SAC Champions; Girls Win Four Years in a Row

The Sault High Blue Devils track and field teams traveled to St Ignace to compete in the last Straits Area Conference Championship. Both teams returned as conference champions, and the girls won for the fourth year in a row. “Our senior girls have won it every year they have been in high school” reports a proud Girls’ Coach Scott Menard. The Lady Blue Devils scored a whopping 173 points, over St Ignace 66, Newberry 58, and Cheboygan 54. The top five athletes in each event earned points for their teams, contributing to the overall championship scores.

Bella Smith won both the 100m (13.5) and 200m (27.0) dash events. Ahnaka Oshelski (13.74) was runner up in the 100m event. Dayna Szabo (1:04) won the 400m dash, with Grace Mayer (1:04.5) right behind her in second, and Izzy DeWildt (1:08.5) finishing in third. Taryn Pratt (2:41) was runner up in the 800m run, and Stephanie Jones (2:46) was third. Abby Walther (5:55) finished second in the 1600m run, with Regan Sporte (5:58 – PR) in third and Elise Proulx (6:19) in fifth place. Sporte (13:34) was runner up in the 3200m run, with Calla Armstrong (15:09) in fourth, and Leighton Nyboer (15:39) in fifth place.

Oshelski won both the 100m high hurdles (16.3 – PR) and the 300m low hurdles (49.1 – PR). Annabelle Fazzari placed third in both events (16.9 and 52.8). Ava Mayer (55.1) placed fifth in the low hurdles.

Natalie Prestien, Grace Mayer, DeWildt and Smith won the 4×100, with a time of 53.4. Szabo, Oshelski, Grace Mayer and Smith won the 4×200 relay, with a time of 1:50.5. DeWildt, Grace Mayer, Walther and Szabo won the 4×400 relay, in 4:34. DeWildt, Jones, Walther and Pratt were runners up in the 4×800, with a time of 10:43.

Fazzari (33’7) won the shot put, Katie Anderson (31’10) threw second, and Thelma Osumili (30’10.25 – PR) placed third. Anderson (99’11) won the discus, and Fazzari (86’10) was runner up. Gracie Akridge (4’6) and Jordyn Giffen (4’6) tied for fourth in the high jump. Natalie Heyrman (7’6) finished third in the pole vault, and was runner up (13’9) in the long jump, with Maddie McLean (12’11) in fourth and Giffen (12’6.5) in fifth.

The boys won the conference championship for the second year in a row with 114 points, over St Ignace 83, Newberry 71, Cheboygan 63, and Rudyard 22. Ryver Ryckeghem (11.1) won the 100m dash and Donnivan Dykraaf (11.7) placed fifth. Dean Roe (24.5) placed third in the 200m dash. In the 400m dash, Max VanDoren (56.2 – PR) was runner up, and Jaden Rishmawi (57.6 – PR) finished fourth. Eli Hills (5:01 – PR) won the 1600m run, with Shea Armstrong (5:03) in second, and Chase Aldridge (5:17 – PR) in fifth. Armstrong (10:18) won the 3200m run, Gabe Litzner (10:28) finished second, and Daniel Bowerman (11:15) placed third.

Isaac Niebuhr (17.9) placed third in the 110m high hurdles, and Wyatt Peabody (18.6 – PR) finished fourth. Niebuhr (45.2 – PR) finished third in the 300m low hurdles.

Roe, Dykraaf, Caleb Klier and Ryckeghem were runners up in the 4×100 relay, with a time of 47.1. The same four athletes were runners up in the 4×200 relay, with a time of 1:36. The 4×400 relay team of Peabody, Hills, Rishmawi and VanDoren finished fourth, with a time of 4:01. Adam Brandt, Hills, Litzner and Klier won the 4×800, with a time of 8:59.

Evan Arbic was the shot put champion, with a personal record throw of 45’4.5. Talon Thomas-Holm (6’3 – PR) was the high jump champion, and Niebuhr (5’2) placed fourth. Rayce Rizzo was second in pole vault (11’6) and third in long jump (18’5). Assistant Coach Becky Arbic was pleased with Thomas-Holm’s finish today. “I’m excited to see Talon hit a PR today, we are working on taking that positive energy into finals.”

Johnny Osborn continues to set personal records in the adaptive events, winning the 100m (24.0 – PR), 200m (46.8 – PR), 400m (1:41.10) and the shot put (16’8).

The athletes that qualified for the State meet will spend the next week preparing for the final competition of the season. The UP State Finals are set to take place in Kingsford in June 1.