Any mention of the Beloit track and field program and the first thing that comes to mind is the Trojans’ legacy of elite throwers.
 
From the Seyferts to the Johnsons to the Thompsons and beyond, Beloit throwers have been a mainstay atop the medal podium at the State Outdoors.
 
And without question, the performance of the throwers a year ago at state were the driving force behind Beloit’s girls capturing the Class 3A team championship for the first time since 2016. Led by a double-gold performance in the shot put and discus by record-setting Tatum Seyfert, Beloit’s throwers racked up 44 of the Trojans’ 74 points, getting multiple placers in all three throwers.
 
Their showing nearly was enough on its own to propel Beloit to the title as runner-up Hesston finished with 49 points.
 
With the graduation of not only Seyfert, but double-event placer Addison Budke (runner-up in the shot put, fifth in the javelin) and Cass Thompson (eighth in the discus), Beloit won’t have the same presence in those events this spring. But a potential repeat championship is still very much on the table for the Trojans this spring with the balance of power on the Trojan team shifting to the athletes that formed a difference-making supporting cast a year ago.
 
And that was something Trojan coach Ryan Isbell relayed to those athletes even as Beloit was powering its way to a 25-point margin of victory at state a year ago.
 
“Last year there was such an emphasis on our throwers, from Kansas Pregame magazine doing a full spread on the throwers to everybody talking throwers – and rightfully so, don’t get me wrong,” Isbell said. “But we had multiple sit downs with the rest of the team also telling them, ‘They’re getting a lot of love but your work’s not going unnoticed and it will pay off for you. I think we’re seeing that come to fruition a little bit more this year.”
 
Indeed, the athletes producing in the shadows of Beloit’s throwers a year ago have flourished in the spotlight this year. And if the early-season results are any indicator, Beloit will very much be in the mix to get a repeat championship this spring.
 
“That’s not something that’s even been a point of conversation for us,” Isbell said. “Each year is different in terms of your personnel and what you put together. Our throwers are still strong, just maybe not the depth that we’ve had in the past. But we’ve also got a lot of girls trying new things and all of a sudden finding out that they’re not too bad at it.”
 
Beloit had a strong core of returners from last year’s state championship team coming back this spring. Autumn Lorenz was the state runner-up in the javelin, while Bently Pruitt (pole vault), Brecken Boudreaux (long jump) and Dakota Gray (100 hurdles) all posted third-place finishes in at state a year ago.
 
That core has been big this spring so far.
 

 
Gray has won the 100 hurdles at all three meets she’s run in this spring and opened some eyes when she not only broke the meet record at the Smith Center Relays but also the school record with a time of 14.84. The previous meet record at Smith Center had belonged to her mother, Lindsay (Eck) Gray, who is a KSHSAA Hall of Famer after a storied high school track career in which she won 13 individual state titles. The old school record was 14.89 set by Kaley Broeckelman-Buchara in 2014.
 
In addition, Gray won the 300 hurdles at Smith Center and has helped the 400 relay come within .05 seconds of the school record this season, turning in the best time for that event in more than 10 years.
 

 
Boudreaux has also put her name in the Beloit record books, opening the season with a huge leap of 19 feet, 4.25 inches at the Clay Center Invitational that broke the old school record by nearly a foot, an 18-5.25 set by Lindsay Shamburg in 2007. That mark also ranks No. 2 overall in the state this spring, trailing only Olathe North’s Sienna Wesley, who’s gone 20-1.75, and was the meet record, with Boudreaux also setting the meet record at Republic County with an 18-1 winning jump.
 
She’s also run on Beloit’s 400 relay, as has Pruitt, who not only has been the Trojans’ top sprinter in the 100, but has also gone 10-0 at three of her first four meets in the pole vault. She’s branched out this year as well, taking up the shot put and has won three meet titles in that event as well, throwing 40-5.5 in just her second meet ever at Concordia – a mark that ranks fifth in the state.
 
Lorenz has won the javelin title at three of four meets, the only non-victory coming at the inaugural Kansas State Relays. Her top throw of 137-10 at the Lions Club Meet in Republic County earlier this week ranks as the best in 3A this season and fourth overall in the state.
 
