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trackpic2 0406Photo by Steve Kuramoto

Lansing's track and field teams hosted their first meet of the season on Monday, facing off against Union Springs and Marathon. Lansing's Ladycats were victorious against both visiting teams, scoring 97 points to Marathon's 27 and 91 points to Union Spring's 37. Unions Springs girls bested Marathon, 90-29. The Union Springs boys secured team wins against Lansing (79-61) and Marathon (103-32) while Lansing won over Marathon (97-38).

The varsity girls track and field team is returning most of its scorers from last season, and performances on Monday indicated that these athletes have their sights set high once again for this spring. Seniors Emily Gallagher (2016 NYSPHSAA Div II pole vault champion) and Ashley Smith and junior Miya Kuramoto are coming off successful indoor track & field seasons; all three qualified for and competed at the recent NYSPHSAA championships, with Kuramoto and Gallagher securing 3rd and 5th place in the pole vault, respectively.

trackpic1 0406Photo by Steve Kuramoto

Kuramoto and Gallagher went 1-2 in the 100m dash and then swapped for the pole vault with Gallagher taking the win and Kuramoto securing the runner up position; in addition, they each were members of the winning 400m relay team and took individual wins in the long jump (Gallagher) and 200m (Kuramoto). Smith is looking to improve upon her success from the indoor season as she takes to the outdoor throwing circles for her final high school athletic season. She won Monday's shot put contest and took second place in the discus. Senior Emma Dhimitri was fifth place in last year's NYSPHYSAA Div II 400m hurdle race, and the team will be looking to her to contribute in scoring both on the track and in triple jump -- and she did just that on Monday, winning the 100m hurdles, 400m dash and triple jump and running lead leg of the winning 1600m relay.

Freshman Gwen Gisler and junior Meghan Matheny look to continue their success from last year not only in pole vault but also in the sprints. Freshman Catie Eisenhut (Monday's 1500m winner) is expected to make a big impact in the mid-distance and distance events along with juniors Mikaela Garcia (who won Monday's 800m) and Leigh Miller as well as senior Sam Mauser. Sophomore Destiny Little looks to continue her success in high jump, winning the event at the opening meet, while also hurdling, sprinting, and throwing for the team.

The squad will rely on every athlete and is eager to repeat an important success from last year: every single athlete achieved personal bests, and this remains a top priority as the program grows.

trackpic4 0406Photo by Steve Kuramoto

In Monday's opening dual meet, the Union Springs boys claimed victory in all but 6 of the events, with Flynn Anderson winning both hurdle events as well as the triple jump and Davonte House winning the 100m and 200m sprints as well as the long jump. Lansing freshman Alex Rose won a closely contested 800m run with just one second separating first from third place. Senior Braydon Jackson took wins in both the shot put and discus. Junior Mike Lapar won in his first high jump competition of the season, and he hopes to improve upon the success he saw in this event last year. Xavier Gell won the pole vault and looks to continue to see increasing performances in this event as well as in the sprints.

Also anticipated to contribute to the Bobcats in big ways on the track and in the field are sophomores George Taylor and Dakota Edwards and freshmen Ethan Burt and Sam Panzer. Seniors Devin McCartney and John Koch are accomplished multi-sport athletes who are looking to close out their high school careers with some mid-distance and distance performances this season.

trackpic5 0406Photo by Steve Kuramoto

The track and field program continues to work towards goals not only in competition but also in supporting the district's youngest runners. The varsity teams held their first ever "Laps Under the Lights" fundraiser last week, inviting RC Buckley's elementary Mighty Milers to join them on the track. While varsity athletes ran laps after gathering per-lap sponsors right alongside kindergarten through fourth grader students and their families.

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