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.

Louisburg Middle School seventh-grader Trinity Moore runs ahead of her competition Tuesday at Wildcat Stadium. Moore broke the school record in the 800-meter run with a time of 2 minutes and 38 seconds.

In just her first meet of the season, Trinity Moore was in midseason form.

The Louisburg Middle School seventh-grader was running by her competition during the school’s opening home track meet of the season Tuesday against Ottawa and Wheatridge. Moore won the 1,600 and 800-meter run, but it was the 800 where she really left her mark.

Moore broke the school record in the 800 in 2 minutes and 38.97 seconds and won the race by 22 seconds. The previous record of 2:45.77 was set by Isabelle Holtzen in 2013.

Along with that, Moore and the rest of her seventh-grade team won the meet with 67.5 points, 24 points ahead of second-place Ottawa.

In the 1,600 run, Moore finished 50 seconds ahead of the rest of the field in 6:07. Louisburg’s Ashley Moore was second and Lily McDaniel came in third.

Louisburg also won six other events, including the medley relay and the 4×400-meter relay. Mackenzie Scholtz crossed the finish line first in the 200-meter dash in 29.67 seconds and earlier in the day was second in the 100 dash.

The Lady Cats also had a big day in the field events. Sinell Elifrits won the pole vault after she cleared 5 feet, 1 inch and teammate Avery Graham came in second.

Madison McLellan won the shot put with a toss of 25-6 and Louisburg swept the top three spots in the event. Riley Papst finished second and Lauren Vincent was third.

Brooke Lancaster captured top honors in the discus with a throw of 59-1 and Papst was third.

Haley Cain was edged out in the 100-meter hurdles and finished second, while teammate Ashley Moore was third. Elizabeth Kratochvil finished third in the 400-meter dash and 800 run to round out the top placers for Louisburg.

Eighth-grade boys first meet

It was a strong showing for the LMS eighth-grade boys’ track and field team as it powered its way to a victory over Ottawa and Wheatridge with 86.5 points. The Wildcats nearly doubled the total of second-place Wheatridge.

Brandon Cooper won two events to lead the Wildcats to a victory. Cooper won the 100-meter dash in 12.52 seconds and teammate Blue Caplinger followed in third place.

Cooper also scored some points in the field events as he won the high jump after he cleared 5-2. He later finished second in the long jump and teammate Tanner Belcher was third.

Also in the field events, Kiefer Tucker won the shot put with a toss of 36-5.5 and Grant King finished third. In the discus, Jimmy Tucker’s throw of 115-10 was good for first and Kiefer Tucker was third.

Blue Caplinger clears a height in the pole vault Tuesday during the first track meet of the season.

Ian Combs took top honors in the pole vault as he cleared 10-0, while Caplinger was second. On the track, Caplinger was strong in the 800 run and finished first in 2:33.72, while Dylan Knipp was third.

Noah Hill edged out teammate Jon Ventre in the 100-meter hurdles in 19.34 seconds and Ventre was second in 19.65. Louisburg’s 4×400-meter relay ended the meet with a first place finish in 4:11.

In the 400-meter dash, Ventre and Hill finished second and third, respectively. Austin Moore came in third in the 200 dash, while the 4×100 and 4×200 relay teams finished second.

Belcher was runner-up in the 3,200-meter run and teammate Asah LaHue came in third. Dylan DeShazer and James Foote also finished second and third, respectively, in the 1,600-meter run.

Eighth-grade girls, seventh-grade boys finish runner up

The seventh-grade boys’ track team finished with 42 points and the eighth-grade girls had 53.5 points as both came in second to Wheatridge.

Louisburg won four events in the seventh-grade boys division.

Thomas Arnett came out on top in the long jump with a mark of 14 feet and Jack Mick was first in the pole vault after he cleared 7-0. Chris Shields also cleared 7-0 in the pole vault but came in second on a tiebreaker.

In the 800 run, Ryan Haight recorded a time 2:49.22 to edge teammate Dylan Sanders for the top spot. The medley relay team also finished first.

Michael Waldron came up just short of first in the 100 hurdles and took second. Charlie Koontz finished second and third in the 200 and 100 dashes, respectively.

Waldron also finished third in the discus and Koontz did the same in the high jump. Deven Weiland was second in the 1,600 run and the 4×400 relay also came in runner-up.