Samantha Thompson, Beloit’s lone returning state placer in the discus (sixth last year) ranks top 10 in the state this year and second in Class 3A with a 129-6. Returning state pole vault placer Zayda Purvis (tie for eighth) also has a meet victory at Smith Center.
 
“It’s a really good core from last year’s squad,” Isbell said. “We’ve got maybe more depth in the sprints and anybody that’s been around track and field knows, if you’ve got sprinters you can do a lot of stuff in terms of other field events, relays and everything else. It was a good nucleus to build around and they’re great leaders. Those are kids that have been out every year and have bought into their roles a bit and they work hard.”
 
In addition to the returning standouts, Beloit has gotten a boost from a pair of freshmen.
 
Vivian Thompson has already cleared 5-6 in the high jump this season – tied for third in the state – and just missed out on getting the school record of 5-7. She’s the younger sister of Sophia Thompson, who was third in the high jump at state last year. Her 5-6 was the meet record at Republic County.
 
Addyson Channell, meanwhile, has provided depth in the sprints and is also on the 400 relay.
 
“It’s been a lot of fun watching the pieces come together and work,” Isbell said. “And for the girls to try new things for the sake of the team has been a blast. The kids have been very open to anything we’ve suggested and have taken it head on. It’s been a really fun group to do the puzzle pieces with and we’ve still got a few more we’re trying to figure out.
 
“Every team we’ve had works hard, but these girls get after it every day and you can tell they have a mission. Whether it’s their individual events or the team aspect of things. They have their goals and they’re working for them pretty hard.”
 
OTHER TRACK AND FIELD STANDOUTS

• A week after tying Santa Fe Trail’s long jump record with a leap of 22-0, Kain Tantaros made the record his own with a jump of 22-4 at the Tonganoxie Invitational. That mark ranks as the best among Class 4A jumpers this season. Teammate Trevir Hinck broke a 29-year-old school record in the pole vault with a clearance of 14-6 at the Basehor-Linwood Invitational. Both Hinck and Tantaros were on Trail’s 400 relay that set a school record at Royal Valley with a 43.25, joined by Stephen Johnson and Julion Daniels.
• Manhattan set four school records at the inaugural Kansas State Relays as the girls team came away with records in the distance medley relay, sprint medley relay and the 3,200 relay. The boys also got a school record in the sprint medley relay. At the Manhattan Invitational, Gabby Converse broke a 48-year-old school record in the 800 with a 2:13.8, demolishing the old mark of 2:15.21 set by Janel Levalley in 1978.
• Royal Valley’s Bowen Bryan went 44-10.75 in the triple jump at the Holton Big East League Pre League meet on April 7 and then went 44-0 the next week. He’s only inches away from the school record and sits No. 1 in Class 3A this spring.
• Southeast of Saline’s Brayden Walker turned in the second-best time in the state this year in the 3,200, running a 9:25.62 to place sixth at the Kansas City Relays last weekend. His time trails only fellow 3A runner Brody Deniston, who has a 9:12.58. At the same meet, Jacob Bircher went 1:55.48 in the 800 to take sixth, the third-best time in Kansas this year behind Deniston (1:54.69) and Seaman’s Brody Anderson (1:55.43). Trojan Elliana Smith won the high jump at the Smoky Valley Invitational at 5-6, tied for third-best in the state this spring.
• Washburn Rural’s Liam Morrison broke his own school record in the 300 hurdles with a time of 37.61 at the Mike Wallace Invitational in Olathe on April 10. That’s the top time in the state this year and topped his previous best of 37.68 he ran in winning the state title last spring. Morgan Ray also broke her own javelin record with a throw of 144-4 earlier this season.
• Jefferson West freshman Brynlee Koontz broke the Tigers’ school record in the 800 with a 2:18.66, taking a whopping four-plus seconds off the old mark of 2:23. She’s also closing in on the school record in the 400, having run a 1:00.07, just .16 off the school mark of 59.91.

