By Stephen Smoot
Not long ago, a varsity track squad for Pendleton County’s high school athletes was merely a dream. Coaches, athletes, and administrators developed a game plan to help get the team up to the starting blocks. During the past few years, the team has sent more and more student athletes out to first establish the team, then work to build its competitiveness.
Now the starting pistol has fired and both the girls’ and boys’ squads shot into action in their initial event of the year in the East Hardy Invitational. Both squads feature a mix of seasoned and experienced competitors with new faces.
Pendleton County’s boys’ squad looks much different with the addition of several standouts from the football team. These athletes joined those who have already enjoyed success in past years to make the Wildcats a potentially potent threat in Class A track for both the region and looking ahead at the state meet in May.
Being the first meet, all athletes hit either personal or season records.
The men’s 100-meter dash saw Cameron Wyatt finish fifth with a 12.35, followed by Travis Owens in eighth with a 12.52, Britton Lough 11th with a 13.09, and Jonah See with a 13.53 in 13th place.
In the 200 meters, See finished ninth with a 29.27. Sam Eason placed sixth in the 400-meter race with a 59.95 and Cain Nulph’s 1:06.10 placed him ninth.
Eason took second in the 800-meter race with a time of 2:36.11, followed by Nulph at sixth with 2:49.49 and Spencer Hartman in 10th with 3:09.65.
In the 300-meter hurdles, Cayden Minor-Figueroa placed third with a time of 51.89.
Cayson Armstrong, Owens, Wyatt, and Lough ran in the 4×100 relay and placed fourth with a time of 48.74. Relay races rely on precision as well as speed, so look for fast improvements in these teamwork oriented races. Eason, Armstrong, Owens, and Wyatt competed in the 4×200 and placed second to Moorefield. The 4×400 team, composed of David Noble, Nulph, Minor-Figueroa, and Eason placed third with a 4:15.79.
The boys’ side did well in field events. Noble took second in the shot put with a 37, followed by Hartman with a 32-10, Ben Puffenbarger at 10th with a 24-0.5, and Garrett Hartman placed 18th with a 22-10.
Discus competition saw Spencer Hartman throw a 71, Puffenbarger a 65.07, and Garrett Hartman a 50-07. They placed 10th, 12th, and 15th, respectively. Noble performed well in the long jump, placing fifth with a 16-0.5. Armstrong placed ninth with a 15 and Minor-Figueroa 12th with a 13-0.9.
The girls’ side of the Wildcat track squad saw both its experienced runners and its incoming freshmen perform well at Baker.
Olivia Gonshor placed 10th in the 100-meter dash with a 14.95, followed by Carly Kimble at 12th with a 15.27, and Mckenzie VanDevander at 16th with a 16.16. In the 200, Gonshor picked up eighth place with a 31.77. Kimble followed at 12th with a 33.32. The 400-meter race saw Callie Dunn earn third place with a 1:16.17, Shayne Clutter earned seventh with a 1:22.13. Right behind her finished newcomer Jazminn Severance at 1:24.61 and at 11th, Evie Nulph with a time of 1:28.14.
Evie Nulph also placed third in the 800 with a time of 3:36.46. Allison Reuss had a fifth place finish in the 1600 with a time of 8:03.11. In the 3200, Dunn completed the race in 14:39.17 for third place. Reuss took sixth at 16:41.05. VanDevander placed fourth in the 300-meter hurdles with a time of 1:03.46.
Wildcat relay runners made the biggest splash of the day for Pendleton County. The 4×100 team outpaced Southern by over a second to take first. Kimble, VanDevander, Reuss, and Gonshor ran for a 1:02.47 in the win. The 4×200 team enjoyed the same great result, placing first with a 2:10.42. Kimble, VanDevander, Severance, and Gonshor competed in the race.
The 4×400 team took second with a time of 5:54.16. Evie Nulph, Clutter, Makayla Turner, and Dunn ran it in 5:54.16. Reuss, Clutter, Turner, and Dunn took second in the 4×800 with a time of 12:47.46.
April 8 brings the first big test for both the boys and the girls when they travel to the Frankfort Invitational. This event often pulls the best from the four state region of West Virginia, Maryland, Pennsylvania, and Virginia with the home standing Falcons typically among the best in the region in running sports.
