Louisburg High School freshman Isabelle Holtzen springs up to go over the bar in the pole vault Friday at the Redbud Relays at Wellsville High School. Holtzen set a personal-best in the pole vault as she cleared 8 feet and took sixth overall.

WELLSVILLE – Missing a week with an injury didn’t seem to bother freshman Bailey Belcher.

All Belcher did was score in all four of her events Friday during the Redbud Relays at Wellsville High School. Those points helped the Louisburg girls track and field team to a fifth place finish with 33 points.

Belcher finished fourth in two of her individual events and joined Megan Lemke, Ashley Ruder and Hanna Becker in the 4×100-meter relay to finish third in 53 seconds.

In the 100-meter dash, Belcher ran a time of 13.63 seconds to take fourth and also finished fourth in the 200 dash in 27.59. She also scored points in the high jump after she cleared 4 feet, 8 inches to finish fifth.

“I felt the girls competed well,” Louisburg coach Greg Darrington said. “I thought Bailey did well for missing a week of practice. She will only get better as she gets into shape again.”

In the team standings, no team could come close to the race Paola and Baldwin put together. Paola edged Baldwin to win the team title with 162 points and Baldwin finished with 148. Spring Hill took third with 39 points.

Like Belcher, another freshman came through for the Lady Cats.

Freshman jumper Haley Earl had the best individual finish for Louisburg as she came in third in the triple jump with a mark of 31-7.25. Earl also came in seventh in the long jump with a leap of 14-7.

“I really like how Haley Earl is competing and getting better each week,” Darrington said. “I think as long as she works hard she has a chance in competing for a spot in the state track meet.”

Also in the field events, junior McKinley Mathews continues to score points for the Lady Cats. Mathews came in fourth in the pole vault after she cleared 8-6, but another teammate was right behind her.

Freshman Isabelle Holtzen set a personal record in the pole vault after she cleared 8-0 and finished sixth. Sophomore Chloe Renner was sixth in the high jump after she cleared 4-6.

On the track, the Lady Cats also scored points in two other relays. The 4×400 relay team of Kaitlyn Gaza, Makenzie Kallevig, Ruder and Lemke ran a time of 4:23 to finish fourth.

Liz Hildreth, Lauren Becker, Kallevig and Holtzen ran the 4×800 relay to a fifth-place finish in 11:08.

Louisburg will compete in one of its final meets of the season Thursday at the Frontier League meet at Spring Hill. Field events are set to begin at 3:30 p.m.

Louisburg senior Connor McMullen lets the discus fly during the Redbud Relays on Friday at Wellsville High School. McMullen won the event with a throw of 187 feet and 3 inches.

WELLSVILLE – A year ago, Connor McMullen set a Louisburg High School and Redbud Relays record in the discus with a throw of 187 feet, 3 inches.

On Friday, McMullen returned to Wellsville to try and duplicate, or even exceed his mark. Although he didn’t quite get there, McMullen still won the event with a toss of 175-4 at the Redbud Relays.

“Connor has a big one in him and I think it is just a matter of time,” Louisburg coach Gary Griffin said. “We have some big meets coming up, and he will have some good competition the rest of the year.”

McMullen’s victory in the discus was the Wildcats’ lone win on the day as they finished ninth in the team standings with 28 points. Baldwin won the meet going away with 101 points and Osawatomie was second with 69.

Louisburg senior Sean Dennis recorded team points in two events and nearly came away with a victory in the 100-meter dash. He was second in the event in 11.72 seconds and Wellsville’s Zach Strom won in 11.53. Dennis finished fourth in the 200-meter dash in 23.65.

Dennis was scheduled to go up against Osawatomie’s Jacoby Greenwood in the 110-meter hurdles as they both hold two of the top times in Class 4A this season. Instead, Dennis was disqualified for a false start.

“Sean was a little amped up for the race and I think he knew he needed to get out quick,” Griffin said. “It was one of those things that happen to sprinters once in a while, but he came back and ran a good 100. I hope it does not happen again.”

The Wildcats also put together some points and personal best in several field events.

Louisburg senior Mason Wilde (left) takes the handoff from senior teammate Zach Knox during the 4×100-meter relay Friday at the Redbud Relays in Wellsville.

McMullen, before winning the discus, was in the shot put ring and finished fourth with a mark of 46-8. Teammate Jarod Woodward was seventh with a throw of 45-2.

