Bradley, Jayden Overmyer, Isaac Quintana and Cameron Callahan finished in twelfth with a time of 43.88.
Quintana also competed in the 200M and 400M dashes. He picked up a DNF in the 200M but made up for it with a strong performance in the 400. He placed sixth overall with a 50.07.
Vinny Prater finished 17th in the 300M hurdles with a time of 44.03. Callahan took 15th in the high jump, clearing 5’10”. Brady Schuh finished the shot put in 13th, throwing a 45’1”.
The state finals for boys track and field will be held at North Central High School in Indianapolis on Saturday
