State track preview: Weather is predicted to dominate
De’Andre Washington and Blake Rausch will be participating in the 4×100 boys relay team at the state meet.
by Tracy McCue, Sumner Newscow — The Kansas State Track and Field Championships, the largest state high school sporting event, is scheduled to begin Friday at Wichita State University. But the weather appears to be as uncooperative with the trackers as it has been in every other spring sport.
So let’s assume everything will go without a hitch tomorrow and Saturday. The meet promises to be heavy on Wellington athletes but light on other Sumner County athletes.
Wellington is bringing 17 boys and girls entries to the state track meet. The full schedule can be found here.
Now how many of those entries will end up being podium standing placers? It is going to be tough.
Wellington senior Eric Kop appears to be the leading candidate to place at state and bring home a first-place medal. He is currently the top seed in the 300-meter hurdles. He has a 38.82 regional seed time, tops in Class 4A.
Eric Kop in hurdles.
Kop also is the fourth seed in the 110-meter hurdles with a 14.50 time.
Elsewhere, De’Andre Washington will be participating in four events, the 100, 200, 4×100 relay and the long jump. He has the best chance of placing in the 200, where he is the seventh seed.
The 4×100 meter relay team consisting of Grey Hatfield, Christian Buckman, Blake Raush, and Washington comes in a ninth seed.
On the girls’ side, Wellington could have several placers, especially in the field events.
Senior discus thrower Brooke McCorkle comes into the meet as a fourth seed. Taylor Meyer is a seventh seed in the discus. School record holder Elise LeGrand is the sixth seed in the pole vault.
Camryn Ricke, who won the regional in the long jump, is an 8th seed in 4A.
The 4×100 meter relay girls team for Wellington is the seventh seed in 4A. That team consists of Mercedes Glover, Jordyn Young, Camryn Ricke, Jennifer Jensen
As far as other Sumner County schools, Conway Springs Jonathon Wright goes in as a fifth seed in the triple jump and seventh seed in the high jump.
Conway Springs Zachery Mercer is the fourth seed in the long jump and Daniel Becker is a seventh seed in the shot put.
The “tentative” state track meet schedule for the Sumner County participants, their school, and their seed, are as follows:
BOYS
Friday
8 a.m. – Shot put: Daniel Becker, C.Springs, 7th seed.
9:45 a.m. – Long jump: Zachery Mercer, C. Springs, 4th seed.
11:30 a.m. – High jump: Jonathan Wright, C. Springs, 7th seed.
2:30 p.m. – 110-meter hurdles prelims: Eric Kop, Well., 4th seed. Gavin York, Well. 8th seed.
10:05 a.m. — 4×100 meter relay prelims: 2A – Conway Springs (Zachary Mercer, Collin Koester, Ryan Zoglmann, Jonathan Wright), 6th seed.
3:15 p.m. — 4×100 meter relay prelims: 4A- Wellington (Grey Hatfield, Christian Buckman, Blake Rausch, Washington), 9th seed.
3:55 p.m. – 400 meter prelims: Christian Buckman, 10th seed.
4:45 p.m. – 300-meter hurdles prelims: Kop, Well., 1st seed. York, 10th seed.
5:35 p.m. – 200-meter relays: De’Andre Washington, 7th seed.
6:25 p.m. – 4×400 relay: Wellington (Eric Kop, Blake Rausch, Christian Buckman, Chase Pfalzgraf), 8th seed.
7 p.m. – 3200 run finals: Tyler Brown, Well., 14th seed.
Saturday
9 a.m. – 100 meter prelims: Washington, Well., 11th seed. –
11:30 a.m. – Javelin: Collin Koester, C. Springs, 9th seed.
3 p.m. – Long Jump: Michael Ledbetter, Well., ninth seed. Washington, Well., 12th seed.
3 p.m. – Triple Jump: Wright, fifth seed.
5:30 p.m. – 800 meters finals: Zach Haxton, Arg., 8th seed.
GIRLS
Friday
9:45 a.m. – Javelin – Alivia Lange, C. Springs, 3rd seed. Lexi Fisher, C. Springs, 15th seed.
10:25 a.m. – 400-meter prelims – Alyssa Hunter, B. Plaine, 12th seed.
11:30 a.m. – Triple jump: Makenzie Curry, C. Springs, 11th seed.
1:15 p.m. – Long jump: Cameryn Ricke, Well., 8th seed.
2:10 p.m. – 110-meter hurdles prelims: Elise LeGrand, Well. 16th seed.
2:55 p.m. – 4×100 meter relay prelims: Wellington (Mercedes Glover, Jordyn Young, Camryn Ricke, Jennifer Jensen), 7th seed.
4:45 p.m. – Discus: Brooke McCorkle, 4th seed.
Saturday
8 a.m. – Pole vault: Legrand, Well., 6th seed.
9:45 a.m. – Javelin: Taylor Meyer, Well., 7th seed.