For the first time this season, freshman Frankie Hurst cleared 11 feet in the pole vault, which is a new personal best and placed sixth overall in the process. Teammate Parker Cates took eighth after he cleared 10-6.

“Frankie has a chance at regionals if he can make 11 or higher to make it to state, so it was nice to see him make that height,” Griffin said.

Although they didn’t score points, both of the Wildcat javelin throwers set new personal bests. Jacob Jensen recorded a toss of 133-6 to take 11th and Dustyn Rizzo had a throw of 130-1 to take 13th.

On the track, the Wildcats are dealing with some injuries as senior sprinter Mason Wilde was held out of the 100 and 200 dashes, but still ran the 4×100 and 4×400-meter relays.

Zach Knox, Wilde, Ben Minster and Dennis finished sixth in the 4×100 in 45.43 seconds. The 4×400 team of Wyatt Reece, Quinn Rigney, Wilde and Dawson Christy was seventh in 3 minutes and 41 seconds.

Christy later went on to finish seventh in the 800 run in 2:10 and Minster took seventh in the 100 dash in 11.95 seconds.

Reece, Christy, Michael Minster and Ben Hupp ran the 4×800 for Louisburg and came in 8th in 8:59.

Michael Minster and Bobby Hargis also ran personal bests in their respective distance races. Minster ran a 2:16 in the 800 run and 11:35 in the 3,200-meter run, while Hargis came in 13th in the 3,200 run in 11:31 and ran a 5:17 in the 1,600 run.

Louisburg returns to action Thursday when it travels to Spring Hill for the Frontier League track meet. Field events are set to begin at 3:30 p.m.

Louisburg’s Andrew Goff flies through the air during an attempt in the triple jump Friday at the Trailblazer Invitational at Gardner. Goff set personal records in all three jump events.

GARDNER – Medals were at a premium for the Louisburg track and field teams, but the Wildcats still showed improvement even though they don’t have the hardware to show it.

During the Trailblazer Invitational on Friday in Gardner, the Wildcats won just one event but set numerous personal records in several others competing against bigger schools including Olathe East, Olathe Northwest and Mill Valley.

“I thought we did some good things,” Louisburg boys coach Gary Griffin said. “We are kind of banged up right now though. We have a lot of aches and pains.”

Louisburg senior Connor McMullen continued to tear through his discus competition as he won his third meet of the season. McMullen recorded a throw of 171 feet, 9 inches to win by almost 30 feet.

Junior Jarod Woodward and McMullen scored points in the shot put as well. Woodward came in third with a toss of 44-11 and McMullen was right behind him in fourth with a mark of 43-5.

Fellow senior Sean Dennis went up against some tough competition in the hurdles and both sprint races. Dennis ran a personal best time in the 200-meter dash in 23.14 seconds to take fourth. He went on to finish third in the 110-meter high hurdles in 15.3 and seventh in the 100 dash in 11.35.

“Sean had some tough competition,” Griffin said. “He ran his best 200 time, but did not run great in the hurdles and 100. He has been pretty consistent all year, so he will bounce back fine.”

Kyle Green put together his best performance in the 400-meter dash as he set a personal record of 52.94 seconds to finish third against some strong runners. Teammate Dawson Christy also ran a personal best 55.11 in the event.

“Kyle’s PR was good to see and I hope he continues to get better,” Griffin said. “The competition was good, but we are striving to get better at every meet, and I think overall we did that.”

Several jumpers had personal bests for the Wildcats. Andrew Goff had personal record marks in the high jump (5-6), triple jump (38-7) and long jump (18-8). Triple jumpers Will Ridley (35-6.5) and Kyle Allen (35-4.5) also had new highs.

Parker Cates cleared 11-6 in the pole vault, which is a new top mark for him, and Frankie Hurst cleared 10-6 to tie his personal best.

“I thought Andrew Goff had a great day,” Griffin said. “I think he had season PRs in all his events and the other triple jumpers had PRs as well. Parker and Frankie competed well also.”

The Lady Cats didn’t have the same type of success, but junior pole vaulter McKinley Mathews had another good outing. Mathews cleared 9 feet to finish fourth overall.

Louisburg returns to the track Friday for the Redbud Relays in Wellsville. The meet is set to begin at 3:30 p.m.

