The O’Neill Eagles track and field teams turned in an impressive showing at the Mid-States Conference Meet, with the girl’s squad earning a tie for fourth place alongside Crofton and the boys finishing fifth in a competitive field.
Leading the way for the Eagles was a record-breaking performance in the boys 400 meters, where Ryker Sudbeck captured first place while setting a new school record in a time of 50.60 seconds. Teammate Colten Shoemaker added to the strong showing in the event, placing third with a season-best time of 51.52.
The boys sprint relay team also made history, as the 4x100-meter relay of Shoemaker, Sudbeck, Maguire Heiss, and Porter Mathews placed second while breaking their own school record with a time of 44.22. The 4x400 relay team continued the momentum with a runner-up finish in 3:31.33, with Shoemaker, Mathews, Paul Fonseca, and Sudbeck combining for the effort.
Distance events saw solid contributions from both teams. The girls 4x800 relay team of Kiarra Kennedy, Reagan Kaufman, Hannah Hilker, and Mollie Corkle placed fourth with a season-best time of 10:15.68. The boys 4x800 relay team of Fonseca, Alonso Hernandez, Nate Brown, and Angel Sanchez also placed fourth, finishing in 8:51.31.
Individually, Kennedy had a standout meet, placing second in the 800-meter run (2:25.63) and fifth in the 1600 meters with a season-best 5:49.89. Mia Lindsay added a fourth-place finish in the 400 meters (1:04.34).
In the hurdles, Ian Yates secured third place in the 110 high hurdles with a time of 15.5 seconds.
Field events brought additional success for the Eagles. Grady Welke cleared 13 feet to place second in the pole vault. Mariah Kallhoff had a strong day in the throws, finishing second in the shot put (39’ 4.5”) and third in the discus (123’ 10”).
In the jumps, Blakely Sudbeck placed third in the girl’s high jump (5’0”), while Reese Boetcher took fourth (4’10”). On the boy’s side, Shoemaker finished fourth in the high jump (5’10”). Sudbeck also placed fifth in the long jump (20’2”), with Mathews close behind in sixth (19’11”). Serena Chavez added a third-place finish in the triple jump (33’11”), and Braxen Eichelberger placed sixth in the boy’s triple jump (39’9”).
The girls 4x100 relay team of Chavez, Tenzlie Sorensen, Haliey Fick, and Blakely Sudbeck placed fifth in 53.02 seconds. The girls 4x400 relay team of Lindsay, Corkle, Sudbeck, and Kennedy also earned fifth place with a time of 4:26.73.
The Eagles will be back in action next week at the Norfolk Catholic Invitational on Thursday, May 7. Field events are scheduled to begin at 10:00 a.m., with running events set for 1:00 p.m.