On Home Ground: GHS track & field hosts annual invitational

Though the warm weather faded by the time Glenrock High School had the chance to host its annual Tony Lehner / Al Finch Invitational, the track & field team welcomed the chance to finally compete in front of its hometown fans April 14. It was a small gathering, yet productive as the Herd walked away with many top- five finishes at The Rock.
“We had one pre-qualify for state and that was Isabella Taylor in the long jump. The two highlight athletes of the week are Charlie Schowengerdt and Gavin Zegier,” GHS head coach Peter Fenster said. “Charlie’s a first time long jumper this season and jumped 17-09.5. He has a ton of work to do and will continue to jump farther as the season progresses. The second athlete was Gavin Zeiger who ran a 12.32 in the 100-meter dash. This was the first time Gavin ran the 100-meter dash this year and he crushed his personal record from last year.”
 
BOYS
The leading Herder sprinters finished in order during the 100 meters where Logan Jones captured third place at 12.22 seconds, immediately followed by Gavin Zeiger at 12.32 and Dusty Cox at 12.54. Charlie Schowengerdt was the fastest Herder in the 200 with a sixth-place time of 25.92.
In the 400, GHS’ Brigham Partridge was solid in capturing third place after he was clocked at 56.96, less than a second ahead of Schowengerdt at 57.52. Ayden Moulton locked down sixth in the 800 with a time of 2:20.69, one place in front of teammate Mason O’Brien at 2:27.47.
In distance events, Easton Low was first overall in the 3,200 where he clocked a 13:48.49 to win it by more than a minute. GHS’ Owen Caldwell was sixth in the 1,600 where he came through at 5:46.99.
The action in hurdles was limited but that didn’t stop Ziegler. He won the 300 hurdles by three seconds after he crossed the finish line in 44.09.
In field events, senior Rylan Bloem continues to lead by example. The senior was fifth in shot put with a heave of 36 feet, 4.5 inches. Case Barrett also made the top 10 with a toss of 33-4.25 and Tristan Fleming hit 32-7.5.
Barrett was the top Herder in discus where he earned sixth place with a launch of 103-9, just over a foot ahead of Bloem at 102-4.5 and Casey Sarvey in eighth at 100-4.
Partridge had his highest placing of the day in triple jump where he earned third place with a mark of 35-5. Schowengerdt led the Herders in long jump with a fifth-place leap of 17-9.5, one spot ahead of Moulton at 17-2.75.
 
GIRLS
The Herders had their best day of the season. Two first-place finishes were among the many competitive performances.
Glenrock senior Julia Sarvey won the 400 meters  by a blink of the eye at 1:03.46, edging out Douglas’ Leticia DeGracia at 1:03.49. GHS’ Megann Farley was fourth at 1:05.97.
All-state veteran Isabella Taylor had the quickest feet on the team when she took fifth place in the 100 meters at 13.98 seconds and fifth in the 200 at 28.90. She also won the long jump with a distance of 16-10, just ahead of Sarvey at 15-0.
Freshman Lucky Ticknor welcomed the challenge in the 1,600 where she captured second place after crossing the finish line in 6:35.97. Mekenzi Partridge was solid as well in the 300 hurdles where she finished third at 51.78.
In field events, freshman Caitlin Williams was third overall in shot put with a toss of 27-4, one spot ahead of teammate Zhane Johnson at 27-1.5. GHS’ Evie Sivage captured second place in discus with a heave of 83-5.5, while Mackenzie McCullough was third at 80-9.
 
UP NEXT
The Herders will enjoy another close meet this week when they travel a little east to compete at Douglas on Friday, April 21.