Blair High School track and field returned to the Kansas Relays on Friday and Saturday after several years away.
Select Bears competed across seven events with seniors Reece Ewoldt and Ethan Baessler claiming fifth-place results during the 101-year-old event.
Ewoldt, a future University of Nebraska-Kearney Loper, broke her own school record in the 1,600-meter run Saturday. She was fifth out of 39 runners with a time of 4:59.8.
Baessler, meanwhile, took fifth in the 100-meter dash with a time of 10.72 seconds. The effort was the future South Dakota Coyote's quickest of the season after he earned fourth out of 49 runners during the preliminary round.
Five of coach Bryan Soukup's BHS relay teams participated during festivities in Lawrence, too. The boys' 1,600 sprint medley squad earned the best result, taking 12th in 3:44.78. Ben Holcomb, Colin McCabe, Hayden Daggett and Caleb Funk ran the race.
Reese Beemer, Brynn Lundgren, Audie Keeling and Jade Wickwire, meanwhile, finished 14th in the girls' sprint medley relay. They stopped the clock in 4:33.47.
Bears Allie Czapla, Ryleigh Schroeter, Lainey Bilau and Ewoldt ran the 6,400-meter relay in 22:47.88. They took 15th for their efforts as Nadia Davey acted as potential substitute before the race.
In the 400 relay, the Blair boys took 49th in 44.14 seconds, while the girls were 71st in 53.18. McCabe, Baessler, Holcomb, Daggett, Lundgren, Keeling, Beemer and Wickwire all participated for the their respective teams.
Bears compete at Schuyler
Before BHS' standouts traveled to Lawrence, the girls team won the Schuyler Invitational on Thursday with 147.5 team points. The Bears bested second-place Columbus Lakeview by 43.5 points, earning four event wins.
Beemer won the 100 dash in 12.81 seconds, while Ewoldt took first during the 800 run in 2:22.38. Emma Ammon and Hailey Roewert both cleared 4-10 in the high jump for a first-place tie, too, as Greta Galbraith won the pole vault with a 10-foot attempt.
Ammon, Lundgren, Keeling and Czapla added runner-up individual finishes as well.
McCabe and Baessler led the fourth-place Blair boys with second-place finishes, too. McCabe finished the 200 dash in 23.22, while Baessler clocked in at 51.41 in the 400.
Bears Declan McCabe, Daggett and Braden McGill notably added third-place solo efforts to add to BHS' team score. McGill, a Wayne State College recruit, earned bronze in both the shot put and discus.
Coach Bryan Soukup's team next competes at home on Thursday. The Mike Lehl Invitational starts at 1 p.m. after Unified track and field competition at 11 a.m.
SCHUYLER INVITATIONAL
Thursday at Schuyler High School
BOYS
Team standings: Columbus Scotus 142, Wahoo 104, Columbus Lakeview 91, Blair 66, Wayne 63, David City Aquinas 38, Schuyler 20, David City 3.
Top-6 BHS Finishers
200-meter dash: 2, Colin McCabe, 23.22 seconds.
400 dash: 2, Ethan Baessler, 51.41. 4, Declan McCabe, 54.36.
800 run: 3, D.McCabe, 2:07.56.
1,600 run: 5, Roland Barondeau, 5:15.28.
3,200 run: 5, Barondeau, 11:13.49.
1,600 relay: 4, BHS (Caleb Funk, Chase Cottle, D.McCabe, Ben Holcomb), 3:40.86.
3,200 relay: 3, BHS (Cottle, D.McCabe, Charlie Gutzmann, Funk), 8:59.16.
Triple jump: 4, Logan Sibson, 35-9.
High jump: 3, Hayden Daggett, 5-10. 4, Cottle, 5-8.
Discus: 3, Braden McGill, 143-3.
Shot put: 3, McGill, 47-1.
GIRLS
Team standings: Blair 147.5, Lakeview 104, Aquinas 78, Scotus 75.5, Wahoo 74, Wayne 34, Schuyler 14.
Top-6 BHS Finishers
100-meter dash: 1, Reese Beemer, 12.81 seconds. 4, Brynn Lundgren, 13.21.
200 dash: 2, Lundgren, 26.99.
400 dash: 2, Audie Keeling, 1:05.12. 6, Jordan McGill, 1:07.94.
800 run: 1, Reece Ewoldt, 2:22.38. 4, Jade Wickwire, 2:29.89. 5, Kate Wulf, 2:35.08.
1,600 run: 4, Nadia Davey, 6:05.7.
3,200 run: 2, Allie Czapla, 12:29.91. 4, Davey, 12:50.86.
400 relay: 2, BHS (Wickwire, Beemer, Audie Keeling, Lundgren), 52.85.
1,600 relay: 5, BHS (Wulf, Hailey Roewert, McGill, Jacy Schueth), 4:31.3.
3,200 relay: 2, BHS (Czapla, Ryleigh Schroeter, Lainey Bilau, Wulf), 10:28.26.
100 hurdles: 3, Emma Ammon, 16.97. 4, Schueth, 17.12. 5, Haylie Jensen, 17.28.
300 hurdles: 4, Schueth, 53.07. 6, Ella Donner, 53.23.
Long jump: 2, Ammon, 16 feet, 5 inches.
Triple jump: 2, Ammon, 32-3. 3, Taylor Mostek, 32-2.
High jump: 1, Ammon and Roewert, 4-10. 5, London Larsen, 4-6.
Pole vault: 1, Greta Galbraith, 10.