The eighth-grade girls captured two events in the field and another on the track.

Ryann Kramer won the discus with a toss of 78-3.25 as the Lady Cats swept the top three places. Kennia Hankinson and Bailey Kern finished second and third, respectively.

Trinity Buchanan cleared 6-0 in the pole vault to take top honors and teammate Melia Rice was second. On the track, Shaylor Whitham won the 3,200-meter run in 14:57 and later finished second in the 800 run.

Also on the track, Kristen Bell came in second in the 100 hurdles and Buchanan was second in the 200 dash. The 4×100 and sprint medley teams also finished runner-up.

In the field, Jorden Leach was second in the high jump, while Elana Lewis and Carson Buffington were second in the long jump and shot put, respectively.

Louisburg senior Sean Dennis pulls away from the field in the 110-yard hurdles Tuesday during the Leavenworth Invitational at Mill Valley High School. Dennis won the event in a personal best time of 15 seconds

SHAWNEE – It didn’t take long for Sean Dennis to pick up his first, of what he hopes to be several top finishes this season.

Dennis, who qualified for the state track meet last season in the 110-meter hurdles and 100-meter dash, blew by the field in one of those events Tuesday at the Leavenworth Invitational.

The Louisburg senior recorded a personal best time of 15 seconds in the 110-yard hurdles to win the event that was held at Mill Valley High School. The Wildcats ran on a yard track, instead of the normal meter track they will run on the rest of the season.

“It was a personal record time for Sean and he ran well even when it was not a great hurdler wind,” Louisburg boys coach Gary Griffin said. “I think he has a shot in all hurdle races he runs this year.”

The Wildcats also picked up several medals in the throws, including two from Connor McMullen.

McMullen, a senior, found himself in a battle with Leavenworth’s Willie Morrison in the discus. McMullen recorded a throw of 179 feet to start the season, but Morrison topped him with a throw of 189 to win the event.

McMullen also fared well in the shot put as he finished third with a toss of 44 feet, 10 inches. However, teammate Jarod Woodward picked a good day to set a personal best throw.

Woodward, a junior, recorded a throw of 45-9 to finish second and get his season off to a good start. Both Wildcats went up against the best in the shot in Morrison. The Leavenworth senior hit a throw of 68-2, which was the second largest mark in state history.

“I think Connor threw alright, I know he will work hard and they will probably see each other again at the KU relays,” Griffin said of the discus battle. “I was happy to get major points in the shot put and I think Jarod and Connor will continue to get better in that event. I think they can both throw over 50 feet this year.”

Louisburg freshman Bailey Belcher was third in the high jump after clearing 4 feet 8 inches.

On the girls’ side, freshman Bailey Belcher had an impressive debut in her first varsity meet. Belcher finished third in the high jump after she cleared 4-8.

Belcher also had some success as she tied for fourth in the long jump with a mark of 15-5 and also fared well on the track as she was fifth in the 100-yard dash in 12.94 seconds.

“I really feel that Bailey did a great job competing in her first track meet,” Louisburg coach Greg Darrington said. “She has the potential of placing in three or four events at our league meet, which would be a great accomplishment for a freshman. With coach (Kyle) Littrell working with her, I’m sure he will get her performing at her best that time of the year.”

The Lady Cats also earned some points in throws as Lexie Reece was seventh with a throw of 86 feet in the discus. Makayla Quinn came in sixth in the 400-yard dash in 1:06.45 and Isabelle Holtzen was seventh in 2:45.84 in the 800-yard run.

“I was very proud of our young throwers and how hard they are working to make progress,” Darrington said. “This was a tough first meet and the girls will keep improving. I really like their attitude and I am expecting good things from all the throwers. They know now what they need to improve on and can get this done at practice. The girls know that working on footwork and drill will benefit them more than just throwing implements.”

Louisburg returns to action Thursday when it travels to the Paola Invitational. The meet is set to being at 3:30 p.m.

(EDITOR’S NOTE: Full results from the meet were not made available at the time of his story’s release as the school was not given final times and distances. Should I get full results I will add them to the story at a later date)

Wildcat sprinters (from left) Mason Wilde, Ben Minster and Ashley Ruder get some work in during Monday’s practice at Wildcat Stadium. Louisburg track opens its season Tuesday in Leavenworth.

