Wildcat track puts strong showing together at competitive De Soto meet

By Andy Brown
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Updated: May 4, 2022

Louisburg senior Tom Koontz clears a hurdle during a meet earlier this season. Koontz won the 300-meter hurdles Friday at the De Soto Invitational.

DE SOTO — In what was one of its toughest meets of the season, the Louisburg boys track and field team nearly came away with a team title.

Louisburg competed at the De Soto Invitational on Friday and went up against several bigger programs. The Wildcats went stride-for-stride with all of them as they finished second overall with 107 points, just one point behind champion De Soto.

“We knew coming into the meet, it was going to be challenging,” Louisburg boys coach Andy Wright said. “We only placed first in one event, but competed very well in the second through sixth place positions. We ended up one point short out of first, and in a meet that tough, I was very pleased.”

The Wildcats competed with the likes of De Soto, Olathe West, Basehor Linwood and the top Frontier League programs in Piper, Eudora and Bonner Springs.

The Louisburg girls also had plenty of bright spots as the Lady Cats finished fifth out of 13 teams with 50 points.

Senior hurdler Tom Koontz continues to shine in his final season as a Wildcat, as are junior hurdlers Mason Dobbins and Nathan Apple. Koontz won the 300-meter hurdles in 40.36 seconds, while Dobbins (42.79) and Apple (42.81) took fifth and sixth, respectively.

All three Wildcat hurdlers had season-best times in the 110 race as Koontz was second at 14.72 seconds, losing out to Highland Park’s Keijuan Johnson, who ran a 14.69. Dobbins was third at 15.17 and Apple took fourth in 15.47.

“Tom continues to improve every week in the 110 and he works so hard at practice,” Wright said. “His 300 has been in the low 40’s for the last couple of meets, and he is competing amazingly. If we can get some good weather, he should be ready to break 40 in the next week or two.”

Koontz, Dobbins, Caden Caplinger and Ethan Ptacek also put together a season-best time of 43.71 seconds in the 4×100 relay to finish second overall.

Hunter Heinrich, Jaden Vohs, Andrew Brown and Hayden Ross went on to take third in the 4×800 relay in 8:53, while the 4×400 team of Ptacek, Heinrich, Colyer Wingfield and Koontz were fifth in a season-best time of 3:33.

Ptacek went on to score points in a pair of sprints as well. The Louisburg junior was third in the 400 dash in 52.42 and seventh in the 200 dash in 23.29.

In the distance races, Vohs paced the Wildcats with a sixth place finish in the 800 run in 2:03 and freshman Jerynce Brings-Plenty was 8th in the 3,200 run.

The Wildcats got a pleasant surprise in the jumps from Wingfield as he set a new personal best in the long jump by more than a foot. The Louisburg junior took third with a mark of 21 feet, 1 inch, while fellow junior Jase Hovey was eighth with a personal best mark of 20-7.25

Wingfield also scored points in the triple jump as he took fifth at 39-3.

“Coyler is new to our track team this year and has brought with him an awesome work ethic,” Wright said. “He is starting to figure out his approach and jump technique. Colyer will definitely be able to be a threat in the jumps for placings and points at some of our bigger meets. Colyer is also a 40-plus in the Triple jump.

“Along with Colyer we have Jase Hovey jumping 20-7, Hayden Feikert (19-11) and Isaiah Whitley (19-9) this season (who jumped 20-8 last year). By the end of the season, we could possibly have four jumpers in their 20s, and that kind of competition makes everyone better.”

For the second straight meet, Caplinger recorded a personal best in the pole vault. The Louisburg sophomore cleared 14 feet for the first time and finished second overall.

“With the competition we have in our league and regional, Caden doesn’t have a choice but to get better,” Wright said. “He will see his toughest competition every week for the next four weeks. Caden has been up to the challenge and has been improving every week.”

Also in the jumps, Dobbins cleared 6 feet to finish second in the high jump as he was one of five jumpers to reach the 6 foot mark. Junior Isaiah Whitley was eighth at 5-8.

In the throws, junior Nathan Vincent was second overall in the javelin with a mark of 160-7. Junior Layne Ryals scored points in the discus with a throw of 119-2 and finished sixth overall.

Junior J.R. Rooney was seventh in the shot put with a distance of 43-6.

On the girls side, senior Delaney Wright participated in three individual events for the first time this season as she is making her way back from an injury.

Wright was second in the long jump with a mark of 17-10.5. She also finished third in the 400-meter dash in 1:00.68 and was fifth in the 200 dash in 26.52 seconds.

Junior Emma Lohse scored points in a pair of sprints as she took fourth in the 100 dash in 12.86 seconds and sixth the 200 at 26.80.

In the distance races, sophomore Emma Vohs took seventh in the both the 1,600 meters (5:42) and the 3,200-meter run (13:00). Sophomore Maddy Rhamy was eighth in the 3,200 in 13:03.

Freshman Mackenzie Rooney scored points in the 300 hurdles as she finished sixth in 52.29 seconds.

Sophomore Maddy Carpenter-Ross continues to work her way up in the pole vault as she set a personal record for the second straight week. Carpenter-Ross took third after she cleared 9-6.

In the throws, senior Corinna McMullen was third in the discus with a throw of 106-4. Senior Davis Guetterman took sixth the javelin with a toss of 109.

Junior Emma Prettyman scored points in the shot put with a mark of 32-9.5 and finished eighth.

Louisburg will be back in action Friday when it travels to Wellsville for the Redbud Relays.

Other results are:

GIRLS

100 dash: Delaney Wieland, 19th, 13.60

800 run: Erin Apple, 15th, 2:47; Aubryn Berck, 17th, 2:50

1,600 run: Maddy Rhamy, 9th, 6:01

100 hurdles: Mackenzie Rooney, 9th, 18.24; Kate Frederick, 12th, 18.61

300 hurdles: Frederick, 14th, 56.81

Long jump: Wieland, 9th, 15-5.5

Discus: Emma Prettyman, 13th, 89-3

Javelin: Prettyman, 13th, 95-7