Farmington, R-W manage to get in meets
By JEFF LAMPE
For The Weekly Post
To say the weather has not cooperated this track season in an understatement.
“I’ve coached track since I was at Galva in 2002 and we’ve had rough springs before, but we’ve always had at least one meet in the month of March,” said Princeville Coach Jon Carruthers. “This year, we didn’t.”
Princeville is not alone. Until Monday’s junior varsity meet at Havana, no Elmwood-Brimfield track and field athletes had competed in an outdoors setting.
With any luck, this week will make all that cold, wet weather a distant memory. Several track meets were being held Tuesday, including the ICAC meet at Elmwood and a Princeville dual at Deer Creek-Mackinaw. But Thursday shows wet, chilly conditions for the John Levingston Invitational, being held in Havana due to ongoing work on the Lewistown track.
Two teams that have had some success getting in meets are Farmington and ROWVA-Williamsfield, both of which competed for the second time this outdoors season on Saturday at Western Illinois University’s Hanson Field in the Lee Calhoun Invitational.
ROWVA-Williamsfield – The Cougars had two winners at Saturday’s Lee Calhoun Invitational as the girls placed sixth and the boys were seventh out of 17 and 18 teams, respectively.
After placing fifth in the 100 meters (11.55 seconds) and 200 (23.96), senior Jack Cordle placed first in the 400 in a time of 52.64.
The other winner was junior Talan Hull in discus, with a throw of 133 feet and 2 inches.
Placing third for the boys team in the triple jump was senior Riley Danner with a PR of 38-11.75.
West Manning was fifth in the 3,200, posting a personal record of 12:05.88.
For the girls, the 4×200 relay of Erin Welch, Brooke Stickle, Marin Shane and Haven Manning placed second in 1:55.89, behind only Rock Island’s 1:52.67. And the 4×100 relay of Lauren Johnson, Haven Manning, Abbie Cain and Welch placed fourth in 53.68.
Manning, a junior, placed fourth in the long jump with a leap of 14-7.25.
Welch was also fifth in the 100 (13.37) and sophomore Megyn Erlacher was sixth in the discus (77-3.25) and shot put (30-2.5).
R-W was at Elmwood on Tuesday and is at the Charger Invite in Orion on Friday.
Farmington – The Farmers took fifth overall out of 18 boys teams last Saturday while the girls were 15th out of 17 squads at the Lee Calhoun Invitational.
Farmington’s lone winner was senior Brayde Morse who won the pole vault competition by clearing 12-5.5 and was also seventh in 110 hurdles (18.72). Sophomore Ryan Helle was fifth in the pole vault (9-10).
Placing third was sophomore Treyven Haroldson in the 400 in a PR of 55.16 and senior Chandler Whisenand in the high jump (5-9).
Farmington’s 4×100 (45.41) and 4×200 (1:35.72) boys relays of Hunter Darsham, Ethan Martin, Kyle Miller and Jake Martin each placed fourth. Sophomore Dax Ulm was also fourth in the 800 (2:14.52) and seventh in the 1,600 (5:20.65).
For the girls, Mariah Hayden was second in the 200 (27.62) and sixth in the 100 (13.42).
Farmington is at the John Levingston Invitational today and will host a junior high invite on Saturday starting at 10 a.m.
Princeville – One reason Carruthers wants to get his team back on the track is to get the boys 4×400 relay more time to mesh.
A state qualifier last year, the relay returns seniors Joey Bosch, Tayshaun Kieser and Parker Melick, so there’s plenty of continuity already.
And junior Jack Lied looks poised to fill in well for graduate Jordan Johnson. The relay was sixth at the Top Times indoor meet and Lied ran well, Carruthers said.
That wasn’t a certainty, though, as Lied hurt his knee in the first football game last fall and was in rough shape, according to Carruthers.
Through diligent rehab work Lied was able to come back for part of the basketball season and was posting 56-second splits indoors after not breaking one minute last season.
“He’s been lifting his tail off and has worked himself into being part of that 4×400,” Carruthers said. “He’s one of those success stories you love to see when all the hard work pays off.”