There is nothing Connor McMullen likes more than throwing the discus and he does it pretty well.

McMullen, who finished second at the state track and field meet last season, has even higher goals for himself this season. The Louisburg High School senior would like nothing more than to be the school’s next state champion.

He is already well on his way to doing that as he competed in a meet in Dallas, Texas, over spring break and won with a throw of 180 feet, 1 inch. McMullen, who has signed to throw the discus for the University of Kansas next year, is one of the favorites to win state in Class 4A.

McMullen won’t just compete in the discus this season for Louisburg track as he will also be one of the team’s best in the shot put.

“I think Connor should be the favorite in the disc in 4A,” Louisburg boys track coach Gary Griffin said. “He already won a meet in Texas over spring break and threw 180 feet. I would love to see him break the 50-foot barrier in the shot and score some points in the state track meet in that event.”

McMullen is one of several returning state qualifiers for the Wildcat track teams that feature several underclassmen. The boys team has approximately 50 out this season, while the girls feature 30 athletes.

On the boys’ side, senior Sean Dennis returns after qualifying for state in two different events a year ago. Dennis made the state meet in the 110-meter high hurdles and the 100-meter dash.

Senior Sean Dennis works on his form in the hurdles. Dennis is a returning state qualifier in the hurdles and 100-meter dash.

Joining Dennis are fellow seniors Mason Wilde and Dawson Christy who have also qualified for state in previous relays and both will help out in the relays again. According to Griffin, Christy will compete in the 400-meter dash and Wilde will also compete in the sprints.

“Sean had a good year last year and came into this season in good shape,” Griffin said. “Mason and Dawson have also qualified for state and I am expecting good things from them.”

Outside of McMullen, junior Parker Cates leads the Wildcats in the field events after qualifying for state in the pole vault last season.

“We are in the process of sorting out our jumpers and throwers, but hope some of our younger kids can step up in those events,” Griffin said. “We have 30 freshmen and sophomores and some are talented enough to help us at the varsity level.”

On the girls’ side, the Lady Cats return two groups of state qualifiers.

Senior Ashley Ruder, juniors Makenzie Kallevig and Megan Lemke, and sophomore Kaitlyn Gaza return after qualifying in the 4×100-meter relay a year ago. All four will also compete individually in the sprints.

“So far the practices have been going great,” Louisburg girls coach Greg Darrington said. “We have 30 girls out for track and almost all freshman and sophomores. I really like how hard the girls are working and their athleticism. We are really young and could struggle early in the year but we have some strong sprinters and jumpers this year to help carry us.”

In the field events, junior McKinley Mathews comes back after a strong sophomore season that led her to advancing to the state meet in the pole vault. Darrington also expects freshman Bailey Belcher to make her mark in the jumps.

“Bailey is someone who could do great things for us in the jumps,” Darrington said. “Our strength will be on the track this year and think our girls have a lot of potential for a few years to come if I can get the throwers competitive. The throwers are still young with no upper-class athletes but plenty of potential with some young girls. I think by the end of the year we should be competitive in all three throwing events.”

The Wildcats won’t have to wait much longer to compete as they travel to the Leavenworth Invitational at 3:30 p.m. on Tuesday. Louisburg will also hold its home invitational on April 23.

LOUISBURG HIGH SCHOOL TRACK SCHEDULE

Mar. 31                       @Leavenworth                                               3:30 p.m.

Apr. 6                           @ Prairie View (Junior Varsity)                4:30 p.m.

Apr. 9                           @ Paola                                                           3:30 p.m.

Apr. 13                         @ Chanute (Junior Varsity)                        3 p.m.

Apr. 16                         @Anderson County-Garnett                       3:30 p.m.

Apr. 20                         @Paola (Junior Varsity)                              3:30 p.m.

Apr. 23                         Louisburg Invitational                                  3:30 p.m.

Apr. 30                         @Prairie View                                                3:30 p.m.

May 1                          @Gardner                                                          3:30 p.m.

May 8                          @Wellsville                                                      3:30 p.m.

May 12                        @Eudora (Junior Varsity)                             4 p.m.

May 14                        @Baldwin (Frontier League meet)              3:30 p.m.

May 22                        @Regionals                                                      TBA

May 29                        @State (Wichita State University)              TBA