Mid-Columbia showdown at Kennewick - By Kooper Schmitt
In the last week of the Mid-Columbia Conference track and field, The Richland Bombers, Kennewick Lions, and Hermiston Bulldogs went into a three-way matchup at Kennewick's home track. The Richland boys were able to beat both the Bulldogs and the Lions, while Kennewick was able to squeak out a win against Hermiston.
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| Photo: Jim Qualheim |
In the 100-meter sprint, Levi Stiver won for the Bombers, running an 11.37. Second place was very tightly contested, with both running at 11.56. Gio Gonzague from Hermiston could barely squeak it out from third place Alex Roberts for the Lions. The fourth and fifth spots also went to Richland. For the 200-meter, Alex Roberts brought in the win while second, third, and fourth all went to Richland. All running under 23 seconds were Brayden Pratt, Jalen Brightful, and Levi Stiver. In fifth place was Justus Counsell for the Bulldogs. For the longer 400 meters, Hermiston got first and second, with Jamie Rameriez Ortega running a 52.88, and Ryan Allen got a 52.92. Third and fourth were Richlands Trent Bowers and Benjamin Higbee.
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| Photo: Jim Qualheim |
For the 800-meter run, David Molina Dubon could barely win at his home track by .06, and coming in second was John Mills from Hermiston. In third, fourth, and fifth were all Richland Bombers, Om Nair, Crew Martell, and Weston Freeze, who were followed closely by Immanuel Golyshevsky. For the 1600-meter Crew, Martell was able to win, and coming in second by less than a second was Franco Gonzalez Mendoza for Hermiston. In third place was Joshua Graves for Richland. In the long 3200-meter run, Kellan Nelson was able to win for Richland by 17 seconds. In second place was Jose Juarez Rodrigez for the Bulldogs, and in third place was Louie Thorson for Richland. Now, let's talk about some hurdle events. In the 110-meter hurdles, Jackson Burns for the Lions won it in a time of 15.12, followed by Jaden Booker and Matthew Stanfield for the bombers, both running a time of 15.96; fourth and fifth were also from Richland Zachary Rose and Parker Shultz. The 300-meter hurdles also saw Jackson Burns get first with a time of 39.58, separated from Jaden Booker by a second. Here is what Jaden said about the race: "It was a good race, especially with the tough competition. I felt I ran a pretty good race even with my legs dying a little in the last 50 meters, but overall a good race."
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| Photo: Jim Qualheim |
Richland got spots two through eight, with third place being Tristan Emerson and fourth being Parker Shultz. In the 4x100 relay, the Kennewick team won with a time of 43.19, and the 4x400 had the Bombers win with a time of 3:27.87. It's time to talk about the field events. First up shotput, which had Hermiston get first, second, and fourth, with Elijah Robinson winning it, Kennewick got third, fifth, and sixth, while Richland's top placer was Brady Cannon getting tenth place. In discus, it was no better for Richland with their top placer once again getting tenth, Zachary Davidson. First was Bradley Hottman from Hermiston, with a distance of 146'8, followed by his teammate Robert Akers. In third, fourth, and fifth were Tanner Larson, Cooper Smith, and Peter Smith, all from Kennewick. Javelin had the Bombers in first and second, Lance Robinson and Kooper Schmitt. Third and Fourth were both Lions, Dawson Gebers and Tanner Larson. In fifth was Bradley Hottman.
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| Photo: Jim Qualheim |
For the high jump, Zachary Rose jumped a 6'2 personal record to take the win for Richland. In second was Shaun Youngblood, who jumped 6'0; tied for third was Richlands Matthew Stanfield with a personal record, and the Lion's Kyler Witkowski. Long Jump had the Bombers Jalen Brightful get first by almost two feet with a distance of 21'3. Second, third, and fifth were both home team members, while fourth and sixth were both from the bulldogs. The last jumping event was the triple jump, and Kennewick got first, second, and third. Shaun Youngblood got first with a distance of 41'10, and Cooper Neer and Christopher were separated by half an inch, getting 39'5.5 and 39'5. Last but not least, the pole vault had Richland get first through sixth, the top placers being Elijah Lynch getting 15', which is a personal record. In second, also getting a personal record of 14'3, was Reily Berry.
