Blair High School senior Reece Ewoldt's first 1,600-meter run of the season was the best in program history, breaking Natalie Flynn's 26-year-old record.
The University of Nebraska-Kearney recruit clocked in at 5:12.73 after a mile on Concordia University's indoor track, propelling the Bears to their first team win of the new campaign. Coach Bryan Soukup's girls scored 79 team points to win the Bulldog Challenge's Sandhills Division, outscoring the hometown Seward Bluejays by 19. The Fort Calhoun girls, meanwhile, earned 13th with 16 points.
On the boys' side, BHS finished second to Aurora in their 2024 debut. The Bulldogs scored 81 points, while the Bears notched 48 and seventh-place Fort Calhoun had 27.
Ewoldt's record-breaking 1,600 run came after her first gold-medal win of the season in the 3,200 relay. Ryleigh Schroeter, Lainey Bilau, Kate Wulf and she clocked in a 10:28.45 to win the new year's first official race.
Reese Beemer and Greta Galbraith picked up event wins for Blair's cause, too. Beemer clocked in at 7.99 seconds to win the 60-meter dash, while Galbraith capped the Challenge with a pole vault victory. The senior — another future UNK Loper — cleared 9 feet, 11.75 inches for the win.
Elsewhere in girls competition, Emma Ammon scored team points for the Bears across three events. She was second in the high jump, third in the 60-meter hurdles and fifth in the triple jump.
Allie Czapla and Nadia Davey finished third and fourth in the 3,200-meter run, too.
Notably, Kate Wulf, Haylie Jensen, Lucy Lindau and Ewoldt took second in the 1,600-meter relay as well. The BHS team's time was 4:32.8.
Ethan Baessler, meanwhile, led the Blair boys Thursday in Seward. The future South Dakota Coyote earned two event wins, breaking his own meet record in the 60 dash with a time of 6.91 seconds. He won the 200 dash in 23.19, too.
Additionally, Bears Ben Holcomb (second in the 60 hurdles), Caleb Funk (third in the 800 run), Chase Cottle (fourth in the high jump) and Braden McGill (fourth in the shot put) added top-four individual finishes for Coach Soukup's second-place squad.
Colin McCabe, Declan McCabe, Holcomb and Cottle were fourth in the 1,600 relay, too.
It was Fort Calhoun, though, that earned Washington County's top boys relay finish Thursday. Seth Waters, Chris Post-Whiteowl, Will Dennis and Lawson Tjardes combined to earn second in the 3,200 team event, clocking in at 8:56.91.
It was the Pioneers' best result, but not their only medal-worthy performance.
Travis Skelton secured a third-place finish during the individual 3,200 run, crossing the finish line in 11:22.53. His teammate, Brayden Bessey, was fourth in 11:38.37.
Matthew Kelly, meanwhile, earned another FCHS bronze medal for coach Mandy Taylor's team in the 60-meter hurdles. He finished just 0.21 behind Holcomb, stopping the clock in 9.2 seconds.
On the girls' side, Bria Bench, Kaylee Taylor, Raeann Massey, Ari Nelson, Ella Bouwman and Maelie Nelson combined to score Calhoun's team points. Bench was third in the high jump, clearing 4-11.75, while Taylor was fourth in the long jump.
Massey was fifth in the 3,200 run, and Taylor teamed with the Nelsons and Bouwman to take fourth in the 1,600 relay.
FCHS next competes 2 p.m. Friday at the College of Saint Mary in Omaha. It'll be its second-straight indoor meet.
Blair, meanwhile, returns to competition Saturday in Ashland. The host Bluejays' outdoor invite starts at noon.
BULLDOG CHALLENGE
Sandhills Division
Thursday at Concordia University
BOYS
Top-10 team standings: Aurora 81 points, Blair 48, Wahoo 46, Seward 38, Ashland-Greenwood 35, Milford 31, Fort Calhoun 27, Omaha Concordia 26, Adams Central 26, Omaha Buena Vista 23.
Top-6 Washington County Finishers
60-meter dash: 1, Ethan Baessler, Blair, 6.91 seconds.
200 dash: 1, Baessler, B, 23.19.
800 run: 3, Caleb Funk, B, 2:03.42. 5, Declan McCabe, B, 2:10.02.
1,600 run: 5, Lawson Tjardes, Fort Calhoun, 4:53.29. 6, Will Dennis, FC, 4:53.47.
3,200 run: 3, Travis Skelton, FC, 11:22.53. 4, Brayden Bessey, FC, 11:38.37.
1,600 relay: 4, Blair (Colin McCabe, D.McCabe, Ben Holcomb, Chase Cottle), 3:42.11.
3,200 relay: 2, Fort Calhoun (Seth Waters, Chris Post-Whiteowl, Dennis, Tjardes), 8:56.91. 6, Blair (Funk, D.McCabe, Charlie Gutzmann, Brogan Steffen), 9:18.6.
60 hurdles: 2, Holcomb, B, 8.99. 3, Matthew Kelly, FCHS, 9.2.
High jump: 4, Cottle, B, 5 feet, 9.75 inches.
Shot put: 4, Braden McGill, B, 43-1.5.
GIRLS
Top-10 team standings: Blair 79 points, Seward 60, Fairbury 50, York 42, Aurora 32, Columbus Lakeview 28, Milford 26, Adams Central 24.33, Wahoo 22.33, Ashland-Greenwood 20. Also: 13, Fort Calhoun 16.
Top-6 Washington County Finishers
60-meter dash: 1, Reese Beemer, Blair, 7.99 seconds.
400 dash: 5, Audie Keeling, B, 1:04.73. 6, Jade Wickwire, B, 1:05.68.
1,600 run: 1, Reece Ewoldt, B, 5:12.73.
3,200 run: 3, Allie Czapla, B, 12:40.07. 4, Nadia Davey, B, 13:19.49. 5, Raeann Massey, Fort Calhoun, 13:40.53.
1,600 relay: 2, Blair (Kate Wulf, Haylie Jensen, Lucy Lindau, Ewoldt), 4:32.8. 4, Fort Calhoun (Ari Nelson, Ella Bouwman, Maelie Nelson, Kaylee Taylor), 4:35.03.
3,200 relay: 1, Blair (Ewoldt, Ryleigh Schroeter, Lainey Bilau, Wulf), 10:28.45.
60 hurdles: 3, Emma Ammon, B, 10.44.
Long jump: 4, K.Taylor, FC, 15 feet, 9.75 inches.
High jump: 2, Ammon, B, 5-3.75. 3, Bria Bench, FC, 4-11.75. 5, Hailey Roewert, B, 4-11.75.
Triple jump: 5, Ammon, B, 32-11.25.
Pole vault: 1, Greta Galbraith, B, 9-11.75.
