Tiger boys win title at Ellsworth

Talk about it

Chalk up another championship for the New Richmond boys track team.

The Tigers went to Ellsworth on Friday and captured the championship in the 2009 Ellsworth Invitational.

This one was not even close. The Tigers finished the meet with 169 points. Ellsworth and Osceola tied for second place with 102 points each.

New Richmond’s girls took third place in their half of the meet. Ellsworth took the girls title with 144 points, four points ahead of Osceola. New Richmond was third with 115 points.

This meet was a good indicator for the Middle Border Conference Meet on May 19 at Amery. Seven of the eight MBC teams were at Ellsworth, with Somerset the only team that was absent.

The points for the Tiger boys in Friday’s victory came in clusters. The hurdle races were one of the most productive areas for the Tigers. In the 300 hurdles the Tigers took the top three spots, with Patrick Hailey, Nate Suo and Cody Taubman finishing first, second and third. In the 110 hurdles Suo was first, Taubman third and Hailey sixth. The two hurdle events accounted for 43 points for the Tigers.

The distance races were another area where the Tigers hoarded points. Jake Wickham and Nick Stenske took the top two spots in the 1,600 meters, with freshman Dalton Sabby taking fourth. Wickham’s 4:29.25 time in the race established a new meet record.

Wickham also was the champion in the 800 meters. Stenske took second place in the 3,200 meters and the Tigers’ 3,200 meter relay team placed third.

Just about every Tiger entry earned points in the meet. The Peper brothers, Shaun and John, placed second and third in the discus throw. The Tigers got two places in the shot put, from

Blake Jacobson and Alex Thorson, and two in the pole vault from Tony Stockey and Brad Gartner.

“We were using this as a setting for conference,” said Tiger boys coach Roger Reuvers. “Some kids performed well, they’ve got to do that again (at the conference meet). We’ve got to keep improving. We’re not done yet.”

The 1,600 meter relay is the last scheduled event in meets because it is known to provide its share of dramatic finishes. That was the case in both halves of the meet on Friday.

The boys 1,600 relay was a battle to the finish between Wickham and Osceola’s Alex Mahler. They traded the lead during the race, but Mahler was able to come across the finish line first, in 3:35.55. Wickham crossed for the Tigers in 3:35.87.

The girls race was just as exciting. New Richmond’s McKenzie Kelly and Ellsworth’s Carlie Melstrom got the batons at almost the same instant. Kelly got an early half-stride lead and they ran stride for stride the rest of the way. They both had splits under 60 seconds as Kelly completed the Tigers’ win in 4:12.12. Ellsworth finished in 4:12.73.

The Tiger girls had a number of powerful efforts, they just didn’t quite have the depth to stay with Ellsworth and Osceola in the team points race.

Kelly was the champion in the 800 meters, finishing in 2:26.09. She also placed second in the 1,600 meters and fourth in the triple jump.

Freshman Kat Keller continues to sizzle in the sprints for the Tigers. She won the 100 and 200 meter dashes. These races were no contest as Keller won by a half-second each time. She also anchored the Tigers’ winning 800 meter relay team, passing several runners in her half-lap.

Senior Hannah Utzman added another honor to her distinguished distance running career in this meet. She broke the Tiger school record in the 3,200 meter run with her time of 11:44.9. That breaks the record of 11:46.1 that stood since Andrea Beuning set it as a freshman in 1988.

Utzman placed second in the 3,200 meters. Baldwin-Woodville’s Kayla Wagner continues to run some of the best times in the state. She won Friday’s race in 11:02.

Other members of the Tiger girls team continue to emerge. Alina Stai ran one of her best hurdle races to place third in the 100 hurdles. Senior Shelly Stockey has been posting the best times of her career. She place third in a very strong 400 meter dash field. Freshman Carley Brotzler is quickly becoming a strong second option in the sprints. She placed in the 100 and 200 meter dashes on Friday.

New Richmond Relays are Friday

The 43rd running of the New Richmond Relays will be held this Friday at the New Richmond High School track.

The meet begins at 4 p.m., when field events will be starting. Opening ceremonies will be held at 5 p.m. Running events will start at 5:15.

This is the 43rd year that the Relays have been held for the boys and the 34th year that the girls’ Relays is being held.

This year’s meet should be packed with talented athletes. Fifteen schools are competing this year. Joining the Tigers in the meet are Hudson, River Falls, Somerset, Osceola, Amery, Baldwin-Woodville, Barron, Eau Claire North, Hayward, Menomonie, Prescott, Rice Lake and Unity.

Tags: sports, track, new, richmond