The boys track and field team competed at the ACAC Championship on Tuesday, May 8. The boys repeated as conference champions, leaving no doubt that they are for real. The Patriots won the meet with a team score of 166 points. Placing second as a team was Woodlan with a team score of 131. The Patriots' ACAC Championship tally is now up to 12 in school history, and they are hungry for more in the near future.
Senior, Hannibal Hall led the team in points, scoring 36 points. Hall placed first in the 100m dash and the 110m hurdles, as well as the 300m hurdles. Hall also placed third in long jump.
The night was also full of other impressive individual athletes placing. Junior, Cameron Mitchell, placed first in the 400m dash, as well as capturing first place in High Jump. Senior, Andy Kohrman, the University of Saint Francis signee, captured first place in the mile run.
The Relays for the Patriots proved to be very consistent, with the 4x800m relay team of Kohrman, Corey Foster, Derek Schaadt, and Devin Schmenk taking 2nd place, scoring pivoltal points for the team.
Despite the overall glory for the team, the 4x400 relay of Kyle Stice, Schmenk, Mitchell, and Niklaus Smith finished in a heartbreaking fashion, losing by hundredths of a second, but still capturing 2nd.
The 4x100 relay team of Mitchell, August Hein, Alec Burton, and Caleb Goldsmith placed 2nd as well.
The Patriots showed the consistency and Championship DNA that it takes to win. After what could have been seen by the team as a major setback this season, losing access to its home track as the football team installs a new turf field, the boys have not allowed that circumstance to hinder them. They have embraced the philosophy, "No track? No problem," which will now adorn their Back-to-Back ACAC Champions t-shirts.
The Patriots worked through the no-track conditions by measuring out distances for both sprints and distance events in the school's parking lot. Though it was all very makeshift, the athletes made the best of a bad situation.
Sectional competition for the boy's team is Thursday, May 17 at New Haven High School, and many of the athletes will look to advance to the regional.