Potter-Dix, Leyton athletes emerge from C-D pack

Potter-Dix high jumper Regyn Hicks tied the meet record for Class D, clearing 5-02 at Saturday's Bayard C-D.

A record mark is quite an achievement any time. But just placing in any event was a chore at Bayard, thanks to a crowded field of 19 teams. In some events more than 40 athletes vied for a podium position, forcing events to overlap and competitors to scramble from one discipline to another and back.

Still, the Coyotes and Warriors performed well. Leyton's Kaitlyn Berner surpassed her target mark of 34 feet to win the triple jump. Four others from the schools-Alexus Rozelle (shot put), Bryant Knigge (pole vault) and Jake Johnson (1600 meter run) of Potter-Dix, along with Kassandra Harris (discus) of Leyton-took gold in their events.

Hicks had cleared 5-0 in practice for an unofficial personal best before the season's first meet. Yet 5-02 came as something of a surprise this early in the spring.

"That's the first time I've done that," she said afterward. Preliminary rounds of the hurdles interrupted her jumps, causing some concern over stamina as the bar was raised. But, she added, "I jumped better after the hurdles. That doesn't make sense."

Knigge felt short of his personal best-13-0-in the vault. He is working toward a goal of 14-0 and a return to state. His 12-06 was enough to clear the field, however.

"The win is good and I'm ahead of where I was at this point last year," he explained. "There are just a few little things I know I'm doing wrong. I just can't correct them on the spot."

The freshman Rozelle threw 36-4 to capture the girls' shot put competition and log her first varsity win in the event.

"I was nervous coming in," she admitted-a reference to the long list of rivals, many with quite a bit more experience. "Throwing you just can't think about it too much."

Johnson's win in the 1600 came after a draining battle with Cody-Kilgore's Seito Ono. The Potter-Dix runner edged to a lead  early on then lost it to Ono on the backstretch of the final lap.

Heading into the third turn, however, Johnson slipped past. He then held on for a narrow, half-second victory, crossing with an arm raised in celebration.

"The mile is probably the most mental race out there," Johnson pointed out. "You have to run your race, In the end I had something left."

Harris-Leyton's discus star-faced a battle, as well. She had thrown 120 feet in practice, but fell short of that mark in competition.

"I think nerves got in the way," she said.

Harris led the field of 45 throwers, including teammates Katy Ernest (11th) and Dani McKay (19th), throughout her rounds. On the last turn, however, Olga Aguilar of Bridgeport tossed a 111-09 to inch into the lead. Harris then stepped up and recorded a winning 112-09.

"I'm satisfied," she said of her progress in the early season. Harris is targeting 135 by the end of the schedule.

Berner's triple jump mark of 34-03 broke her own school record. She had been aiming for 34 feet ever since hitting 31 as a freshman.

"I've been trying to break that barrier and I did," Berner said. "It felt good."

More Leyton Highlights

Zach Hellie and Kenny Ernest outlasted much of the meet's 22-man high jump roster. Only two competitors cleared a higher bar than the Warriors' mark of 5-06.

Hellie tied for third with Rowan Fichtner of Burns, thanks to fewer misses-despite running the 400 meters before jumping. Ernest was awarded a strong sixth.

"That's my best this year," Hellie said with a smile. "Hopefully I'll do higher by the end."

For the girls, Berner backed up her triple jump win with a silver in the long jump. Her 16-02.5 kicked up sand just half an inch short of Bayard's Miah Vera.

"The run throughs weren't there," she noted. "I'm not fully where I want to be on consistency."

Berner and teammate Jessica Houk advanced to the finals in the 200 meter dash. They wound up sixth and eight, respectively.

Houk was disappointed in the aftermath. Rounding the turn she was slowed by a slight cramp.

"I've never run that bad," she said. When asked if she was happy earning a spot in the afternoon round, beating a number of talented runners, she could only give a yes and a no.

"Yes because I ran my hardest," she explained. "No because I almost passed out."

The event finally wrapped up after 5 p.m., stretched by 19 teams and hundreds of athletes competing.

Leyton's Rhett Dye was speaking of his event, but he might have been reflecting on the day when he said "it was long."

More Potter-Dix Highlights

For the second week in a row, the Potter-Dix boys 4x800 relay team finished in second. At Sidney last Saturday the Coyotes quartet watched their Class B hosts break the string. This time they fell behind Cody-Kilgore, who set a school record taking the win.

Johnson, Knigge, Trace Sharman and Cameron Purcell make up the squad.

"They just got us at the end," Purcell observed. "We'll have to work harder in practice. We'll get them."

The boys 4x400 group recorded a hard earned third after some epic come from behind running. Many of the other teams opened with their fastest competitors, so the Coyotes slipped back at the start.

Yet they managed to maintain their pace, allowing Knigge and Sharman to overtake four rivals.

"I knew we weren't in the position we wanted, so I pushed harder," Sharman said. He passed three runners during his turn at the baton.

Purcell took care of the home stretch, almost conquering one more spot along the way.

Meanwhile, Kelsey Rozelle earned a spot in the long jump finals, and an eventual bronze, despite missing is launch point and occasionally jumping from the wrong foot. He missed out on second place by an inch.

"I was a little confused on why I couldn't get my board," he said. "I never got it once."

Sam Gingerich cracked the top eight in shot put, edging Leyton's Lane Rathman by a quarter of an inch to reach the finals.

"It felt right," he said of his long throw of 40-09. "I must have listened to the coaches."

On the girls side, Kate Woten crossed a fraction behind Pine Bluffs' Austin Asay in the 3200. The pair pulled comfortably ahead of third place runner Laura Flores from Kimball then proceeded to wage their own, well-paced afternoon battle over Bayard's warming track

"I knew Austin had the best time; as long as I stayed with her my time would be where I wanted," Woten pointed out. "I'm happy with my time, but I would've loved to beat her."

Bayard C-D

Bayard

Girls Team Scores

1. Bayard 84

2. Kimball 81

3. LFL 62.5

4. Pine Bluffs 50

5. Potter-Dix 40

6. Leyton 36

6. Bridgeport 36

8. Crawford 30

9. Gordon-Rushville 28

10. Morrill 25

11. Hyannis 22

12. Cody-Kilgore 10

13. Garden County 8.5

14. Burns 8

15. Hemingford 4

16. Banner County 2

Boys Team Scores

1. LFL 73

2. Hemingford 55

3. Cody-Kilgore 46

3. Burns 46

5. Bridgeport 44

6. Gordon-Rushville 43

7. Potter-Dix 41

8. Kimball 39

9. Garden County 36

10. Minatare 20

10. Bayard 20

12. Pine Bluffs 19

13. Morrill 18

14. Banner County 12

15. Hyannis 7

16. Leyton 6

17. Hay Springs 2