Rangers compete in back to back meets

To simulate the feel of a two-day meet he Hill City High School Ranger Track and Field team competed at Rapid City’s Track-O-Rama April 12 and the Center of the Nation Invite in Belle Fourche April 13.

Of the Rapid City meet, head coach Joe Noyes said, “It was an awesome day for the Rangers. It was great weather. It got up to about 60 degrees. Just a beautiful day, and the kids really took advantage of it.”

In the 800 meter run, Leighton Aves won with a personal record of 2:02.74. Tate Grabow was just behind him in second with a personal record of 2:04.16. 

For the 300 hurdles, Grayson Rahn placed sixth at 43.44, and Brensen Veneklasen placed eighth at 44.40.

The 4x200 relay team including Caleb Sobolik, Mason Wiese, Nick Schroeder and Noah Schelske placed fourth at 1:36.73. Then, Sobolik, M. Wiese, Devin Buehler and Brandon Escalante won the medley relay with a time of 3:40.98. 

“This is the number one time in Class A. Those boys came together and had a really nice race,” said Noyes. 

In the high jump, Buehler placed seventh at 6-0 and in the triple jump, Schroeder placed sixth at 39-0 1/2. 

On the girls side, Sara DuBois placed fifth in the 400 meter run at 1:03.20, and Aspen Veneklasen placed seventh in the 800 meter run at 2:34.43. 

Jessica Escalante, Demi Schrier, Addysen Kurtz and Aly Comer placed eighth in the 4x100 relay at 55.74 and eighth in the 4x200 relay at 1:57.56. Then, Riley Wiese, S. DuBois, Alaina Dean and Abby Cutler placed third in the medley relay at 4:29.10. 

For the triple jump, Al. Dean won with a personal record of 35-10 3/4. 

“Alaina Dean had a school record in the triple jump which is awesome to see that record get broken,” said Noyes. 

The Rangers got back to Hill City around 6:30 p.m. and were on the road to Belle Fourche by 6:15 a.m.

“The kids got to know what it was like to run on tired legs,” said Noyes. “It was a really good indicator and a confidence builder.” 

Sobolik placed fifth in the 100 meter run with a personal record of 11.72 and fourth in the 200 meter run with a personal record of 23.80.

Aves once again came out on top. He won the 1600 meter run with a seasonal record of 4:34.58. Grabow was right behind him in second at 4:35.25, and James DuBois finished eighth at 5:08.81. 

In the 110 hurdles, Rahn placed fourth at 17.02. Then, in the 300 hurdles, B. Veneklasen placed third at 44.57, and Rahn placed fifth at 46.06. 

The 4x100 relay team including Sobolik, M. Wiese, Schroeder and Schelske placed second at 45.67. Aidan Voorhees, Brayden Wilkison, Zephaniah Martinez and B. Veneklasen finished fifth in the 4x200 relay at 1:43.52. Then, Voorhees, Wilkison, Martinez and J. DuBois placed third in the medley relay at 4:02.35. 

Schelske won long jump with a personal record of 18-5 1/2, and Schroder placed third at 17-7 1/4. 

Then, Schroeder won the triple jump at 37-11 1/2, and B. Veneklasen placed second with a personal record of 36-6 1/2. 

For the girls 200 meter run, Kurtz placed fifth with a personal record of 29.12, Schrier placed sixth with a seasonal record of 29.57 and Comer placed eighth with a personal record of 29.82. 

In the 800 meter run, Paiton Flick placed seventh at 2:56.46. For the 1600 meter run, Brooke Thayer-Burke placed second at 5:54.69, A. Veneklasen placed fourth at 6:15.33 and Lillie Ross placed fifth at 6:22.89.

R. Wiese placed second in the 100 hurdles at 16.45, and Anna Dean placed second in the 300 hurdles at 51.13. 

Schrier, Comer, Dakota Allmer and Joy Anderson teamed up for the 4x100 relay and placed fourth at 54.49. In the 4x200 relay, R. Wiese, Allmer, S. DuBois and Al. Dean placed second at 1:52.03. 

Finally, in long jump Al. Dean won at 15-10, and Allmer placed fourth at 15-8. 

Noyes said it was a long busy weekend with great results. Now the Rangers are preparing for the Legion Relays in Pierre at Phil Trautner Stadium at Hollister Field Friday, April 19 at 11 a.m.

“We’re looking forward to it,” said Noyes. “It’s a mostly AA meet so it’s another tough one for us, but it’s a great opportunity to see some East River schools. It’s usually a pretty fast meet, and it’s a good one to run one or two events to get yourself set up for Howard Wood, which is two weeks out.”