After a strong performance to start the season in the Trojan Invitational in Hermann on March 20, Cuba High School’s track and field athletes competed a week later on March 27 at the New Bloomfield Relays. The Wildcats then hosted the Cuba Relays on March 30, which will be detailed in next week’s edition. 

Wildcat senior Noah Halbert followed a successful meet in Hermann with another noteworthy performance in New Bloomfield. Halbert took home Cuba’s lone first place finish of the meet, winning the 300 meter hurdles with a blistering 44.97 second finishing time. He also took third place in the 100 meter hurdles with a 17.80 time and finished 11th in the 100 meter dash. 

Cuba freshman Carter Meadows, who also plays on the Wildcat’s baseball team, showed that his speed translates from the diamond to the track, and took 18th place in the 100 meter dash with a 12.26 time. Wyatt Littrell, Karter Kaysinger, Ryan McPherson, Judah Folz, Billie Thompson and John Vandegriffe also competed in the 100 meter dash and finished in 31st, 33rd, 38th, 51st, 59th and 60th, respectively. 

Wildcat sophomore Brayden Lewis had three top-10 performances throughout the meet. Lewis finished in fourth place in the 400 meter dash, seventh in the 200 meter dash and took eighth place in the triple jump with a 10.9 meter leap. 

Littrell took seventh place in the 400 meter dash with a 59.45 time and finished in 17th in the 200 meter dash with a 26.50 tine. Sophomore Gavin Heppermann was Cuba’s lone competitor in the 1600 meter race and finished in 18th place with a 6:28.1 time. 

Cuba also had several top-10 finishers in the field events. Sophomore Christian DeLuna finished in 10th place in the pole vault with a 2.9 meter leap. Sophomore Jamison Scott took seventh place in the high jump with 1.55 meter jump. Fellow sophomore Vandegriffe took fifth place in the discus throw with a 32.77 meter heave. 

Junior Zane Brown finished in ninth place in the discus throw with a 29.97 meter throw and took sixth place in the shot put with a 11.32 meter toss. Senior Cole Henke took 10th place in the shot put with a 10.59 meter heave. 

On the girls side, sophomore Justice Evrard continued to show top tier results in both track and field events. Evrard finished in seventh place in the 100 meter dash with a 13.36 finish, fourth place in the 200 meter dash with a 28.54 time before taking second in the high jump with a 1.45 meter leap and sixth place in the long jump with a 4.39 meter jump. 

Junior Teryn Vass also had strong showings in multiple events. Vass finished in 10th place in the 200 meter dash, 21st in the 100 meter dash, 11th in the 400 meter dash before taking eighth place in the pole vault with a 2.45 meter leap. 

Sophomore Ella Basham finished in eighth place in the 1600 meter run with a 6:50.59 finish and her sister, senior Cadynce Basham, took 11th place with a 7:10.00 time. 

Senior Shannon Black had three top-five performances in the field events. Black took fifth in the discus throw with a 28.68 meter toss, fifth in the javelin throw with a 26.29 meter throw and took second place in the shot put with a 9.14 meter launch. Fellow senior Cailyn Hulsey took fifth place in the high jump with a 1.35 meter leap.  

Sophomore Keira Long and freshman Ryleigh Blackmon also competed in the field events. Long finished 30th in the discus throw, 33rd in the javelin throw and 38th in the shot put. Blackmon took 29th in the discus throw, 31st in the javelin toss and 36th in the shot put. 

The Wildcats will return to New Bloomfield on April 2 to compete in the New Bloomfield Invitational and will compete on April 7 in the Pacific Invitational at Pacific High School.