By RANDY HISNER
WZBD.com
NEW HAVEN – Norwell claimed the title in the NE8 boys’ conference track and field meet Friday night, beating runner-up Columbia City 134-113, and the Huntington North Vikings defended their girls’ title with a narrow 105-103 decision over the New Haven Bulldogs.
Double winners Trevon Stoppenhagen (100 meters and 200 meters) and Jake Parker (110 hurdles, 300 hurdles) were major factors in the Norwell boys’ victory.
Gracie Fields took first in the 400 meters and second in the 800 meters to spearhead the scoring for the Huntington North girls.
The Bellmont boys’ and girls’ teams, both in rebuilding mode, struggled in the team standings—the boys placing eighth and the girls seventh—but several Braves turned in season-best marks to score in the highly competitive meet, held in beautiful spring weather at New Haven.
For Coach Carl Risch’s girls’ squad, seniors Sierra Schmidt and Haleigh Wesley both placed in two individual events to lead the Braves’ scoring.
Wesley earned fourth in the 100 meters with a time of 13.3 and came back in the 200 meters with a 27.1 to take third. Both times were season bests. “The warm weather really helped,” she said.Â
Schmidt heaved the discus 111-2 to earn the conference runner-up spot and tossed the shot put 32-9 to place third. Her strong performances make her optimistic about the upcoming post-season meets. “I feel like my chances are good at sectional,” she said. Her 14 points Friday were the most scored by a Bellmont athlete.
Senior Sydney Keane pulled off the unusual feat of scoring in the 400 meters out of the slow heat. Her 1:03.36 was easily the best time in her section, and it was good enough to edge three runners in the fast heat, earning her a sixth-place finish.Â
Keane also joined Wesley, Keeley Carpenter, and Abigail Rudy on the Braves’ sixth-place 4X400 relay.
The Braves’ 4X800 relay team of Carpenter, Rudy, Keane, and Ellen Scott opened the meet with a solid fifth-place finish in 10:44.66. Addie Kintz threw the discus 85-11 to score two points with a seventh-place performance, and Karah Myers completed Bellmont’s individual scoring with her eighth-place finish in the high jump with a 4-6 leap.
Ashlyn Walker, Khia Cannon, Taylor Louis, and Adi Knipstein teamed up for seventh in the 4X100 relay in 55.93.
For Coach Dave Hakes’ boys, senior Ian Webb continued his stellar season with a fifth-place finish in the 1600 meters in a career-best 4:29.79. “I’m happy with the time,” Webb said, “but I could have strategized a lot better. I got boxed in during the first 100 meters, and I don’t want to say I panicked, but I decided to make a move there, and I shot out around that first group, except for first place because he was long gone, but I ended up going way too quick in the first 400.”Â
Webb’s time is five seconds off Isaac Fuelling’s school record time of 4:24 in the event, and he feels he has a shot at it. “Now that I’m within five seconds of it,” he said, “I realize how doable it is.”
Leo standout Luke Shappell won the event in a meet-record 4:22.48. He also won the 3200 meters.
The other half of the Braves’ senior distance duo, Elijah Obringer, sliced four seconds from his career best to place fourth in the 3200-meter run in 10:05, good for five points. “I’m still hoping for a sub-10,” he said. Like Webb, he thinks improved pacing could bring down his time. “I wanted to split perfect 75s,” he said, “but I had a few 79s. The first mile I was 4:55. I just know I need to push a little harder in the sixth and seventh laps.”
Sophomore Alex Shirack threw 117-1 in the discus to place sixth, and senior Trevor Smith earned fourth in the pole vault with his 11-0 effort.Â
The all-freshman 4×800 squad of Landon Rich, Drake Scheumann, Hayden Whittenbarger, and Cole Sipe finished eighth in 9:47.24. The 4X100 team (Aiden Miller, John Riehm, Evan Sovine, Xavior Palacios) and the 4X400 team (Harry Gunsett, Webb, Ben Sprague, Smith) also placed eighth.
Girls’ Team Scores: 1. Huntington North 105 2. New Haven 103 3. East Noble 91 4. Columbia City 88 5. Norwell 84 6. Dekalb 77 7. Bellmont 40 8. Leo 35
Boys’ Team Scores: 1. Norwell 134 2. Columbia City 113. 3. Huntington North 98. 4. New Haven 81 5. Leo 77 6. Dekalb 61. 7. East Noble 40 8. Bellmont 20