Cardinal reign: Heath boys, Northridge girls use depth to extend LCL run
HEBRON — Junior Brayden Bayles won the 100 and was a part of the winning 800 relay to help lead the Heath boys track team to its eighth consecutive LCL-Cardinal Division championship.
Competing at Lakewood, the Bulldogs racked up 164 points, well ahead of runner-up Northridge's 109 and the host Lancers' 102.
"It starts with everyone buying in," said Bayles, who edged out Lakewood's Isaiah Mitchell and Josh Hicks in the 100 with a time of 11.40, and combined with Daylen McIntyre, Jahki Royster and Jacob Lane to capture the 800 relay in 1:33.76.
"We had kids at the beginning that didn't want to do certain events, but they knew if they could get a decent amount of points, it would help the team," Bayles added. "That's what got us this lead."
McIntyre added a victory in the 300 hurdles (44.13) to go with Wednesday's win in the long jump, and he also joined Royster, Carter Wiley and Joshua Jones on the winning 400 relay (45.87). Tucker See won the 3,200 (9:58.06).
Heath added to its success in the field events. Carter Higgins (151-10) gave the Bulldogs a 1-2 finish in the discus by surpassing teammate Reece Shriner (148-4) on his final throw.
"It feels great. I have been putting in the work all year, and I am just happy to see the results," said Higgins, who eclipsed 150 for the first time. "Today was the day. I love the competition. It makes it easier. I love having Reece back and forth battling. It's so much fun. We love doing that."
The Northridge girls extended their run of dominance, winning their fifth consecutive LCL-Cardinal championship. Colette Patti and Isabel Evans combined to win four individual events just as they did a year ago, and they again had plenty of help as the Vikings totaled 156.5 points, well ahead of runner-up Johnstown's 100 and the host Lancers' 97.
Patti won the 100 (12.57) and 200 (25.64). She joined Mia Siegenthaler, Darla Dorman and Hannah Aamodt on the winning 400 relay (52.13) and Siegenthaler, Dorman and Stephanie Gilmore on the winning 800 relay (1:46.98).
"It's definitely really exciting especially since we have been staying consistent with it, and seeing the results is really nice," Patti said.
Evans swept the 100 hurdles (15.06) and 300 hurdles (44.76) and joined Aamodt, Dorman and Gilmore on the winning 1,600 relay (4:19.11). Gilmore added a win in the 400 (1:02.40).
"We work hard and I am glad to see it paying off," Evans said. "We are going to keep seeing the numbers drop more and more towards the end of the season."
Johnstown's Reece Savage was a double winner in the 1,600 (5:26.11) and 3,200 (11:37.00), and Audrey McCrady won the 800 (2:24.13), adding to Wednesday's 3,200 relay victory. The Johnnies also received a win from Kate Ruffle in the long jump (16-5.25).
"It feels amazing," Ruffle said. "I have been in kind of a rut recently, so it felt good to get back to the higher end of my jumping. ... I was trying to reach my PR. I was trying to get around a 16-7."
Heath's Allie Dunlap won the pole vault (11-1), recording a personal best. Lakewood's Landry Driskel was the top finisher in the shot put (35-6.5).
In the boys meet, Johnstown's Brenden Ball knew he had the advantage of fresh legs in the 800, and nobody could catch him. Ball (2:02.69) and teammate Cameron Beverick (2:03.41) took the top two spots, gaining some redemption after the Johnnies' third-place finish in the 3,200 relay earlier in the week.
"Wednesday was kind of a rough day, so I just told the guys to pick it up," Ball said. "I knew (Lakewood's Ryan Byers) and (Heath's Jacob Elam) had the 400 and the mile, and I was coming out fresh. I did want sub-2. I still have districts. ... I felt (Beverick). I could see the shadows when I was running, so it was scary."
Keaton Curnutte added a victory in the 200 (23.31) for the Johnnies. He finished just three-hundredths of a second ahead of Bayles.
Lakewood's Byers won the 400 (51.63), and teammate Corey Rafferty won the 1,600 (4:36.89), finishing just two-hundredths of a second ahead of See.
Northridge's Zach Holder had the best high jump (5-10), and teammate Nathan Burkey won the 110 hurdles (16.70). The Vikings capped the meet with a victory from Jack VanFossen, Willie Poulton, Logan Knerr and Charlie Kinkead in the 1,600 relay (3:40.93).
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This article originally appeared on Newark Advocate: Heath, Northridge use depth to continue LCL-Cardinal track reign
