Grant and Wilson schools lead Westside Relays

After all the hooting and hollering had died down and the scores had been totaled, Grant School and Wilson School ruled Westside track and field.

Grant won the large-school division and Wilson took the small-school title in the annual Westside Relays competition between fifth- and sixth-grade classes on the west side of the community.

Competiton was in 11 different events for both boys and girls in each age group.

Grant dominated large-school competition with 228.6 points, well ahead of runner-up Penngrove (147) and third-place McNear (142.8).

Wilson and Liberty were the top finishers in the small-school competition, with Wilson winning with 242.5 points to Liberty’s 208. Two Rock was a distant third with 115.5 points.

Real winners were the participants who tried their best for both individual and school honors. The competition was real, as was the enthusiasm, school pride and just plain fun.

Small school fifth-grade girls competition was dominated by Wilson School with 73 points. Dunham was a distance second with 41 points.

However, there were outstanding performances from girls on all teams. Two of the standouts were Anamaria Robertson from Harvest Christian and Anneka Vonder Kuhlen from Cinnabar. Robertson won the long jump at 10 feet, 7 inches, five inches farther than her nearest competitor. She finished third in the high jump, clearing the same height as Wilson’s dynamic duo of Leslie Miller and Danielle Sharp. Robertson was also second in the 70-meter dash, close behind winner Bella Wofford of Dunham. Vonder Kuhlen ran away with the 600-meter run in 2 minutes, 14.87 seconds and was a close second to Iris Bosch of Liberty in the 100-meter dash.

The small school fifth-grade boys competition was won by Liberty with 62 points in a close battle with Wilson (54).

Wilson’s Cody Burge had a big meet, winning the 70-meter dash in 10.32 and finishing second in both the high jump and the 600-meter run. Burge cleared 3-8 in the high jump to finish second to Two Rock’s Michael Tynes, who was the only jumper to clear 4 feet. Tynes also won the 100-meter dash in 14.47.

The small school sixth-grade girls competition was a wide open affair with several close races. When it was over, Liberty was champion with 67 points, just 1.5 points ahead of Wilson.

In one of the division’s most dominating performances, Dunham’s Elena King won the 400-meter run in 1:11.85, six seconds ahead of her nearest competitor. She also won the 800-meter run in 2:58.09. She was the only runner to break three minutes. Wilson’s Kiersten Pate was a narrow second to St. Vincent’s Katanna Cespedes in the 100 meters and won the high jump.

The small school sixth-grade boys was also a close competition between Liberty and Wilson, with Liberty again winning, 53 points to 50 for the runner-up.

Two Rock’s Diego Robledo had an outstanding meet, muscling his way to a 30-10 win in the shot put, 4 feet farther than his nearest competition. He also won the discus at 75-3, again 4 feet farther than the runner-up.

In the large schools fifth-grade girls competition, Grant was the dominant team, but competition was so great that there wasn’t a single double winner in the individual events.

One of the best performances was by Grant’s Natalia Klemenok, who threw the discus 45-4, almost 7 feet farther than teammate Jaze Pacciorini, who went 38-6.

The large school fifth-grade boys competition was won by Penngrove with 64 points, with Grant second with 52.5.

The winners were led by speedsters Ananias Walker and Dante Vachini. Vachini won the 70-meter dash in 10.11 and finished second to Walker in the 100-meter dash. In addition to winning the 100, Walker also won the 300.

The large school sixth-grade girls contest was won by Tech Academy with 62 points, with Grant following with 53.67. McKinley’s Mira Bruce Low was a standout both running and jumping, winning the 70-meter dash in 10.02 and finishing second to Technology Academy’s Katrina Johnson in the long jump. Johnson soared, going 12-8 to Bruce Low’s 12-3.

The large school sixth-grade boys competition was dominated by Grant with 61 points, with McNear second with 42. Although he didn’t win either event, Callen Anchor contributed much to the Grant win, finishing second in both the shot and the discus. His teammate, Kim Woon, won the shot at 31-8, while Tech Academy’s Bendt Jorensen took first in the discus at 76-8.