SHERIDAN — The Bryant Blue Hornets eighth-grade track team of Bethel Middle School had eight first-place finishes and the seventh-grade won one event at the Sheridan Middle School Invitational on Monday.
“Overall, we had a great meet, considering being hampered by the injury bug as of late,” commented Bethel coach Colton Bond. “A few of our second-place finishes were very narrow and we have guys stepping up each week. Our 4×800 team has stayed consistent and has not lost a meet all year.
“With (Liam) Babbitt out, we went to the next man up and ran a relay best of 9:42,” he noted. “These young men are starting to come into form and it is great to see them excel.
“Our hurdler combo of Blake Everett and Blake Snyder each garnered a first-place finish in the 110 hurdles while Everett ran a PR in the 300 hurdles resulting in a first-place finish,” the coach said. “(Taj) Van Tassel still is Van Tassel and he is going to give you everything he has; however, he has never been pushed until this meet. I have been waiting on someone to push him just to see how fast he will go. He is, for sure, a ‘we’ not a ‘me’ guy as he is constantly finding ways to make our relay teams better, then focuses on one race, the 400. He has such a smooth stride and high cruising speed that he is hard to catch. He had a first-place finish in the 400 and was on both first-place relay teams.
“Jacob Karp and Michael Rivera both stepped up with personal records in the 400, winning each heat they entered,” said Bond. “We ended the night on a great note as our 4×400 team rebounded after a second-place finish last week. I had to put Everett in the mix after Rivera was having some hamstring issues. Van Tassel got us on a great journey as he clipped a 53-second split in the opening leg. Karp got pushed but ran away in the final 20 meters, Shepard pulled away to about a 50-meter lead, then Everett brought it home with a convincing victory.
“I could not be prouder of our eighth-grade group,” he said. “They are constantly looking for ways to improve and find ways to help the team get better.”
Xaylen Curenton accounted for the lone first-place finish for the seventh-grade team. He won the 100 meters in 12.36.
“Our seventh-grade group is getting better each week and our finishes have been improving,” said Bond. “I have no doubt they are going to be a great group next year. We are putting the building blocks together and it has been a pleasure to coach these student athletes.”
The coach announced that the Subway Student-Athletes of the Week are Everett in the eighth grade and Curtenton in the seventh grade.
“Everett was our iron man of the week as he competed in multiple events and excelled,” Bone said. “I foresee a very bright future for this young man as he has always had the mentality of being a true definition of a Bryant ‘Blue Collar’ athlete. He shows up every day with the sandwich in the lunch pale, as they say it, and always does a great job. He is a great teammate and his peers look up to his leadership.
“Curenton is a late transfer from North Little Rock, however he has been a thrill to be around,” said the coach. “He is one of the most respectful student-athletes I have had the pleasure of coaching and always asks the right questions on how to improve his craft. I expect big things from this young man in the future and with the off-season football weight program the sky is the limit for him.”
Here are the results from Monday:
8th Grade
Long Jump
3rd Place- Blake Everett 16′ 7″
Shot Put
3rd Place- Fabian Torres
Discus
6th Place- Caden Hope 95′
High Jump
5th Place- Layton Dickerson
4×800
1st Place- Jacob Karp, Taj Van Tassel, Drew MacIntire, Jaxon Holt- 9:42
4th Place- Dillon Hoover, Cameron Apel, Jackson Meshell, Will Taylor 10:18
110 Hurdles
1st Place- Blake Everett- 16.81
1st Place- Blake Snyder-16.82
6th Place- Logan White
6th Place- Deyvon Brewer
8th Place- David Corballis
100
2nd Place- Fabian Torres
3rd Place- Carson Burnett
4th Place- Andrew Steuve
4th Place- Layton Dickerson
6th Place- Julian Smith
8th Place- Mason Butler
1600
4th Place- Jackson Meshell- 5:38
5th Place- Drew MacEntire- 5:39
4×100
3rd Place- Blake Everett, Carson Burnett, Layton Dickerson, Fabian Torres
5th Place- Owen Lee, Carson Matson, Hunter Hagan, Jacob Knowlton
400
1st Place- Taj Van Tassel- 58.06
1st Place- Jacob Karp- 63.00
1st Place- Michael Rivera- 64.00
3rd Place- Gage Shepard
5th Place- Braxton Praither
8th Place- Alec Humphreys
300 Hurdles
1st Place- Blake Everett- 46.67
3rd Place- Blake Snyder- 47.53
800
3rd Place- Jaxon Holt 2:25
200
2nd Place- Brandon Gabe
2nd Place- Luis Garcia
4th Place- Layton Dickerson
5th Place- Logan White
7th Place- Mason Butler
4×400
1st Place- Taj Van Tassel, Jacob Karp, Gage Shepard, Blake Everett- 4:04
5th Place- Dillon Hoover, Hayden Upton, Drew MacEntire, Mason Butler
7th Grade
Long Jump
7th Place- James Billingsley
Triple Jump
4th Place- Sebastian Gough
7th Place- Blake Ammons
Discus
7th Place- Hayden Meshell
4×800
4th Place- James Billingsley, Jason Apodaca, George Terry, Gavin Shelby-10:47
100 Hurdles
4th Place- Ethan Skiles
5th Place- Mitchell Elmore
6th Place- Hayden Meshell
6th Place- Hunter Linn
8th Place- Chaney Crosby
100 Meters
1st Place- Xaylen Curenton-12.36
4th Place- Brody Troyer
5th Place- David Vivar
8th Place- Josh Luster
1600
4th Place- George Terry- 5:38
4×100
6th Place- James Billingsley, Caden Stovall, Joshua Luster, Xaylen Curenton
7th Place- Sebastian Gough, Evan Lamb, David Vivar, Jackson Fluger
400
2nd Place- Evan Lamb
4th Place- Aiden Shaw
4th Place- Jackson Fluger
5th Place- Sebastian Gough
5th Place- Blake Ammons
6th Place- Caden Stovall
300 Hurdles
4th Place- Mitchell Elmore
5th Place- Ethan Skiles
800 Meters
5th Place- James Billingsley- 2:44
200 Meters
3rd Place- Xaylen Curenton
4th Place- Brody Troyer
5th Place- David Vivar
8th Place- Carter Moore
4×400 Meters
4th Place- James Billingsley, Cole Shields, George Terry, Hunter Linn
5th Place- Jason Apadoca, Gavin Shelby, Cole Skelley, Caden Stovall
Hayden Meshell
I got 5th place on discus, not 7th ~ Hayden Meshell