(Chelsea Update would like to thank Allen Wright for the information in this story.)
The morning clouds broke way at the Monroe Jefferson High School as the Division 2 Regional 13 Track and Field regional got under way last weekend.
The sun came out and started to warm things up but that wasn’t all that got heated up as the Chelsea Bulldogs Boys and Girls teams scorched their way into the history books.
For the first time ever in Chelsea school history both teams took first place.
The boys put on a dominating performance as all their relay teams took first place and senior Bailey Edwards, who will be playing football at Central Michigan University in the fall, won the 100 and 200 meter runs with times of 10.98 and 21.91 respectively.
In the 400, it was junior Christopher Roush taking first with a time of 51.10 while edging his teammate junior Lawrence Buckley by 7/10 of a second.
Tom Oates took 2nd in the 1600 with a time of 4:24.6 and Noah Van Reesema jumped his way to victory in the 100 and 300 hurdles with times of 14:74 and 38.45. Also qualifying for states for the boys were Brian O’Toole in the pole vault with a 11- feet 9-inch vault, and Elijah Dobos with an 11-feet 3-inch jump.
In the relays, it was all Chelsea all day as they took first in every relay, which is almost unheard of in track. In the 4 x 100 it was a team of Cam Cooper, Ryan Stasiak, Zach Skogheim, and Edwards finishing with a time of 43:78.
The 4 x 200 team of Cooper, Skogheim, Buckley, and Edwards finished with a time of 1:29.72.
The 4 x 400 team of Van Reesema, Roush, Buckley, and Skogheim had a time of 3:27.14 and in the 4 x 800 the team of Campbell Fahle, Lian Heaney, Connor Gilbreath, and Tom Oates had a great time of 8:20.67.
“Chelsea track has been leaving a legacy these past three years and I’m very proud that we are able to continue that legacy as we compete at states this year, senior captain Zach Skogheim proudly stated. “We have a very well-rounded team that helps us score points across the board even when it’s not first place, which has been a huge help in our success. We have had our eyes set on the state meet all year and I’m very excited to see what comes from it.”
Girls Track and Field
For the girls, the team competed against 14 other schools and scored 104.5 points, while the next scoring team, Adrian, scored 70 points. They had 11 athletes earn state qualifying status in 8 events and 13 athletes were involved in scoring at the regional meet.
“I want to say thank you to all the athletes, coaches, parents, and spectators in their support of these fine young men and women,” coach Loren Thorburn said. “There were lots of special moments and memories during the day. I know there are a few athletes who did place in the meet or who did not achieve state qualifying status; however, we came together as a team and supported each other through it. Thank you.”
State qualifiers can be found here.
“I’m just very proud of all the work everyone has done throughout the season to get this far. Everyone deserves it,” hurdler Hannah Almhiemid stated.
The Chelsea athletes will travel to Zeeland High School on Saturday, June 4 to finish what they’ve started. The team is excited to go and are not just about themselves but about their school and community.
“It’s such an honor to be on a team filled with extremely talented people. Every single athlete has contributed to our wins,” sophomore Kaehla Manly said. “We’ve had such a great season and its accomplishing to know that our hard work has paid off. We have one last place to check off from our season; States. So let’s give it 110 percent and make Chelsea proud,” she said.
