Track ’Hawks battle cold, wind and tough competition

The Blackhawk boys and girls track teams entered the Tiger Relays last week and had to contend with high winds, cold temperatures and the presence of big school track powers Bentonville and Fayetteville.

It was no problem as the ’Hawks competed well with the girls taking the runnerup spot behind defending 7A state champ Bentonville, outpointing 2018s’ secondand third-place finishers in 7A competition in Rogers and Fayetteville. Bentonville won the girls meet with 264, followed by Pea Ridge with 121, Fayetteville 107, Farmington 38, Decatur 25, Springdale HarBer 24, Gravette 18, Shiloh 15 and Rogers 5

The boys held their own and were the top finisher among schools not in the big school classification. Defending 7A champion Bentonville won with 177, followed by Fayetteville 165, Springdale HarBer 102, Pea Ridge 80, Farmington 61, Gravette 20, Rogers Heritage 16, Decatur 11, and Shiloh and Rogers with 7 each.

All-State track athletes Blakelee Winn and Cassidy Mooneyhan won individual titles in the 100-meter hurdles and pole vault, respectively. Winn ran an astonishing 16.30 in the 100-meter hurdles, below the state qualifying time, to win her race while Mooneyhan was clearing 11’6” in extremely difficult conditions.

Justin Koon was the sole individual winner in the boys division, taking the boys 300-meter hurdles race in 43.38, less than a second and a half from the state qualifying time. The 4x800-meter relay won the other boys’ gold, cruising to first in 8:50.79 with Josiah Small, Kevin Vasquez, Sander VanderVeen and Shaed Cates passing the baton. That team qualified for the state final earlier in the season.

The Blackhawks got second place finishes from Winn in the 100-meter (13.02), Kynley Burton in the high jump (5’0”), Koon in the 110-meter hurdles (16.24),Logan Spears in the discus (106’11”), and the girls 4x100-meter team (55.27).

Winning third places were Shelby Dunlap in the 100-meter hurdles (17.69), the triple jump (32’11”) and in the 300-meter hurdles (51.00), Meredith Mitchell in the discus (91’5”), Connor Escajeda in the 200-meter (23.76), Cooper Elliott in the 400-meter (54.16), Zach Woods in the pole vault (12’0”),and the girls 4x800meter team (11:56.53).

Fourth place winners were Harmony Reynolds in the 1,600-meter (6:07.29) and the 3,200-meter (13:14.56), and Cates in the 400-meter (54.75).

Other girl scorers were: Jamison Toms, fifth in the 100-meter (13.48), seventh in the 200-meter (28.83) and sixth in the long jump (14’4”); Mooneyhan, fifth in the 200-meter (28.39) and eighth in the 100-meter (13.58); Olivia Scates, fifth in the 3,200-meter (14:29.07); Clare Hale, fifth in the 100-meter hurdles (18.21) and fifth in the 300-meter hurdles (54.04).

Boys also scoring were: Adam Trammel, sixth in the 200-meter (25.01) and eighth in the 400-meter (54.90); Colbey Norman, fifth in the 300-meter hurdles (47.03); Tate Christensen, sixth in the discus (104’7”); Tristen Brewer, seventh in the discus (103’5”), and the 4x100meter relay which finished fifth (47.98).

The track and field ’Hawks, directed by girls’ head coach Heather Wade and boys’ head coach Asa Poteete, will have an off week this week before returning to action after spring break. The week after that will see Pea Ridge host a seventh-grade championship on April 1, a junior high championship on April 7 with the varsity track championships being run on April 9.