Sophomore Avery Hemphill competes in the pole vault during the first track and field meet of the season Tuesday.
The Cardinals track and field team battled through chilly and windy conditions during its first meet of the season Tuesday.
Competing against four other area teams, the Cardinals got a chance to show off the work they’ve put in the last few weeks at practice.
On the boys side, sophomore Elijah Clobes won the boys 800-meter run. A freshmen trio of Grayson Masterson, Paul Jacobs and Grant Hurla took the top three spots on the boys 1600-meter run. Junior Lincoln Votaw won boys high jump, and senior Cole Baumgartner won boys pole vault. Junior Brady Von Holten won boys discus, and senior Nate Steinlage won boys javelin.
The girls team is coming off a successful campaign last year, when the girls took home a team state title. On Tuesday, they continued with a strong showing. Sophomore Addisen Lewis won the girls 400-meter dash, freshman Emma Sarber won the girls 800-meter run and senior Hanna Keltner won the girls 1600-meter run. Junior Addison Williams won the girls 3200-meter run.
In the field events, sophomore Brenika Rader won girls high jump. Sophomore Avery Hemphill won girls pole vault. Senior Allison Allison won shot put. Senior Addy Hemphill won both long jump and triple jump.
Hemphill was one of the leaders of last year’s championship squad and won a state title in long jump last year as a junior. She is now looking to repeat that success in her final season.
She said it felt good to jump again, but it was bittersweet knowing it was her final year. Luckily, she said, the team has bonded together well and given her a lot to look forward to over the next month.
“It’s been positive,” she said. “Every single practice, everyone’s pushing each other, everyone’s excited because we know we have a great chance to come back and do it again this year.”
Head coach MaryJo Swann said it was nice to see the athletes compete after weeks of practice. Over 130 Cardinals entered events, and many stuck around after they finished to cheer on the team.
“I think that they try to seek each other out,” Swann said. “They go out of their way and they’re, in general, pretty positive.”
Senior Nate Steinlage said it was nice to be throwing the javelin again, even if it was into 20-mile-per-hour winds. He said he was excited to see how the team stacked up against the competition for the first time this year.
“It’s been really good,” Steinlage said. “I really like it. We get really close at track, so everyone’s super positive. We joke around, but we also get the work done, so it’s been really nice.”
Swann said the team has picked up where it left off last year, with many of its top athletes already hitting good marks on their runs, throws and jumps.
“They’re starting off strong, just like I would have expected,” she said.
Reach reporter Cuyler Dunn at [email protected]