The Dexter track and field teams put on an outstanding performance on Saturday the Division 1 Regional Championships at Saline High School.
Boys
The Dexter boys’ track and field team finished an impressive second place with 79 points. Saline finished first overall in the 15-team Regional with 130.3 points.
Bedford was third (72), Woodhaven fourth (68), Ann Arbor Huron fifth (62), Skyline sixth (61), Pioneer seventh (40) and Jackson eighth (29).
The Dexter boys had a track full of outstanding finishes, state qualifiers and even a school record.
The track events were led by Cole Cabana, taking two 2nd place finishes in both the 100m and 200m sprints and qualifying for the State Championships in both. Cabana also was part of history.
Dexter’s 4x400m relay team set a school record with a time of 3:24.76. The four members were Wilson Kasischke, Micah Davis, Cabana and Nathan Gariepy. The previous record had stood since 1991. Their time is currently the fifth fastest in Division 1.
Dexter also had Conor Kolka finish 2nd in the 3200m run, setting a new personal best of 9:30.30, and qualifying for States.
The rest of the state qualifiers for Dexter were pole vaulters Noah Schultz (second at 15-3) and Cole Sheldon (third at 14-9).
Other top finishers for the Dreadnaughts included Nathan Gariepy, 3rd in the 800m; Wilson Kasischke, 4th place finish in the 400; Micah Davis 3rd in the high jump; Samuel Fitzpatrick tied for 4th in the high jump.
James Livingston finished 5th in the boys shot put.
Dexter placed two other relay teams. The team of Brandon Anderson, John Harm, Owen Ackerman and Adam Hauser placed fifth in the 4×800. The 4×200 took 8th with Nathan Biggs, Jonny Adamczyk, Quentin Hurdle and Devon Durliat.
Girls
The Dreadnaughts crossed the finish line with 88 points and finished fourth in a very competitive field. The race for the top three spots featured a few state powerhouses. Huron took top honors with 133 points while Saline and Pioneer tied for second with 114 points.
Lincoln was fifth (56) followed by Woodhaven (37), Monroe (36), Bedford (31.5) and Skyline (25.5).
As expected, Dexter dominated the pole vault and took the top seven spots which accounted for 38 of their 88 points.
Josie Mettes was Regional champion by clearing 12-7. She was followed by Sophia Mettes (12-3), Makenzie Stock (11-3) and Abbie Van Noord (10-3). All four girls qualified for the State Championship with their marks.
The next placers were Ella Gasiorek, and Izabella Behnke going 5th, and 6th respectively, and Mikala Sposito was seventh.
State qualifiers in the field events included junior Jamie Giese, who took second in the shot put (36-1). The high jump saw two placers with Haley Craig taking 3rd at 4-10, and Van Noord fifth at 4-10.
Gracie Burns placed in two races, taking third in the 400m, and sixth in the 200m. Ashley Mitchell with eighth in the 800m run.
The 4x400m relay team of Mitchell, Gwen Tatara, Hannah Berenson and Burns was fourth in 4:11.44.
Two other relay teams placed; the 4x100m team of Maggie Jordan, Mikala Sposito, Gracyn Beck and Ella Gasiorek took sixth (54.53) and the 4×800 relay team of Megan O’Day, Abigail Fox, Allison Berkholz and Kate Varitek ran fifth (10:42.23).
