Video of the 4A 100-meter hurdles by Betty Zeka.

By Tracy McCue, Sumner Newscow — Day two of the Kansas State Track and Field Championships was huge for some Sumner County athletes. Here are the highlights.

Dru Zeka and Viv Wright after the 100 hurdles finals. (This photo is by Katie Ford.)

The Wellington two-step

It is one of those “has this happened before with Wellington?” moments. Cousins Dru Zeka and Viv Wright finished first and second in the 100-meter hurdles Saturday morning during the first racing finals event of the weekend.

Zeka finished first with a 15.27 time. The big surprise was her teammate Wellington sophomore Wright, who ran it in 15.60 for second place. Her final run was .04 faster than Haylynn Jones of Mulvane. In the preliminaries the day before, Wright had run a 15.9, which placed her fifth and a full .13 behind Jones. 

The first- and second-place finishes temporarily put the Wellington girls in the lead with 40 points in the standings. It didn’t last, but it kept Wellington near the top for the bulk of the afternoon.

Zak Roberts finishes in a virtual tie with Circles’ Jay Bonewitz.

100 meters 

Sumner County had two state placers in the fastest race of the meet. Wellington Senior Zak Roberts of Wellington finished with an 11.19 mark to finish eighth and get himself on the victory stand.

The big surprise was in the Class 2A girls. Jade Erker of Conway Springs came into the state meet as the 13th seed. The sophomore had a stunning finish, placing second with a mark of 12.43.

4×100 relay history

Both the Wellington and Oxford Relay teams had overachieving Saturdays in the finals.

Jalik Armstrong at the start of the 4×100 relay race.

Roberts at the end of the 4×100 relay race, finishing fifth.

Wellington’s school-record-setting 4×100 relay team placed fifth with a time of 43.37. This was a surprise. The team of Armstrong, Hatfield, Golden, and Roberts was the ninth seed going into the finals and the 11th seed going into the meet. Wellington leapfrogged Wamego, Santa Fe Trail, Ulysses, and Paola in the finals from the previous day’s preliminary run.

Paola’s team finished tied with Wellington, and the difference was 0.003 seconds. It was so close that it wasn’t reflected on the event scoreboard immediately thereafter, creating some initial confusion amongst the Wellington runners and fans.

Oxford 4×100 relay team places second. Kelln Green and Trent Schultz are above with the baton exchange.

The Oxford 4×100 relay team came into this track meet as the 10th seed. They left with a second-place finish. The team ran 43.72 on Saturday, backing up their 43.45 the day before. The wind had picked up on Saturday.

Only Jackson Heights defeated Oxford in the finals. The Oxford team consisted of Xavier McClamy, Kellen Green, Trent Schultz, and Chase Douglas.

Zeka easily defeats all the competition in the Class 4A 400.

400-meter highlights

Zeka wrapped up her history-making weekend (see here) with a first-place finish in the Class 4A 400.  She defeated Sofia Harper of Topeka Hayden at 59.43, a full 1.2 seconds in front of her. This marked her third consecutive state title in the event and broke another school record.

Jason Golden in the 400 finals.

In the boys, Jason Golden had his best time ever, finishing with a 50.20 time, good enough for sixth place. This was a better score than expected, as he was an eighth seed going in. He was also one of two 4A runners who bettered his time from the prelims to the finals.

Lyndi Barton with her best leap of 33-10.25. 

Jumping events

Wellington senior Lyndi Barton finished up her high school sports career with a 33-10.25 leap for ninth place in the 4A triple jump. She just missed placing when Kinley Spexarth of Andale got a 34-.5 leap on her sixth and final attempt.

Conway Springs was in the unique position of having three long jumpers in the Class 2A State Track meet. Sophomore Jade Erker placed in the top eight with a leap of 16-5. Junior Delaney Jones placed 10th with a leap of 15-10. Junior Lauren Pauley finished 11th with a 15-9.5 leap. All three of these girls are eligible to return next year to improve their marks.

On Friday, Pauley finished second in the 2A Triple Jump with a leap of 35-.25.

Conway Springs jumpers, from left, Jade Erker, Delaney Jones, and Lairen Pauly

Delaney Jones – javelin state champion.

State Champion

Delaney Jones was a state champion in the Class 2A javelin. She threw the javelin 140-1 on her sixth and final attempt, which put her over the top of Alexis Koelsch of Smith Center. Not only was it her personal best, but it also became a top-10 mark in Kansas. Jones was a third seed going in.

Other Sumner County performances:

•Argonia’s Bailey Haines placed 14th with a 5:52.03 time in the mile.

•Zabrina King of Conway Springs finished seventh in the Class 2A discus throw with an 116’11” mark.

•In the boys’ long jump, Belle Plaine got two placers: Mattix Bruner, fourth, 21-3.25; and Ryder Slack, fifth, 21-2.75.

•Oxford’s Tyler Brown placed sixth in the Class 2A discus with a 144-11 throw. He placed third the day before in the shot put with a 49-8.25 throw.