Louisburg freshman Bailey Belcher crosses the finish line in the 200-meter dash Thursday during the Louisburg Invitational. Belcher won both the 100 and 200-meter dashes to help the Lady Cats win the team title.

It had been a while since the Louisburg girls track and field team had a chance to win its home meet, but on Thursday the Lady Cats came through.

The Lady Cats captured the Louisburg Invitational team crown as they racked up 162 points to hold off Spring Hill, which had 156. Louisburg got points from several different athletes and won six events in the process.

“I believe winning our home meet the first time in a few years was great for us,” Louisburg coach Greg Darrington said. “The thing I was most proud of is the fact that we scored points in almost every event. I was really proud of the girls’ effort Thursday.”

Believe it or not, it was four freshmen who won five of those six events for Louisburg and each played big roles in that team title.

Freshman sprinter Bailey Belcher had one of her best meets of the season as she won the 100 and 200-meter dashes. Belcher won the 100 in 12.6 seconds and held off Osawatomie’s Saige Weaver.

It was also the first time Belcher had run the 200 this season and couldn’t have asked for a better start as she ran a time of 27.3 seconds.

Another freshman, Mikayla Quinn, completed the sweep of the sprints for Louisburg. Quinn won the 400 dash as she ran a time of 1 minute and 6 seconds. Teammates Makenzie Kallevig (1:07) and Hanna Becker (1:10) also finished second and fourth, respectively.

“Bailey is doing a great job this year,” Darrington said. “Thursday was the first time she ran the 200 for us and won. She was a team player giving up one of her events to do the 200. Quinn did an awesome job as well. I believe this would be her third meet that she has won the 400.”

Freshman jumper Haley Earl captured the long jump with a leap of 15 feet, 5 inches and later finished fourth in the triple and high jumps with a mark of 31-7 and 4-4, respectively.

“Haley has really stepped up this season,” Darrington said. “Her improvement has let us move Bailey into the 200 which has helped our team. I am excited to see where Haley can finishes this season as long as she keeps improving and working hard.”

Sophie McMullen had a strong start for her first varsity of the season in the throws. McMullen a freshman, won the discus with a throw of 105-6 and later finished second in the javelin with a mark of 86-2.

Ellie Katzer came in third in the discus (92-3) and Lexie Reece (87-0) was fifth to score points for Louisburg as well. Sophomore Paige Buffington was third in the javelin (85-3) and Katzer (73-11) came in sixth.

Louisburg sophomore Paige Buffington rears back to throw the javelin Thursday during the Louisburg Invitational. Buffington finished third in the event.

“I think all our throwers are starting to improve,” Darrington said “The last couple of meets Ellie Katzer has earned some team points for us finishing third the last two meets. I think if Sophie, Ellie and Lexie Reece keep working hard at the discus, one of them could place in league meet for us.”

Junior McKinley Mathews continues to improve in the pole vault as she cleared a season-best 9-0 to finish runner-up and teammate Isabelle Holtzen was third at 7-6.

Chloe Renner placed in three events in the jumps. Renner was second in the high jump (4-6) and sixth in the long jump (14-4) and triple jump (30-3.5). Belcher (14-5) came in fifth in the long jump.

On the track, Louisburg 4×800-meter relay team of Isabelle Holtzen, Savannah Reinhart, Liz Hildreth and Lauren Becker took first in 11:38. Hanna Becker, Belcher, Megan Lemke and Ashley Ruder ran a good 4×100 relay to take second in 53.5, while Kallevig, Lemke, Quinn and Ruder were third in the 4×400 relay in 4:30.

In the 800 run, Reinhart led Louisburg in fourth place with a time of 2:48. Hildreth (2:49) and Holtzen (2:50) were fifth and sixth, respectively.

Madelynn Yalowitz picked up some points in the 3,200-meter run as was fourth in 14:12. Louisburg also had a slew of other fifth-place finishes including Lemke in the 100 (13.5) and 200 (28.4), McKinley Mathews in the 300 hurdles (59.7) and Holtzen in the 1,600 run (6:20).

Louisburg returns to the track for two meets this week. The Lady Cats will travel to Prairie View on Thursday and then to the Gardner Invitational on Friday.

Louisburg’s Parker Cates clears a height in the pole vault Thursday during the Louisburg Invitational. The Wildcat boys team finished second overall with 151 points.

