Lohse wins three golds, 4×100 breaks record at league meet

Louisburg senior Emma Lohse won the 100 and 200-meter dashes Thursday during the Frontier League meet at Baker University. Lohse also helped the 4×100 relay to a new school record.

BALDWIN CITY — Emma Lohse blazed the Baker University track Thursday during the Frontier League Invitational.

Lohse came away with three league titles, including a record-breaking performance in a relay. The Louisburg senior won the 100-meter dash in 12.61 seconds and later captured the 200 dash crown in 26.18.

“Being a league champ in both the 100 and 200 was a feeling I won’t forget,” Lohse said. “Not only does getting first tell me that I was competing at my best during that time, but that I had to put in the work to earn my placings that day.”

Lohse, along with Mackenzie Rooney, Suzanna Dansel and Kendall Crossley, broke their own school record in the 4×100-meter relay for the second week in a row. They won the league title in 49.84 seconds.

“After I finished running my leg in the 4×1, I looked at the time and saw a 49 and I turned around to see Mackenzie running towards me with the biggest smile on her face as did I,” Lohse said. “It was the best feeling knowing that we competed so well. This group of girls is so special to me, even though they are all younger, they know how to compete with the people we run against.”

As a team, the Lady Cats also shined at the league meet as they finished third in the team standings, with 107 points and were just 2.5 points behind Spring Hill for second. Eudora won the league crown with 131.5 points.

“With the strength of our league, getting third as a team is an awesome accomplishment,” Louisburg coach John Reece said. “Our girls are learning to compete in the moment and not letting outside, uncontrollable factors keep them from performing at their best for that day.”

Dansel and Rooney also picked up a pair of league runner-up finishes to help lead the Lady Cats.

Dansel, a freshman, took second in the 100 dash in 12.76 seconds and later finished fifth in the 200 dash in 27.13.

Rooney, a sophomore, ran a personal best time of 48.70 seconds in the 300-meter hurdles and took second. She also ran a personal best in the 100 hurdles and took third in 17.08.

Junior Kate Frederick also scored points in the the hurdles as she finished fifth in the 100 (17.84) and 300 (53.51) with a season-best time in both.

Another junior, Emma Vohs recorded a pair of third places finishes — one in a sprint and another in a distance race. Vohs took third in the 400 dash in 1:03 and also finished third in the 1,600 run in 5:48.

Junior Maddy Rhamy also earned points for the Lady Cats as she was fifth in the 3,200 run in 13:57. Crossley finished sixth the 400 in 1:05.

Louisburg also scored in two other relays. The 4×400 team of Rooney, Crossley, Lohse and Vohs took fifth in 4:17, while Erin Apple, Rhamy, Vohs and Delanie Tally took sixth in 11:09.

In the field events, junior Maddy Carpenter-Ross had a strong performance in the pole vault. She took league runner-up honors after she cleared 10 feet, 6 inches.

Senior Emma Prettyman scored points in all three throws, including a third place performance in the discus with a throw of 118-5. Prettyman was also sixth in the javelin at 107-10, and seventh in the shot put at 34-6.

Junior Katie Elpers finished fourth in the javelin with a toss of 112-8. Freshman Kenna Lohse recorded a personal best in the shot put with a mark of 36-7 to take fifth overall.

The Lady Cats will now focus on the Class 4A regional meet that will be held Friday at Shawnee Mission North. The top four finishers in each event will qualify for state next week in Wichita.

“There is excitement, but also a sense of taking care of business attitude,” Reece said. “If we compete within ourselves, and not let outside uncontrollables bother us, we will do awesome. We have the opportunity to qualify in up to 13 events, which is exciting to think about. Regardless with our regional being so stacked, if the girls get out of our region to state, they will do well in Wichita.”

Other results are:

800 run: Nova Ptacek, 12th, 2:46; Delanie Tally, 13th, 2:48; Erin Apple, 14th, 2:49

1,600 run: Ptacek, 10th, 6:14; Ellie Davis, 14th, 6:33

Discus: Kenna Lohse, 15th, 86-6

Javelin: Lohse, 11th, 92-9