It began as the team played host to and competed in the May 2 Tonganoxie Invitational. The boys and girls track teams then traveled east for Thursday’s Piper Relays.

On Friday, Coach Phil Williams also took several members of the boys team to a meet in Shawnee Mission to fine-tune a few events in preparation for the crucial late-season meets.

The Kaw Valley League meet is this Thursday at Basehor, and the regional meet is May 19 in Tonganoxie.

Williams said the seven boys he took to Shawnee Mission worked hard and turned in good times, especially the 4×800 meter relay team, which ran its eight laps in 8:14.1, one of the fastest 4-A times in Kansas this year, Williams said.

Dustin Schultz and Tyler Wise competed in the pole vault, clearing 12 feet and 12 feet, six inches, respectively. Wise also competed in the high jump, where he cleared five feet, 10 inches. Alan Davis ran the 3,200-meter run in 10:45.

“We showed a lot of improvement,” Williams said. “And I hope we continue to improve.”

Tonganoxie Invitational
The Chieftains put on a show for the home crowd May 2, with the boys taking first and the girls taking second. Both teams were in constant competition with league rival, Lansing.

While all the schools at the meet had their high-points, the meet was really a struggle between Lansing and Tonganoxie.

The boys edged Lansing by 37 points, while the lady Chieftains fell to Lansing by 38.

In both cases, Lansing and Tongan-oxie combined to grab more team points than the other six teams combined.

The Chieftains made a good showing in the field events, dominating in the pole vault and high jump, and scoring gold in the boys javelin, the boys long jump, the girls high jump and the boys pole vault.

In the running events, Tonganoxie excelled, too.

Sprinter Arrika Reeder captured first in the 100-meter dash with a time of 13.19, relay and helped the 4×100 meter team take second, finishing .14 behind Basehor.

The Chieftains dominated the long- and middle-distance events, with Laura Korb taking first in the girls 1,600meter run and Kyle Norris doing the same in the boys event.

Tonganoxie owned the 800-meter events, taking two of the top three places in the boys event and two of the top six places in the girls event.

The boys team won the 4×800 meter relay, and the girls took second in their event.

Alan Davis took second in the 3,200-meter run, with a time of 10:39.85.

Tonganoxie ended the day by taking third in the girls 4×400 meter relay and first in the boys event.

Piper Relays
Williams held several of the best on his team out of the Piper Relays last Thursday so they could go to a more competitive meet on Friday in Shawnee Mission, to help them get ready for league and regionals.

But the skeleton crew he sent to the meet was still able to capture second place in both the boys and girls divisions.

The girls finished the meet with 110 points, 19 behind Lansing. The boys finished with 103.7, 57 points behind Lansing.

With strong individual showings from both the girls and the boys, the coaches see their team improving just as it heads into the toughest and most important period of the year.

Tonganoxie girls coach Bill Shaw said that the field events were coming together for the girls team and that its success depended upon solid throwing and consistent performances from the pole vaulters and jumpers.

“The field girls are coming on really strong, and they’re going to make a really good account for themselves (at league), ” Shaw said. “We feel like we’re getting to the point where we have four vaulters who can all go over six feet, and that’s going to be key.”

To prepare for the weeks ahead, Williams said he was focusing on speed work, and not distance conditioning, for his middle- and long-distance runners.

“At this point they ought to be in shape,” he said.

Injury notes:
After taking the 100-meter dash, Chieftain sprinter Arrika Reeder mildly pulled a thigh muscle while anchoring the 4×100 meter relay last Thursday at the Piper Relays. She is expected to compete at Thursday’s league meet, coach Shaw said.

Jumper Bryce Downey, who severely sprained her left ankle when she stepped on a pine cone two weeks ago, is recovering but is still questionable for the league meet.

Tonganoxie ended the day by taking third in the girls 4×400 meter relay and first in the boys event.

Piper Relays
Williams held several of the best on his team out of the Piper Relays last Thursday so they could go to a more competitive meet on Friday in Shawnee Mission, to help them get ready for league and regionals.

But the skeleton crew he sent to the meet was still able to capture second place in both the boys and girls divisions.

The girls finished the meet with 110 points, 19 behind Lansing. The boys finished with 103.7, 57 points behind Lansing.

With strong individual showings from both the girls and the boys, the coaches see their team improving just as it heads into the toughest and most important period of the year.

Tonganoxie girls coach Bill Shaw said that the field events were coming together for the girls team and that its success depended upon solid throwing and consistent performances from the pole vaulters and jumpers.

“The field girls are coming on really strong, and they’re going to make a really good account for themselves (at league),” Shaw said. “We feel like we’re getting to the point where we have four vaulters who can all go over six feet, and that’s going to be key.”

To prepare for the weeks ahead, Williams said he was focusing on speed work, and not distance conditioning, for his middle- and long-distance runners.

“At this point they ought to be in shape,” he said.

Injury notes
After taking the 100-meter dash, Chieftain sprinter Arrika Reeder mildly pulled a thigh muscle while anchoring the 4×100 meter relay last Thursday at the Piper Relays.

She has been taking it easy this week, but she is expected to compete at Thursday’s league meet, coach Shaw said.

Jumper Bryce Downey, who severely sprained her left ankle when she stepped on a pine cone two weeks ago, is recovering but is still questionable for the league meet.

Statistics
For complete statistics from last week’s Tonganoxie High track meets, visit The Mirror’s Web site at: www.tonganoxiemirror.com