Jumping events propel Wildcat track at Paola

By Andy Brown
- Tweet
- Pin It
Updated: April 12, 2017

Andy Brown / Louisburg Sports Zone

Louisburg junior Isabelle Holtzen clears a height in the pole vault Thursday during the Paola Invitational at Paola High School. Holtzen recorded a personal best 10 feet to finish second overall.

PAOLA – The jumps have been a strength for the Louisburg High School girls track and field team this season and that continued last Thursday at the Paola Invitational.

The Lady Cats won the triple jump, finished second in the pole vault, third and fourth in the high jump and took fourth in the long jump during the 12-team meet at Paola High School. Those high finishes helped the Louisburg girls to a fourth place team finish with 66.5 points.

“I really felt the girls did a great job competing on the track and in the field events,” Louisburg girls coach Greg Darrington said. “We will get better each week and get into better shape. I hope we really hit our stride when the weather begins to warm up. I thought the girls did a great job in the jumping events.”

Junior Kaitlyn Urban had her best day so far this season in the triple jump. Urban won the event with a personal best leap of 32 feet, 2.5 inches and was the lone Wildcat to win an event on both the girls and boys sides.

“Kaitlyn is getting stronger in the jumping events and I really think her sprinting this year is paying off for her,” Darrington said. “I feel she is just starting to tap into her full potential. Speed is a big plus in any jumping event. Her work in the off season is really starting to pay off.”

Louisburg’s success continued in the pole vault when junior Isabelle Holtzen set a personal best in the event. Holtzen cleared 10 feet and finished second overall to Paola’s Samantha Van Hoecke, who cleared 10-6.

“It’s great seeing Isabelle starting to improve on her heights,” Darrington said. “I really feel if she can increase her confidence and keep improving throughout the year she could contend for a medal at the state competition.”

Junior Kaitlyn Urban takes off for an attempt in the triple jump Thursday at the Paola Invitational. Urban set a personal record and won the event.

Senior Chloe Renner added to the point total for the Lady Cats as she took third in the high jump after she cleared 4-10 for the second straight week. Sophomore teammate Eileen Benne tied for fourth after surpassing the 4-8 mark.

Renner also earned points in the long jump as she finished fourth with a mark of 15-5.5. In the throws, senior Ellie Katzer was seventh with a toss of 93-8.

On the track, freshmen Sydni Keagle and Haley Cain provided the Louisburg girls with points in the hurdles. Keagle made the finals in the 100 hurdles and finished fourth in 17.66 seconds. In the 300 hurdles, Cain was fifth with a time of 54.73.

Junior Mikayla Quinn (1:07.84), senior Kaitlyn Gaza (1:07.87) and Holtzen (1:09.71) all scored in the 400-meter dash for the Lady Cats as they took fifth, sixth and eighth, respectively.

Quinn, Urban, Gaza and Holtzen also ran the 4×400-meter relay and finished fourth in 4:32. Urban, Jordon Leach, Keagle and Haley Cain ran the 4×100 in 55.99 seconds and also took fourth.

Shaylor Whitham, Reilly Alexander, Payton Shaffer and Quinn ran the 4×800 relay and crossed the finish in sixth place.

The Wildcat boys had three top three finishes on the day and finished in sixth in the team standings with 51 points.

On the track, Chris Williams, Wyatt Reece, Ben Hupp and Tanner Belcher had Louisburg’s best outing on the day with a runner-up finish in the 4×800 relay. The four runners finished 8:42.98 to come in second, just three seconds behind Paola.

Sophomore Tanner Belcher sprints the final few meters of his leg in the 4×800-meter relay Thursday in Paola.

Williams and Reece also ran well in their individual events. Williams, a sophomore, was third in the 400-meter dash in 53.51 seconds. In the 1,600-meter run, Reece ran his best race of the season with a time of 4:52.93 and also took third.

“I thought we were good in some areas and not so good in others,” Louisburg boys coach Gary Griffin said. “It was a tough meet with really good competition. We did not have as many people with PRs (personal records) as I would have liked but we will keep working and getting better.”

The 4×100 relay of Jackson Ewalt, Will Ridley, Austin Moore and Blue Caplinger finished fourth (47.67), while the 4×400 team of Williams, Blue Caplinger, Ben Hupp and Tanner Belcher came in fifth (3:44).

Belcher also scored points in the 800-meter run and finished fifth in 2:11. Hupp took seventh in the 300-meter hurdles in 44.63.

On the track, senior T.J. Dover led the Wildcats in throws. Dover was fourth in the discus with a throw of 133-5 and was sixth in the shot put with a mark of 43-9.

Junior Frankie Hurst and freshman Trent Martin each cleared 10-6 in the pole vault and took fifth and seventh, respectively.

Louisburg returns to action this Thursday when it travels to the Anderson County Invitational in Garnett.

Other results are:

GIRLS