Homan breaks school record, Plainsmen show out at home invite

By Emmalee Parsley Stevens

Grant tribune Sentinel

The Perkins County track and field teams hosted the E. Lee Todd Invitational on April 2 at Perkins County High School, turning in a strong showing across both running and field events.

On the boys side, Carson Green led the way in the middle-distance events. Green earned fifth place in the 400-meter dash with a time of 55.48 seconds and followed that performance with a runner-up finish in the 800 meters with a time of 2 minutes 14.01 seconds. Alex Cole placed 11th in the 400 meters with a time of 58.93 seconds, followed by Spencer Williams in 14th with a time of 1 minute 0.59 seconds and Tyson Schwanebeck in 29th with a time of 1 minute 8.24 seconds.

Distance runners also delivered solid results. Leighton Fryzek placed fourth in the 1600 meters with a time of 5 minutes 22.34 seconds, while Jesus Marquez finished 12th with a time of 5 minutes 38.92 seconds. In the 3200 meters, Ethan Swesey claimed the top spot with a winning time of 11 minutes 14.78 seconds, and Logan Barry added a ninth-place finish with a time of 12 minutes 25.88 seconds.

Perkins County saw success in the relays as well. The 4x100-meter relay team of Miles Knapp, Aaron Ornelas, Spencer Williams and Max Latella took fifth place with a time of 47.90 seconds. The throwers relay team of Tyson Schwanebeck, Alec Reese, Mason Minster and Luke Minster captured first place with a time of 48.71 seconds. In the 4x400-meter relay, Carson Green, Ethan Swesey, Alex Cole and Logan Barry placed fourth with a time of 3 minutes 49.28 seconds, while the 4x800-meter relay team of Swesey, Fryzek, Marquez and Barry earned second place with a time of 9 minutes 11.13 seconds.

In field events, Luke Minster led the throwers with a 10th-place finish in discus with a throw of 114 feet 10 inches and added a 17th-place finish in shot put with a distance of 35 feet 2 inches. Mason Minster placed 19th in discus with a distance of 102 feet 3 inches and cleared 5 feet to place 10th in the high jump. Spencer Williams recorded a sixth-place finish in the triple jump with a distance of 35 feet 10.5 inches and was 17th in the long jump with a leap of 16 feet 5.5 inches.

The girls team also posted several standout performances. Olivia Gengenbach placed seventh in the 100 meters with a time of 14.18 seconds and sixth in the 200 meters with a time of 29.86 seconds. In the 400 meters, Haylea McGreer led the group in 14th place with a time of 1 minute 10.01 seconds, followed closely by Alyssa Laber in 15th with a time of 1 minute 10.26 seconds and Jaymee Harger in 23rd with a time of 1 minute 21.70 seconds.

Madison Potts paced the distance runners with a pair of second-place finishes, taking runner-up in the 1600 meters with a time of 5 minutes 52.27 seconds and in the 3200 meters with a time of 12 minutes 55.26 seconds. Savannah Miller added a sixth-place finish in the 3200 meters with a time of 13 minutes 56.47 seconds, while Kayleen Jurado placed 12th in the 1600 meters with a time of 7 minutes 38.58 seconds and Kinley Bottom finished 13th with a time of 8 minutes 10.33 seconds.

Hurdler Ella Homan turned in a strong day, placing second in the 100-meter hurdles with a time of 17.29 seconds and third in the 300-meter hurdles with a time of 50.15 seconds. Macey Cole added a fifth-place finish in the 100 hurdles with a time of 19.02 seconds and placed fourth in the 300 hurdles with a time of 56.76 seconds, while Morgan Day took sixth in the 300 hurdles with a time of 57.36 seconds.

Relay teams for the Lady Plainsmen also contributed key points. The 4x100-meter relay team of Anley Sauder, Ava Seger, Olivia Gengenbach and Alyssa Laber finished fifth with a time of 54.92 seconds. The throwers relay team of Lila Hill, Ryleigh Johnson, Bristol Frazier and Paige Franklin placed second with a time of 1 minute 12.22 seconds, and the 4x400-meter relay team of Seger, McGreer, Miller and Homan took sixth with a time of 4 minutes 46.03 seconds.

In the field events, Jacqueline Gloy earned fifth place in the shot put with a distance of 31 feet 0.75 inches, while Ryleigh Johnson led the discus throwers with a 14th-place finish with a throw of 83 feet 10 inches. Kamryn Klockman cleared 4 feet 8 inches to take third in the high jump, and Macey Cole added a sixth-place finish with a height of 4 feet 4 inches. In the pole vault, McGreer placed sixth with a height of 7 feet 6 inches, followed by Gengenbach in seventh with a height of 7 feet.

A highlight of the meet came in the long jump, where Ella Homan placed third with a leap of 15 feet 8.25 inches, setting a new school record and surpassing the previous mark set by Katie Cook in 2022. Lauren Bishop also stood out in the jumps, placing third in the triple jump with a distance of 31 feet 6.75 inches, while Anley Sauder finished fifth with a distance of 30 feet 8 inches.

Perkins County will be back in action on Tuesday, April 7, at the Dundy County-Stratton Invitational in Benkelman. Results from that meet will appear in a future edition of the Grant Tribune-Sentinel. The teams are also scheduled to compete at the Sutherland Invitational on Friday, April 17.