In front of his home fans, Sean Dennis showed a lot of people what his team already knew – he is pretty fast.

The Louisburg senior sped his way to top honors in the 100-meter dash with a personal best time and also won the 200 dash Thursday at the Louisburg Invitational. He also anchored the 4×100-meter relay to a gold medal and nearly won his fourth event, but took second in the 110-meter hurdles.

His success helped pave the way for the Wildcat track and field team as they finished second in the team standings with 151 points. Spring Hill won the title with 170 points.

Dennis’ most competitive race was the hurdles as he went up against Osawatomie’s Jacoby Greenwood. Both hurdlers have two of the top times in Class 4A this season and the race didn’t disappoint.

Although Dennis finished second, he still recorded a personal best time of 14.83 seconds to Greenwood’s 14.47, and will get his fair share of rematches with him down the road.

“Sean had a great day,” Louisburg coach Gary Griffin said. “In the hurdles, he is one of the tops in the state and he and Greenwood are going to have to compete several more times this year. They bring out the best in each other.

“The goal for a sprinter is to run sub 11 seconds in the 100 and he did that, and under 23 in the 200 and he has a chance to do that.”

Dennis finished with a personal-best time in the 100-meter dash in 10.89 seconds and won the 200 in 23.4 seconds. In practice, and in the meets, Dennis has been pushed by senior Mason Wilde who finished third in the 100 dash (11.46) and second in the 200 (23.9).

“Mason and Sean work really hard in practice and compete with each other and the other sprinters feed off of them, so the entire group is showing improvement,” Griffin said.

Jarod Woodward rears back for a throw in the shot put Thursday during the Louisburg Invitational. Woodward was second with a throw of 47 feet.

Wilde and Dennis, along with Ben Minster and Kyle Green, ran a time of 45.3 seconds to win the 4×100, but the Wildcats weren’t done winning. Green ran a strong 400-meter dash in 53.9 seconds to take the top spot.

Minster was fourth in the 200 dash (24.3) and sixth in the 100 (11.66), while Dawson Christy was sixth in the 400 (56.4). Also on track, Ben Hupp came in sixth in the 300 hurdles (47.47).

The 4×400-meter relay of Wilde, Green, Christy and Wyatt Reece came in runner-up to Osawatomie in 3:40, while the 4×800 relay of Hupp, Reece, Christy and Michael Minster also took second in 9:16.

In the field events, senior Connor McMullen won two events for the first time this season as he picked a good time for his best throw in the shot put. McMullen recorded a toss of 48 feet, 7 inches, which is a personal record, to win the shot and later threw 148-6 to win the discus.

Not to be outdone, teammate Jarod Woodward also hit a personal record throw of 47 feet in the shot to finish second.

“Connor’s shot was something that I knew he could do and I hope he continues to build on that,” Griffin said. “I think he is definitely capable of throwing 50 feet. Jarod also made a nice jump and I think he is also capable of throwing 50 feet.”

Also in the throws, freshman Garrett Lowry had a throw of 113-10 in the discus to take third. Jacob Jensen (127-10) and Dustyn Rizzo (115-4) took fourth and sixth, respectively, in the javelin.

Parker Cates led Louisburg in the pole vault as the Wildcats placed four. Cates cleared 10-6 to take third and Frankie Hurst did the same, but was fourth based on number of misses. Christian Scholtz (10-0) and Lyndon Smith (9-6) came in fifth and sixth in the event.

Andrew Goff was fourth in the long jump with a leap of 17-9, and his teammates Will Ridley (17-0) and Cates (16-11), were fifth and sixth. Goff was also fourth in the triple jump with a mark of 36-8 and Kyle Allen was sixth at 33-11.

“We scored some nice points in the pole vault and got some points in the javelin as well,” Griffin said. “We had a lot of PRs again and we are progressing each week and that is the goal.”

Louisburg returns to the track Thursday at the Prairie View Invitational and then again on Friday in Gardner.

Louisburg’s Mason Wilde (left) and Sean Dennis sprint to the finish line in the 100-meter dash Thursday at the Anderson County Invitational in Garnett. Dennis won the event in 11.1 seconds and Wilde was third.

GARNETT – Louisburg senior Sean Dennis continues to shave time for the Louisburg boys track and field team and he is becoming harder to beat – especially in the 110-meter hurdles.

