Area track and field athletes turned in strong early performances Tuesday, May 19, during the opening day of the Division III Southwest District meet at Graham High School before severe weather postponed the remainder of the competition until Saturday morning.
Athletes from Benjamin Logan and Bellefontaine all advanced competitors into finals and regionals, while several field events and running preliminaries were interrupted by storms.
Benjamin Logan Raiders
Benjamin Logan’s boys’ team was highlighted by a record-breaking performance from Carter Daniels in the pole vault before the weather halted competition.
Daniels cleared 15-7 to break the district record of 15-6.5 and has already secured the district championship. He was attempting 16-1 when storms forced officials to suspend the meet. Daniels will return Saturday morning to complete his attempts before the event becomes official.
The Raiders also earned a fifth-place finish in the 4×800 relay as Gavin Jordan, Brock Henry, Luke Vesley, and Tyler Shoopman combined to run 8:52.28.
Roman Maxwell added a fifth-place finish in long jump with a leap of 19-8.
Benjamin Logan qualified athletes into finals in multiple running events as Cooper Buck posted a personal-best 16.77 in the 110 hurdles to advance. The Raiders’ 4×200 relay team of Cooper Buck, Carter Buck, Davis Matthews, and Wyatt Predmore also qualified for finals in 1:32.97.
On the girls’ side, Benjamin Logan sits atop the team standings after day one with 23 points.
Abby Vance led the Raiders with a runner-up finish in the 100-meter dash in 12.89 to qualify for finals Saturday. The 4×800 relay team of Elliott Butler, Lucy Wenger, Peyton Smith, and Lottie Bodin placed fifth in 11:04.28.
Benjamin Logan’s 4×200 relay team of Adelina Ramsey, Storm LeVan, Scarlett Elliott, and Aleah France placed sixth in 1:52.78 while also advancing to finals.
Autumn Cline qualified to regionals with a runner-up finish in shot put at 34-5, while Kaylee Hays added a fifth-place finish in the event. Madi Oakes advanced to regionals in high jump after clearing 4-8 for fourth place, while Joplin Schneider finished seventh at 4-6.
The Raiders also advanced competitors into finals in the 1600 run, 4×100 relay, 400 dash, 300 hurdles, 800 run, 200 dash, 3200 run, discus, long jump, pole vault, and 4×400 relay.
Bellefontaine Chieftains
Bellefontaine athletes also turned in several standout performances before storms suspended the meet.
Kelsey Snapp captured the Division III district championship in shot put while breaking the school record with a throw of 42-6. Ella Fultz added a seventh-place finish with a throw of 26-7.5.
The Chieftains’ 4×800 relay team of Grace Brown, Hannah Wilson, Layla Davis, and Kaileigh Flora finished runner-up in 10:29.32.
Bellefontaine also qualified multiple athletes into Saturday finals. Callie Shumaker and Sloan Stolly both advanced in the 100 hurdles, while the 4×200 relay team of Shumaker, Stolly, Davis, and Jillian Ullom also moved on to finals competition.
All remaining field-event finals and unfinished running events will resume Saturday morning at Graham. Field events are scheduled to begin at 10 a.m. with running finals starting at 11:30 a.m. The top four finishers in each event will advance to next week’s regional meet at Piqua High School.
