RANDY HISNER & DANE FUELLING
WZBD.com
Homestead did its Homestead thing again Tuesday at the New Haven Girls’ Sectional Track and Field Meet, winning its 12th straight title by almost doubling up the score of second-place Huntington North, 162-83.
Junior Channing Xayarath won three individual events for the Spartans—the 100-meter hurdles (16.04), the long jump (16-2.25), and the 400 meters in a sectional-record time of 57.63—and ran a leg on Homestead’s victorious 4X400 relay (4:06.06).
Matt Smith’s Heritage Patriots placed a strong third with 71.33 points to lead all Z-Land teams. Bellmont slipped past South Adams with a dramatic runner-up finish in the night’s final event, the 4X400 relay, to finish sixth with 44.33 points. The Starfires scored 37 points. Adams Central placed eleventh in the 12-team field with 11 points.
The Patriots were led, as usual, by their strong throws contingent, which scored 33 points. Senior Alexa Walter, the defending state runner-up in the shot put, won her specialty with a heave of 45-5 and grabbed the discus title at 124-4. Her shot put mark demolished the sectional record (43-4) set by Bellmont’s Hailey Cole in 2024. Walter’s teammate Lenai Riddle, one of the top freshmen in the nation, placed second in the shot with an outstanding 42-4.5, nearly seven feet ahead of Bellmont’s Mary Bleke in third at 35-5.5. Sophomore Riley Roy completed the Patriots’ dominance in the throws with her fourth place in the discus (102-8).
Heritage also got runner-up finishes from freshman Di’Mond Williams-White in the 200 meters (26.65) and sophomore McKenzie Amstein in the 100-meter hurdles (16.20). The Patriots’ 4X100 relay of Amstein, Di’Mond Williams-White, DiNestee Williams-White, and Olivia Lybarger placed third (51.35).
The brightest spots for Bellmont were the runner-up finish of that 4X400 relay team and Chloe Post in the pole vault (career-best 9-0). The relay squad—Quinn Buchan, Grace Ruble, Ashley Bleke, and Kaitlyn Barton—came into the meet seeded fourth at 4:21.06 but cut over eight and a half seconds to finish in 4:12.43.
Barton also came through with a nine-second cut from her seed time in the 800 meters, placing fourth in a career-best 2:27.79.
Bellmont had two placers in the 400 meters, with junior Lilly Franz demolishing her 20th seed time of 1:07.25 by running 1:04.45 to place fifth. Teammate Grace Ruble was right behind in sixth in 1:05.19.
Senior Kapri Bixler headed up the South Adams scoring, placing third in both the 100-meter hurdles (16.53) and the 300-meter hurdles (48.83) to punch her ticket to the regional in both events. (The top three in each event automatically qualify for regional; others could make it on call backs if their marks are good enough.) Fourth-place finishers for the Starfires were Ana Lehman in the 300-meter hurdles (49.31) and long jump (15-7.75) and Luelle Schoch in the high jump (4-10).
Adams Central had no one place in the top four but did have a pair of fifth-place finishes: Alyssa Garwood in the shot put (33-8.50) and the 4X800 relay of Hailey Brune, Haley Jauregui, Alyssa Fruechte, and Adi Rumschlag.
The regional meet will be at Fort Wayne Carroll High School next Tuesday, May 26, starting at 6:00 P.M.
