By Bruce Karnick
bruce@hastingsjournal.news
The Hastings Raiders track and field teams turned in a strong all-around performance against a deep field that included Owatonna, St. Paul Highland Park, Duluth East, Two Rivers, East Ridge, Simley, Minneapolis Roosevelt, and Richfield, with the boys team winning the varsity title with 98 points and the girls team placing second with 99 points.
Hastings set the tone early in the running events and relays, where the boys sprint group delivered several first place finishes. The Raiders opened with a win in the 4x100 relay as Zachary Shatek, Sebastian Strauss, Gunner Hanstad, and Lane Hoffman combined for a time of 42.40 seconds. The same quartet returned to win the 4x200 relay in 1:27.59, showing strong depth and consistency in the short sprint events.
Hastings added another relay victory in the 4x400 relay, where Aven Johnson, Hanstad, Hoffman, and Strauss finished first in 3:20.93. The sprint medley relay team of Elliott Hagen, Richard Boyer, Matthew Jelks, and Cody Weber also earned a win with a time of 1:38.93. The Raiders completed their relay sweep with another first place finish in the 1600 meter sprint medley relay as Jelks, Boyer, Ashton Arnes, and Tristan Herbst crossed in 4:01.78.
In the distance relays, Hastings placed fourth in the 4x800 relay with Parker Stoltz, Finn Cullen, David Tireman, and Aiden Reuter finishing in 8:49.22. The distance medley relay team of Cullen, Hunter Tape, William Carry, and Reuter added a fourth place finish in 11:52.38.
Carry also placed fourth individually in the 1600 meters with a personal best time of 4:51.04. Stoltz earned a third place finish in the 3200 meters in 10:16.38, while Tireman placed sixth in 10:32.60.
In the hurdles, Aven Johnson placed third in the 300 meter hurdles with a time of 46.51 seconds. Davion Navarrette added a sixth place finish in the 110 meter hurdles in 20.21 seconds.
The Raiders also scored in the field events. Henry Naber delivered one of the top performances of the day with a third place finish and personal best of 38 feet 10.5 inches in the triple jump. Landon Johnson placed 15th in the long jump at 17 feet 6 inches, while Cooper Nelson recorded a personal best of 16 feet 6 inches. Ryder Ashcraft tied for eighth in the high jump at 5 feet and also placed 13th in the triple jump. Cole Ebeling added a fifth place finish in the pole vault at 8 feet 6 inches.
In the throws, Daniel Foss led Hastings in both events, placing ninth in discus at 101 feet 9 inches and 10th in the shot put with a personal best throw of 37 feet 11.5 inches.
On the girls side, Hastings matched the boys with a strong relay showing. The Raiders won the 4x100 relay as Kaylin Jelks, Olyvia Erickson, Jersey Appert, and Ellie Magnus finished in 49.91 seconds. The same group also won the 4x200 relay in 1:45.63.
Hastings added another victory in the 4x400 relay as Paisley Grunzke, Erickson, Olivia Schuster, and Magnus finished first in 4:08.74. The sprint medley relay team of Mya Bauer, Avery Klippen, Schuster, and Grunzke also placed first with a time of 2:00.66.
The girls distance relays added key points as well. Lucy Burmeister, Sara Siebenaler, Katherine Nowak, and Linnea Ronning placed fifth in the 4x800 relay in 10:44.06. Hastings also finished second in the distance medley relay with Siebenaler, Lydia Latch, Ronning, and Clara Hochmuth posting a time of 14:03.30. The sprint medley 1600 relay team of Amaya Butler, Klippen, Elliana Lucking, and Annika Hauck placed fifth.
Individually, Jenevieve Behnke placed third in the 100 meter hurdles in 17.18 seconds and fifth in the 300 meter hurdles in 54.03 seconds. Grace Braucks added a third place finish and personal best in the 300 meter hurdles at 51.31 seconds and placed sixth in the 100 meter hurdles. Graceann Olson recorded personal best times in both hurdle events.
In the distance races, Elliana Lucking placed eighth in the 1600 meters with a personal best time of 6:01.28. Lucy Burmeister placed 12th in the 3200 meters in 13:10.25, while Katherine Nowak finished 16th with a personal best of 13:38.14.
The Raiders also picked up key field event points from Natalie Knutson, who placed second in discus at 84 feet 7 inches and fourth in shot put at 30 feet 8.5 inches. Piper Brockman added a fourth place finish in discus, and Amelia Quinn placed ninth in shot put and 12th in discus. Olivia Schuster placed third in the pole vault at 8 feet 6 inches, and Mya Bauer cleared 4 feet 8 inches to place fifth in the high jump.
As a team, the Hastings boys finished first in both the varsity and combined standings with 98 points, while the girls placed second in both the varsity and combined standings with 99 points. Relay victories and strong hurdle performances helped lead the scoring effort for both squads.
Hastings will compete in the Hamline Elite Meet on Friday, April 24 at Hamline University in St. Paul, then return for the True Team Section 2AAA meet on Tuesday, May 5 at White Bear Lake North Campus. The Raiders will also compete in the Matt Kero Memorial Invitational on Friday, May 8 at Denfeld High School before the Metro East Championships on May 19 and May 21 at Two Rivers High School.