The Bishop Brossart and Beechwood track teams switched positions Friday.
The Lady ‘Stangs had the easier time in the Class A, Region 4 meet at Munninghoff Family Stadium, taking down the Tigers, 166-108, while the boys knocked off the Mustangs, 150-133.
Friday was Brossart’s seventh straight regional titles. Coach Dave Schuh said this year’s team won “with some depth.”
“Everybody’s kind of stepping up, trying some different things, very few superstar people that are going to go out and win every race, but we have somebody that can compete in every event,” said Schuh, who will complete his 47th season in Alexandria at Thursday’s state meet at the University of Kentucky.
But Brossart does have a superstar, at least in Kentucky. Senior Ava Walters won the shot put with a 36 feet, 11 ¾ inch toss and the discus with a 123-11.
Walters won the shot put and discus. Photo provided | Charles Bolton
A second reason Brossart won was its distance relay teams. Tessa Hafer, Addison Geiman, Larah Callahan and Callie Ochsner won the 4×800, and Callahan, Aubrey Bevan, Hafer and Mackinley Scott took the 4×400.
St. Henry’s girls finished third with 72.5 points, Walton-Verona was fourth with 72, and Newport Central Catholic was fifth with 45.
St. Henry’s boys finished third with 50 points, Bellevue was fourth with 44, and Villa Madonna was fifth with 41.
Aylor’s four wins
When you looked for reasons Beechwood’s boys won, senior Brody Aylor was atop the list.
Aylor won the 100-meter dash in 11.19, the 200 in 22.47 and was part of the winning 4×100 and 4×200 quartets.
“He puts in the work, works on his craft, takes it seriously,” Beechwood coach Marsha Parke says. “And he loves the 100, but he loves his relays.”
Indeed, Aylor said the 100 is his favorite event.
“Just because it’s so fast-paced,” he said. “The competition is always high, and there’s very little room for error. It puts a lot of pressure on me, and I think I compete better under pressure.”
Aylor’s teammate, junior Nathan Pabst, pressed him in both races – by 0.15 in the 100 and a little more than a half-second in the 200.
“He’s always beating me out of the blocks, and I like being able to catch up to him,” Aylor said. “He pushes me hard.”
Anger
Beechwood junior Caroline Nordman set a track record – a 25.64 in the 200 meters. She also won the 100 in 12.92 and the 400 in 58.79.
What you notice – besides the wins – is her steely expression. Parke calls it being focused, but Nordman said she’s angry.
“I’m really hard on myself … and the final stretch is just a fight against myself,” Nordman says. “But I guess you could say I run with anger because I’m trying to prove what I can do when I’m running.”
Two-timers
Beechwood’s Lily Parke and Villa Madonna’s Max Watson also won twice. Parke captured the 800 and the 1,600, and Watson took the discus and shot put.
Parke, who’s headed for the University of Kentucky, is wrapping up one of Northern Kentucky’s most storied careers – she’s won 10 cross country and track titles. She says she’s starting to think about her last high school races.
“I had my last real day of classes (Friday), so it’s definitely top of my mind,” she says. “But it’s been a great time.”
Many shot putters look like 300-pound football linemen. Watson, meanwhile, stands 6-1 and 220 pounds.
So how does Watson generate such power?
“A lot of explosive lifts in the weight room and a lot of throws in the offseason,” he says.
January’s record snowfall didn’t deter Watson – he went to Grant County Park near Crittenden to throw from the concrete disc golf pads.
“I was freezing,” Watson said. “That was a quick practice, though.”
Three track records were set: Nordman, Ludlow’s Nicholi Abbott in the long jump (21-3 ¼), and Walton-Verona’s Abrielle Hooten, Maci Pettit, Josie Holtzapple and Maggie Meyer in the 4×100 (50.76).
Visit c3timing.com for complete results (bit.ly/4wuoYuQ).
PHOTOS: Slideshow from Friday’s Class A, Region 4 track and field meet provided by Charles Bolton