100 M Finals
1. Ranalle Willis-Bishop Luers 13.08
6. Olivia Lybarger-Heritage 13.51
7. Luelle Schoch-South Adams 13.87
Prelim Times
Olivia Lybarger-Heritage 13.44
Luelle Schoch-South Adams 13.70
Lanie French-Bellmont 14.09
Madyson Snyder-Bellmont 14.11
Ireland Shuck-South Adams 14.40
Alia VanOsdale-Heritage 14.63
Claire Arner-Adams Central 14.71
Lexy Harvey-Adams Central 15.53
200 M Finals
1. Jada Dale-Norwell 26.42
2. Di’Mond Williams-White-Heritage 26.65
Prelim Times
Di’Mond Williams-White-Heritage 26.93
DiNestee Williams-White-Heritage 27.96
Lexy Harvey-Adams Central 31.80
400 M
1. Channing Xayarath-Homestead 57.63
5. Lilly Franz-Bellmont 1:04.45
6. Grace Ruble-Bellmont 1:05.19
11. Aleena Bierbaum-South Adams 1:06.91
14. Ireland Shuck-South Adams 1:07.96
15. Ellie Minnich-Adams Central 1:08.56
800 M
1. Domenica Casini-Homestead 2:18.72
3. Ashley Tucker-Norwell 2:24.92
4. Kaitlyn Barton-Bellmont 2:27.79
9. Adalynn Watson-South Adams 2:42.01
12. Emily High-Heritage 2:47.55
17. Audrey Meyer-Heritage 2:54.61
20. Eva Sprunger-Adams Central 3:07.08
21. Nola Ortiz-Adams Central 3:12.13
22. Tori McCullough-Bellmont 3:17.71
1600 M
1. Alice Friesen-Hunt. No. 5:14.88
6. Adalynn Watson-South Adams 5:56.58
9. Hailey Brune-Adams Central 6:02.52
10. Emily High-Heritage 6:05.30
12. Sydney Angel-Bellmont 6:30.64
13. Elise Hissong-Heritage 6:38.95
14. Isabella Suarez-Bellmont 6:54.54
15. Nola Ortiz-Adams Central 6:57.44
3200 M
1. Alice Friesen-Hunt. No. 11:30.07
6. Adi Rumschlag-Adams Central 13:08.03
8. Bridget Juengel-Bellmont 13:53.55
9. Ava Gerber-Heritage 14:12.43
10. Elizabeth Buuck-Heritage 14:19.75
12. Sophia Silva-Bellmont 17:19.16
100 M Hurdles Finals
1. Channing Xayarath-Homestead 16.04
2. McKinsey Amstein-Heritage 16.20
3. Kapri Bixler-South Adams 16.53
Prelim Times
Kapri Bixler-South Adams 17.09
McKinsey Amstein-Heritage 17.15
Sophia Mudd-Adams Central 20.19
Lily Johnson-Adams Central 21.18
Jasmine Clemons-Bellmont 21.42
Kaleah Niece-Bellmont 23.82
300 M Hurdles
1. Isla Woodson-South Side 46.34
3. Kapri Bixler-South Adams 48.81
4. Ana Lehman-South Adams 48.83
-Lehman’s time was a new career mark for the Starfire hurdler.
5. Rosalinda Medina-Heritage 49.56
11. Bailey White-Heritage 53.90
13. Haley Jauregui-Adams Central 54.33
16. Genesis Burrgin-Adams Central 58.24
19. Madeline Witte-Bellmont 58.97
21. Ava Billman-Bellmont 1:03.74
4×100 Relay
1. Wayne 50.76
3. Heritage 51.35
9. Bellmont 53.25
11. Adams Central 57.48
-Heritage and Bellmont both had season-best times at New Haven Tuesday.
4×400
1. Homestead 4:06.06
2. Bellmont 4:12.43
4. Heritage 4:13.25
11. South Adams 4:44.87
12. Adams Central 4:48.46
4×800 Relay
1. Homestead 9:58.34
5. Adams Central 11:12.09
6. Bellmont 11:44.30
7. Heritage 11:56.72
High Jump
1. Gianna Johnson-Homestead 5-01
2. Haley Williamson-Norwell 5-01
4. Luelle Shoch-South Adams 4-10
6. Maya Schlemmer-Bellmont 4-08
7. Ava Johnson-Heritage 4-06
8. Aleena Bierbaum-South Adams 4-06
12. Ava Billman-Bellmont 4-04
Long Jump
1. Channing Xayarath-Homestead 16-02.25
4. Ana Lehman-South Adams 15-07.75
9. Olivia Lybarger-Heritage 14-09
10. Kapri Bixler-South Adams 14-07
15. Gracie Roman-Adams Central 13-00
16. Lexy Harvey-Adams Central 12-11.75
19. Ainsley Braun-Bellmont 12-08.25
20. Madeline Witte-Bellmont 12-03.5
Pole Vault
1. Makenzie Emrick-Homestead 10-06
2. Chloe Post-Bellmont 9-00
8. Madeline Witte-Bellmont 7-06
8. Alia VanOsdale-Heritage 7-06
All three local vaulters set new career marks in the pole vault.
Discus
1. Alexa Walter-Heritage 124-04
4. Riley Roy-Heritage 102-08
5. Kenley Geels-South Adams 101-09
-It was a new career high for Geels as she finished fifth for the Starfires.
6. Braelyn Radecki-Bellmont 100-04
10. Kinleigh Coffey-Bellmont 90-02
13. Melanie Eicher-Adams Central 84-04
15. Anna Horkutsenko-South Adams 74-03
16. Alyssa Garwood-Adams Central 69-09
Shot Put
1. Alexa Walter-Heritage 45-05
2. Lenai Riddle-Heritage 42-04.5
3. Marianne Bleke-Bellmont 35-05.5
5. Alyssa Garwood-Adams Central 33-08.5
9. Alayna Baker-Bellmont 30-04.5
11. Alyssa Fruechte-Adams Central 29-05.5
14. Kenley Geels-South Adams 28-04
21. Rory Feaster-South Adams 21-09.5
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