 

• Rock Creek’s Aidan Torrey broke the school record in the long jump with a leap of 21-11. Earlier in the season, Torrey was on the Mustangs’ 400 relay team that broke the school record by nearly a half second with a 43.66, joined by Logan Rankin, Thomas Eagles and Jacob Perkins.
• Emporia’s Chance Duncan took down a nearly 60-year-old school record in the discus, throwing 176 feet, 10 inches. That broke the old Spartan record of 171-10 set by Bill Penny in 1967. 

 

• Osawatomie’s 1,600 relay team of Jasmine Bratton, Avaya O’Brien, Amaya Marta and Dakota Moser have won gold at their first three meets at Lyndon, Paola and Anderson County, turning in a best of 4:14.89.
• Hayden’s Kelton Meier broke the Wildcats’ record in the javelin by six feet with a throw of 195-2 at the Topeka High Invitational. At the time the mark was the best in the state this season. Sofia Harper won both the 200 and 400 at the meet.

 

• Axtell’s Katelyn Detweiler has broken records in the shot put and javelin to start her sophomore season. Detweiler broke her own record in the shot put with a 39.7.5, nearly two feet better than her old mark of 37-11 from her freshman season. She also threw 123-8 in the javelin to break the old Eagle record of 122-8 set by Carrie Meyer in 1999. Teammate Logan Sandmann went 6-9 in the high jump to take the title at the KC Relays and break his own record of 6-8 set last year.
• Seaman’s Brady Anderson has broken the Vikings’ 1,600 record twice this season. He started the season with a 4:11.94 which broke the old record of 4:17.21 set by Tim Slemmons in 1980. At the KC Relays, he took fourth in the mile in 4:09.65, which converts to a 4:08.2 1,600 to re-break his record.
• Valley Heights sophomore Klara McIntyre set the school record in the 100 at the Nemaha Central Invitational, running a 12.38. She also won the 100 hurdles and 300 hurdles. Heights also got wins from Aiden Unruh in the pole vault and Langston Gray in the 1,600.

 

• Marysville’s girls 1,600 relay broke the meet record at the Smith Center Relays with a time of 4:10.41. That broke the old record of 4:11.8 set by Norton in 1982. Sarah Miller, Reese Packett, Eden Miller and Reese Wassenberg formed the relay.

 

• Northern Heights’ girls distance medley relay set a school record at the KC Relays with a 13:25.22, taking sixth. The runners were Laura Cathcart, Alanna Brecheisen, Josie Tiffany and Ellei McCrory.
• Clifton-Clyde’s Brady Pruser jumped 14-3 in the pole vault at the Rock Creek Invitational to break his own school record of 14-0.

 
BOYS GOLF STANDOUTS

• Manhattan’s Charlie Haney captured the title at the Great Plains Shootout, hosted by Washburn Rural at Wamego Country Club. Haney shot a 2-uner 68 to win by two shots over Mill Valley’s Ian Field and lead Manhattan to a runner-up finish with a 303 team score, two shots behind Olathe Northwest. Cade Cochran tied for 10th with a 75 after winning the Manhattan Invitational earlier in the season with a 3-over 73. Haney was runner-up to Cochran at the meet by a shot and Manhattan won the team title.
• Riley County won the team title at the Chase County Invitational, posting a team score of 335. Kaileb Hatch led the way with a 79 that placed him second.
• Nemaha Central won the team title at the Preseason Big East League meet held at Cypress Ridge Golf Course, posting a 326 team score to beat Sabetha by three shots. Perry-Lecompton’s Toby Wagner won the meet with a 74, five strokes ahead of Nemaha’s Brady Koch. The Thunder’s Layton Thomas had earlier won the Sabetha Invitational on April 13 with a 76, one shot better than Atchison’s Jackson Lionardi.
• Wamego swept the titles at the Nemaha Central Invitational on Tuesday as Regan Kueker and Breckin Miller each shot 3-under 69s to lead the Red Raiders to a 297 team score, 32 shots ahead of runner-up Sabetha. Wamego also got a tie for eighth from Joel Schiel (78). Miller previously won the Wamego Invitational with a 4-over 74, beating Rossville’s Jack Donovan by one shot and leading the Red Raiders to the team title by 12 strokes over Circle.