Dennis won his third straight hurdles race of the year Thursday during the Anderson County Invitational in Garnett. He breezed to victory as he tied a personal best time of 15 seconds and he didn’t stop there.

The Louisburg senior ran his best time of the season in the 100-meter dash in 11.1 seconds to win two events for the Wildcats. He helped Louisburg to a fourth-place finish with 86 points. Paola won the meet with 159.5 points and Eudora was second with 125.5.

The Wildcats also got several points from sprinter Mason Wilde, who scored in all three sprints. Wilde’s best performance came in the 200 dash when he posted a personal best time of 23.5 seconds, which was good for second.

Wilde was third in the 100 dash in 11.5 seconds and fifth in the 400 dash in 55.9.

“We competed pretty well,” Louisburg boys coach Gary Griffin said. “Sean’s time were good times regardless of the competition and Mason Wilde ran well also.”

Wyatt Reece heads down the straightaway during Thursday’s Anderson County Invitational. Reece won the 1,600-meter run in 5:07.

Louisburg also got some big points from a freshman distance runner. Wyatt Reece led the way in the 1,600-meter run as he ran a time of 5 minutes and 7.9 seconds to win his first race of the season.

“Wyatt ran a really good 1,600 meters and can run faster,” Griffin said. “He is just learning about pace and getting in shape, so I think he has a pretty bright future.”

The personal record times continued on the track as senior Bobby Hargis ran a personal best time in the 3,200-meter run. Hargis crossed the finish line in 11:38 and took fourth overall. Michael Minster finished seventh (12:24) and Curtis Staver was ninth (12:54) to also score points for Louisburg.

Minster also went on to take seventh in the 800 run (2:18) and Kennedy Unthank was seventh in the 400 dash (58.7). Ben Hupp rounded out the point getters on the track as he took eighth in the 300 hurdles (49.5).

Junior Jarod Woodward continued his success in the shot put as he was runner-up in the event with a toss of 45-7.25.

Andrew Goff set personal records as he was seventh in the high jump (5-4) and triple jump (36-2) to score points for Louisburg. Will Ridley also had a personal best in the triple jump (34-2) to take eighth.

In the pole vault, Parker Cates had his best vault of the season as he cleared 11-0 to finish third. Lyndon Smith cleared 9-6 to take seventh.

Louisburg will try and see even more improvement in front of its home fans Thursday when it hosts the Louisburg Invitational at Wildcat Stadium. The meet is set to begin at 3:30 p.m.

McMullen, Dennis compete at Kansas Relays

Louisburg seniors Connor McMullen and Sean Dennis ventured to Lawrence on Friday for the 2015 Kansas Relays to compete against some of the area’s best athletes.

McMullen ran up against a strong discus field, but still finished sixth overall with a throw of 167 feet, 6 inches. Blue Springs’ (Mo.) Carlos Davis won with a throw of 194-7.

As for Dennis, he entered in the 110-meter hurdles and finished in the middle of the pack. Dennis was 17th with a time of 15.42 seconds. Liberty North’s (Mo.) Andrew Madison won in 14.35.

Louisburg junior McKinley Mathews clears the bar in the pole vault Thursday at the Anderson County Invitational in Garnett. Mathews was second in the event after she cleared 8 feet, 6 inches.

GARNETT – The Louisburg girls track and field team took another step forward Thursday at the Anderson County Invitational.

The Lady Cats won an event and finished in the top three in six others as they racked up 84.5 points to take third – their highest finish of the season. Louisburg got several of those points on the track.

Louisburg continued to fare well in the sprints and did so thanks to two freshmen.

Freshman Mikayla Quinn won her second straight 400-meter dash in a season best time of 1 minute and 4 seconds. Fellow freshman Bailey Belcher nearly won the 100-meter dash as she ran a time of 12.7 seconds to take second in a neck-and-neck finish with Paola’s Rylie Edwards.

“I felt the girls on the track did a great job,” Louisburg girls coach Greg Darrington said. “Mikayla and Bailey are doing good things in the sprints. I am very excited to see how they progress the rest of the year.”

The Lady Cats also scored several points on the track as junior McKinley Mathews had a strong performance in the pole vault. Mathews cleared 8 feet, 6 inches to take second overall, while freshman Isabelle Holtzen was sixth with a personal best 7-6.

