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Sophia Aldous
NEWPORT – It was a sunny, breezy day when 18 high school track and field teams took over Ellersick Field for the NE2B/1B Meet 1 Wednesday, April 15.
“First home meet of the year was a mix of all four seasons at once,” coach Levi Litowitz said. “Overall, I’m happy with the team’s performance. We even had a school record go down thanks to Lucas, so we love to see that.”
Lucas Croswhite won first place in pole vault at 14-feet, 7.75-inches, both a personal record and a new school record. He went on to win second in the 100-meter at 11.43, second in the high jump at five-feet, 10-inches. Rayben Jurgens placed first in discus at 137-feet, 2.5-inches; Jonathan Hill was second in the 800-meter at 2:07.95; Damien Hamberg was third in discus at 119feet, 6.5-inches, second in shot put at 39-feet, 10.25-inches; the 4x400 relay team of Dax Hansen, Damien Hamberg, Johnathan Hill and Tanner Rheinford placed first with a time of 3:45.54; and the 4x100 relay team of Leif Axel, Lucas Croswhite, Dax Hansen, Nathan Donati finished third at 46.44.
“Our 4x400 relay looks really competitive and could do some damage later in the season,” relays and vertical jumps coach Adam Wiltse said.
The Lady Grizzlies saw Aimee Busby finish second in the 1600-meter at 5:55.26; Olivia Collins was second in the 3200-meter at 12:35.22; Joelle Brandtner was second in long jump at 15-feet, 1-inch, third in triple jump at 31-feet, 11.5-inch, third pole vault with seven-feet; Aurelia Johnson was second in high jump at four-feet, six-inches; and Sophia Peaker was third in the 3200-meter at 13:43.30.
The Newport boys’ team placed second overall, earning 90 points. Northwest Christian was first in both boys’ and girls’ teams with 118 points for the boys and 113 for the girls. The Grizzly girls’ team placed fifth overall with a score of 65.
Selkirk and Cusick were also present at the meet, with both teams’ athletes cracking the top ten in several events.
Ranger Kaden Strickler won first place in the 110-meter, 39-inch hurdles with a seasonal best of 19.49. He went on to win fifth in the 300-meter, 36-inch hurdles at 56.08. Oscar Dispenza won third in the boys’ 3200-meter race, clocking in at 11:01.48. Jameson Davis won first place in the javelin, throwing 152-feet, 1-inch and second in the 300-meter, 36-inch hurdles with a personal best of 44.05 and fifth in the 200-meter race, with a season’s best of 24.58. He placed fourth in discus, throwing 118-feet, 5.5-inches.
Lady Ranger Rowan Hampson was sixth in the girls’ 200-meter race at 30.64 and seventh in the 400-meter at 1:10.83.
Cusick’s Zach McQuire, Marshal Eveland, Wesley McQuire and Isaac Sima placed seventh in the 4x400 relay with a time of 4:17.68.
Coming up, Newport travels to the NE2B League Meet #2 in Chewelah Wednesday, April 22, with events starting at 3:30 p.m. Then it’s off to the Mooberry Relays at Rogers High School Saturday, April 25 at 9 a.m. The Grizzlies will attend the NE2B Meet at Liberty School Tuesday, April 28 at 3:30 p.m.
Cusick went to the District 6 1B League Meet at Valley Christian School Tuesday, April 21 after the Miner’s deadline. Next up, the Panthers compete at the 29th Annual Priest River Invite Saturday, April 25 at 10 a.m.
Selkirk was also at the District 6 1B League Meet Tuesday, Results from that event will be in next week’s Miner Newspaper. The Rangers head to the Undeberg Invitational at Lind-Ritzville High School Saturday, April 25 at 10:30 a.m. They will be at another District 6 1B League Meet at Pomeroy High School Tuesday, April 28 at 3:30 p.m.
SOPHIA MATTICE-ALDOUS IS A MURROW NEWS FELLOW WORKING DIRECTLY WITH NEWSROOMS AT THE NEWPORT MINER AND RANGE MEDIA THROUGH A PROGRAM ADMINISTERED BY WASHINGTON STATE UNIVERSITY. HER REPORTING IS AVAILABLE FOR USE VIA CREATIVE COMMONS WITH CREDIT.
