The Cheney High boys track and field team captured 13 of 17 events to easily down visiting Clarkston 102-37 in Great Northern League dual meet action April 14, the Blackhawks’ first competition following spring break. Cheney ended the week by splitting the squad to compete in two large invitational meets last Saturday, one in Pasco and the other — the Big Red — on the Blackhawks’ home track.
Placing first against Clarkston were Peyton Putney (100-meter dash), Charles Johnson (200), Kaleb Loos (400), Drake Johnson (800), Matt Christianson (1,600), Chris Diaz (110 hurdles) and Jacob Hubbard (300 hurdles). Both relay teams placed first, while in the field, Kylar Peterson (shot put), Chase Reed (discus), Zach Nance (pole vault) and Gaige Felix (long jump) all captured their events.
Second-place finishes went to Loos (100), Jamiel Worthem (200), Tucker Cunningham (3,200), Max Pierson (110 hurdles), Mason Hilzendeger (300 hurdles), Andrew Wallace (discus), Ethan Sugimiera (javelin), Dawson West (high jump) and Jack Schreiber (pole vault). A number of other Cheney athletes earned third- through fifth-place finishes to help the Blackhawks’ scoring.
The boys finished 20th out of 24 teams at the Big Red, won by Wenatchee from the 4A Big Nine Conference. Cheney head coach Derek Slaughter said 12 personal records were set at the meet which, along with Clarkston, gave him a chance to try out some of the younger athletes in events while also resting more experienced competitors.
Hagel was one of three individuals to score for Cheney, earning the only top-10 finish on the track with a ninth place in the 100 in 11.89 seconds. Peterson tied for ninth in the shot put at 39 feet, 5.50 inches while Houston Moczulski was in a three-way tie for ninth in the pole vault at 11 feet. The 4x100 relay team of Loos, Daron Geller, Pierson and Hagel was fourth in 46.46 and the 4x400 team of Worthem, Hagel, Jacob McGourin and Jacob Hubbard was eighth in 3:51.46.
At Pasco, Putney qualified for the 200 finals with a prelim time of 22.42, and then bettered that for fifth with a 22.37. Isaiah Rigo set a new personal record of 2:12.76 for third in the wheelchair 800.
Charles Johnson was 13th in the 100 in 11.44, while Drake Johnson’s 9:42.12 gave him 14th in the 3,200 but moved him into fifth all-time in the Blackhawks’ record books for the event.
Slaughter said the 4x100 team of Diaz, Putney, Khalil Wallace and Charles Johnson is also closing in on a school record. Their 10th-place time of 43.85 at Pasco puts them within just over a second of that mark.
Slaughter also said Christianson turned in a good mile-split time of 4:33 in the distance medley relay, while Felix jumped well for 23rd in the long jump. The performance at both meets Saturday shows the development and capabilities of the Blackhawks as a team.
“It was kind of showing how much deeper we are this year than last year,” Slaughter said.
John McCallum can be reached at [email protected].
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