“McKinley is doing well in the pole vault and feel she has a chance to qualify for state as long as she keeps working hard and making improvements,” Darrington said. “Isabelle did a great job competing and getting team points.”

Another freshman got the Lady Cats several points in the jumps. Haley Earl had her best meet of the season as she took third in the triple jump with a mark of 31-5 and was fourth in the long jump with a mark of 14-8.

Freshman Haley Earl lands in the pit following her attempt in the triple jump Thursday. Earl was third in the event and fourth in the long jump.

Belcher went on to take fifth in the long jump (14-6.5) and eighth in the high jump (4-8). Chloe Renner was sixth in the triple jump (31-1)

Louisburg also scored points in two throwing events. Ellie Katzer came in fifth in the discus with a toss of 85-5 and Paige Buffington was seventh in the javelin at 76-2.

The Lady Cats’ relay teams also fared well with two third-place finishes and a fourth. The 4×100-meter relay of Hanna Becker, Belcher, Megan Lemke and Ashley Ruder was third in 52.9 seconds.

Makenzie Kallevig, Lemke, Quinn and Ruder ran a time of 4:25 in the 4×400, while Lauren Becker, Liz Hildreth, Holtzen and Savannah Reinhart came in third in 11:08.

“The 4×400 girls have done a great job improving each week,” Darrington said. “Ruder, Kallevig, Quinn and Lemke have been working very hard this year. I feel our 4×800 team is making strides to compete and qualify this year for state. Our team keeps improving each week and I am proud of them.”

Madelynn Yalowitz competed well in the 3,200-meter run with a time of 13:51 and finished in fourth, which is a season best. Holtzen finished ninth in the 800 run (2:46) to also score some points.

In the sprints, Kallevig finished fifth overall in the 400 dash in 1:06 and Lemke led the Lady Cats in the 200 dash in sixth with a time of 28.2 seconds.

Louisburg returns to action Thursday when it returns home for the Louisburg Invitational. The meet is set to begin at 3:30 p.m. at Wildcat Stadium.

LMS eighth-grader Ian Combs clears the bar in the pole vault during a meet earlier this season. Combs won the pole vault after he cleared 10 feet Tuesday during a meet in Paola with Pioneer Ridge.

PAOLA – The Louisburg Middle School track and field teams took part in their second meet of the season and the Wildcats certainly had their fair share of success Tuesday against Paola and Pioneer Ridge.

The eighth-grade boys won their meet going away as they scored 83 points and Pioneer Ridge was second with 58.5 points. Louisburg also rewrote part of its record books as well.

Seventh-grader Mackenzie Scholtz broke the school record in the 200-meter dash with a time of 27.85 seconds, surpassing Kate Combs’ mark, and finished first. Scholtz helped the seventh-grade girls to a second-place finish with 54 points and was runner up to Paola’s 71.

The seventh-grade boys and eighth-grade girls finished third overall with 35 and 37 points, respectively.

Louisburg’s eighth-grade boys team won several events, including a sweep of the sprints.

Brandon Cooper won the 100-meter dash in 12.06 seconds and Austin Moore followed that up with a win in the 200 dash in 25.15 seconds. Jon Ventre completed the trifecta as he crossed the finish line first in the 400 dash in 1 minute and 2 seconds.

Blue Caplinger continued the Wildcats’ winning ways in the 800-meter run as he ran a 2:24 to cross the finish line first. Louisburg also came out on top in the medley (2:03) and 4×400 (4:05) relays.

In the field events, several Wildcats took home top billing as well.

Kiefer Tucker had the top throw in the discus with a toss of 109 feet, 2 inches and Asah LaHue’s throw of 38 feet in the shot put was also good for first. Ian Combs cleared 10-0 in the pole vault to come away with a win.

The eighth-grade girls took top honors in one event. Ryann Kramer won the discus with a throw of 74-6.

Along with Scholtz’s run in the 200 dash, she also finished first in the 100 dash in 13.43 seconds for the seventh-grade girls. Louisburg also won five other events in that division.

Trinity Moore, who broke the school record in the 800 run earlier this year, won the event for the second straight week in 2:41. Moore later finished first in the 1,600 run in 5:52.

Haley Cain took top honors in the high jump after she cleared 4-7 to win by five inches. The 4×100 and 4×200 relay teams also took first place.

