ALAH jr. high boys track and field open 2025 season with two wins
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By Sally McCarthy
The ALAH jr. high boys track and field teams began their 2025 season at home in a triangular meet with Villa Grove and Tri-County. Both the seventh and eighth grade teams won their division. The seventh grade score was very close with the Knights scoring 47 points to Villa Grove’s 46. Tri-County was third with 38. The eighth grade scored 68 points to take first. Villa Grove was second with 40 and Tri-County third with 24.
Individual winners for the seventh grade boys were Nate Blaudow in the high jump at 4’ 5” and Abel Lat in the 110 meter hurdles with a time of 19.7. Eli Burket, Kael Ward, Brodie Carter, and Lat took first in the 4 X 200 relay with a time of 2:00.8. Second place points were earned by Lat, 200, 29.1; Kael Ward, 400, 1:09.1; Camden Casteel, 800, 2:50.0; Blaudow, 110 hurdles, 22.6; and Brodie Carter, high jump, 4’ 4”. Both the 4 X 1 relay with Micah Burket, Noah Albright, Griffin Ponder, and Bowyer McGrath, with a time of 1:02.0 and the 4 X 4 relay of Micah Burket, Ward, Casteel, and Lat at 4:50.0 also earned second place points. Cody Miller, 800, 2:56.5; Casteel, 1600, 6:21.9; Gabe Brown, discus, 62’ 3”; and Ward, long jump, 13’ 6” scored third place points. Finishing the scoring with fourth places were Eli Burket, 100, 14.1; Cody Miller, 1600, 6:21.9; and Brown, shot put, 24’ 1.75”.
In the eighth grade meet, athletes who were instrumental in last year’s seventh grade second place team in the IESA State Track and Field Championships continued their success into their eighth grade year. The Knights had eight first place finishes in six individual events plus two relays. All told the eighth grade squad scored in twelve of the thirteen events in the meet and had nineteen total places in the meet.
Leading the way was Beau Green who had three individual firsts, in the high jump at a PR of 5’ 5”, the 800 in 2:22.2 and the 1600 with a time of 5:07.7. Donovan Vanausdoll had two firsts and both PRs, first in the shot put with a toss of 41’ 0.25” and then in the discus, with at 147’ 11” throw. Jase Kingery earned the other individual first in the 110 meter hurdles in a PR time of 17.16. These three plus Bentley Hutson combined to take first in the 4 X 4 relay at 4:04.2. Kingery and Hutson along with Griffin Hilton, and Anthony Graham took first in the 4 X 2 relay in 1:45.6. The 4 X 1 relay of Nolan Bartley, Greyson Yoder, Brian Hadley, and Vanausdoll took second with a time of 56.9. There were six individual seconds, Hutson, 100, 12.7, and 400, 56.9; Colton Snyder, 800, 2:31.2 and 1600, 5:22.3; Bartley, 110 hurdles, 20.9, PR, and high jump, 5’ 0”. Scoring third place points were Graham, 100, 12.8, PR; Hilton, 200, 27.5; and Kingery, 400, 1:01.3, PR. Rounding out the scoring for the eighth grade was a fourth place finish by Hilton in the 100 at 13.1.
The Jr. High Knights teams were to run a meet at Shelbyville on Monday, March 31 before returning home on April 7 to host a dual meet with neighboring Arcola.
Other seventh grade boys results from March 24:
100M: Bowyer McGrath, 14.3; Brodie Carter, 14.4, PR; Noah Albright, 15.7; Donovan Graham, 18.1
200M: Brodie Carter, 30.7, PR; Bowyer McGrath, 31.1; Eli Burket, 31.3; Micah Burket, 32.6; Griffin Ponder, 35.7
Shot Put: Micah Burket, 22’ 2”
High Jump: Bowyer McGrath, 3’ 8”; Griffin Ponder, 3’ 8”
Other eighth grade boys results from March 24:
100M: Brian Hadley, 14.0, PR; Denton Marner, 14.3
200M: Denton Marner, 30.8; Brian Hadley, 31.0, PR
110M Hurdles: Greyson Yoder, 22.2
Shot Put: Dustin Snyder, 22’ 6”, PR
Discus: Dustin Snyder, 56’ 11”
Long Jump: Nolan Bartley, 14’ 1”, PR; Greyson Yoder, 13’ 7.5”, PR; Griffin Hilton, 13’ 3.5”
Jr. High Girls
The 2025 ALAH jr. high track and field girls’ teams opened their season with a home triangular meet with Villa Grove and Tri-County on Monday, March 24. In the team standings, the seventh grade squad finished in third place with 20 points behind winner Villa Grove, 54, and runner up Tri-County, 50. The eighth grade took second with 21 points behind first place Villa Grove with 83 and ahead of Tri-County who scored 13.
Knights eighth grader Zoey Mendoza was a double winner taking first in the 200 meters in a PR time of 30.2 and in the high jump with a PR of 4’ 8”. Zoey also ran a leg of the first place 4 X 200 relay along with Macee Boddy, Payton Tinkle, and Abby Hernandez who had a time of 2:08.6. That foursome also took second in the 4 X 400 relay with a time of 5:09.0. Macee Boddy finished the eighth grade scoring with a second place finish in the 200 meters in 30.9.
The seventh grade girls team has several sixth grade athletes who are first year competitors and are valuable addition to the seventh grade team. Placing for the Knights seventh grade team in second place were Kylan Hall, 400, 1:23.4; Brianda Calvillo, 1600, 7:29.7 and the 4 X 200 relay of Kyndall Crist, Chloe Lawson, Avery Johnson, and Kylan Hall. Earning third place finishes were Crist, 200, 31.1, PR; and Calvillo, 800, 3:29.7. Fourth place points went to Sofia Williams for the 800, 3:31.9 and the 1600, 7:53.4.
The jr. high teams were to have a meet at Shelbyville on Monday, March 31 before returning home to host neighboring Arcola in a dual meet on April 7.
Other 7th grade girls results from March 24:
100M: Kyndall Crist, 15.2; Chloe Lawson, 16.5; Ivy Binion, 19.8
Shot Put: Ivy Binion, 14’ 7.5”
Other 8th grade girls results from March 24:
100M: Payton Tinkle, 15.5; Abby Hernandez, 16.0