The seventh-grade boys also won three events.

Brayden White took first place in the shot put with a toss of 31 feet and Charlie Koontz won the 200 dash in 12.96 seconds. Louisburg also won the medley relay in 2:20.

Eighth-grade boys 

Discus: Jimmy Tucker, third, 101-0

Shot put: Grant King, third, 35-0; Tucker, fourth, 35-0

Pole vault: Blue Caplinger, second, 9-6; Asah LaHue, third, 9-0

Long jump: Ian Combs, second, 14-10.5; Tanner Belcher, fourth, 14-3.5

100 hurdles: Jon Ventre, second, 18.16; Noah Hill, third, 18.81; James Foote, fourth, 19.75

100 dash: Eli Minster, fourth, 12.67

200 dash: Minster, third, 25.92

400 dash: Bret Minor, third, 1:13

800 run: Dylan DeShazer, third, 2:36.49

1,600 run: LaHue, second, 5:17; Foote, third, 5:56; Dylan Knipp, fourth, 6:00

3,200 run: Gareth Baus, fourth, 15:04

4×100 relay: second, 50.52

Eighth-grade girls:

Discus: Kennia Hankinson, second, 74-3

Shot put: Carson Buffington, fourth, 31-3

Pole vault: Trinity Buchanan, second, 5-6

High jump: Jorden Leach, third, 5-2

Long jump: Elana Lewis, second, 14-3

100 dash: Leach, third, 14.83; Buffington, fourth, 14.95

200 dash: Buchanan, third, 29.25

400 dash: Kaitlyn Lewer, third, 1:12; Hayli Detherage, fourth, 1:14

800 run: Detherage, third, 2:58; Shaylor Whitham, fourth, 2:59

1,600 run: Mariah Wrigley, third, 7:44

3,200 run: Whitham, fourth, 14:22

4×100 relay: second, 58.35

4×400 relay: second, 5:10

Seventh-grade girls

Discus: Kody Lowry, fourth, 54-2

Shot put: Gabby Tappan, third, 27-10

High jump: Avery Graham, third, 4-0

100 hurdles: Haley Cain, third, 19.95

400 dash: Jessamy Howison, third, 1:15; Elizabeth Kratochvil, fourth, 1:17

800 run: Kratochvil, second, 3:03; Hannah Straub, third, 3:04

1,600 run: Ashley Moore, fourth, 7:27

4×400 relay: second, 5:08

Seventh-grade boys

Discus: Brayden White, third, 79-6; Michael Waldron, fourth, 72-4

Pole vault: Jack Mick, second, 7-6; Trent Martin, fourth, 7-0

High jump: Drake Varns, third, 4-6; Charlie Koontz and Deven Wieland, fourth, 4-4

Long jump: Thomas Arnett, fourth, 14-9.75

100 dash: Arnett, fourth, 13.57

200 dash: Koontz, second, 27.24

800 run: Ryan Haight, fourth, 2:44

1,600 run: Weiland, second, 5:54; Dylan Sanders, fourth, 6:15

Freshman Mikayla Quinn heads down the straightaway in the 400-meter dash during a meet earlier in the season. Quinn won the 400 dash Thursday in Paola with a time of 1 minute and 6 seconds.

PAOLA – They may be just freshmen, but Bailey Belcher and Mikayla Quinn are already making a name for themselves on the varsity level.

Belcher continues to impress for the Lady Cats track and field team as she placed in two events Thursday at the Paola Invitational. Belcher’s best event was the 100-meter dash as she won with a time of 12.88 seconds and later finished fifth in the long jump with a mark of 14 feet and 6.5 inches.

Quinn took top marks in the 400-meter dash. She ran a time of 1:06 to win the first event of her high school career and junior Mackenzie Kallevig was fifth in 1:09.

In the team standings, Louisburg finished fourth with 67.33 points. Paola won the meet going away with 275 points and Lamar (Mo.) was runner-up with 78 points.

“I think it’s great for Bailey and Mikayla to be having some success this early in the year,” Louisburg girls coach Greg Darrington said. “Weather conditions were very tough and that shows the heart these two girls have when competing which is rare for a freshman. They are both very motivated and we will see both of them improve throughout the year and I expect great things for them the rest of the year.”

Both girls also helped their respective relay teams place. Quinn joined with Megan Lemke, Kallevig and Ashley Ruder to finish second in the 4×400-meter relay in 4 minutes and 38 seconds, just edging out Spring Hill by .6 seconds.

Belcher, Ruder, Lemke and Hannah Becker finished third in the 4×100-meter relay in 54.6 seconds. Lemke was also sixth in the 200 dash in 30.1 seconds.

The Lady Cats also found success in the 4×800 relay as Lauren Becker, Liz Hildreth, Madelynn Yalowitz and Isabelle Holtzen ran a time of 11:45 to take second.

“The relay teams are improving, and with Kaitlyn Gaza coming back soon, the sprints should improve even more,” Darrington said. “(Coach) John (Reece) has been working hard with the girls on the 4X800 and hope by the end of the year we can qualify all three relays for the state meet.”

Junior McKinley Mathews made her first appearance of the season in the pole vault and cleared 8-6 to finish third. Holtzen, a freshman, finished fifth overall when she cleared 7-0.

Freshman Sophie McMullen competed in her first varsity meet of the season and placed in two events as well. McMullen was fourth in the discus (91-11) and sixth in the javelin (95-2) to round out the Lady Cats point scorers.

Louisburg returns to action Thursday when it travels to Garnett for the Anderson County Invitational. Field events are set to begin at 3 p.m.

Louisburg’s Dawson Christy hangs with a pack of runners during a meet earlier this season. Christy helped the 4×400-meter relay team to a first-place finish Thursday at the Paola Invitational.

PAOLA – Despite the blustery and cold conditions, the Louisburg boys track and field team was still able to put on quite a show Thursday at the Paola Invitational.

In all, Louisburg won four events and the boys finished third in the team standings with 93 points in the eight-team meet. Two of those victories came on the relays as both the 4×100 and 4×400-meter teams each took home the gold.

Mason Wilde, Sean Dennis, Kyle Green and Ben Minster ran a time of 45.2 seconds in the 4×100 to take first despite a strong wind. Dennis ran the anchor leg and nipped the Paola runner by .1 seconds.

Wilde, Dawson Christy, Green and Wyatt Reece won the 4×400 in 3 minutes and 48.5 seconds. Christy ran the anchor leg for Louisburg and was able to nip Paola at the finish line for a second time to win by .2 seconds.

“I thought we competed very well considering the conditions,” Louisburg coach Gary Griffin said. “The relays did well. Dawson ran a great anchor leg and took a pretty good tumble at the end of the 4×400. The 4×100 has a chance to be pretty good and it is tough to run fast times in either of those races with the wind the way it was.”

Dennis captured the top spot for the second time in the 110-meter high hurdles. He ran a time of 15.44 seconds and edged Lamar’s Luke Hardman by .01 seconds for a photo finish.

Dennis also fared well in the 100-meter dash in 11.25 seconds to take third, while Wilde was fourth in 11.56 seconds. Wilde also took fourth in the 200 dash in 24.42.

Green had a strong performance in the 400 dash (54.17 seconds) to take second, while Zach Knox was sixth in the 100 dash (11.73).

“Sean stumbled a little bit in the hurdles and still won, he is looking very strong,” Griffin said. “He had a great day in the sprints as did Mason. They work really hard in practice and it is paying off in the meets. Kyle ran a great 400 and his time was good in the conditions and he finished strong. He will keep getting better and better as the year goes along.”

Also on the track, the 4×800 relay team of Reece, Christy, Ben Hupp and Michael Minster finished fourth in 9:30.

In the field events, senior Connor McMullen won the discus for the first time this season. McMullen recorded a throw of 168 feet, 10 inches to win by nearly 30 feet.

Junior Jarod Woodward had a strong toss in the shot put with a mark of 45-6 to finish third and McMullen was fourth with a 43-7.

Parker Cates rounded out the Wildcat medalists as he was second in the pole vault after he cleared 10-6 for the first time this season.

“Woody getting third in the shot was good and he has been consistent so far,” Griffin said. “It was a good meet for Parker to make a height, and again, not great conditions. Overall I think we competed well. We are getting in better shape as well. We need to keep trying to find some depth in our jumps and throws.”

Louisburg returns to the track Thursday when they travel to the Anderson County Invitational in Garnett. Field events are set to begin at 3 p.m.