Emma Resop clears the bar during a high jump attempt at the Berlin Quadrangular. She won the event with a height of 4 feet, 10 inches.
Tracy Landerman photo
The Ripon High School track and field teams turned in a strong showing at the Berlin Quadrangular last Tuesday, with the Tigers posting the top score on the boys’ side and finishing second in the girls’ standings.
Ripon’s boys compiled 85 points to outdistance host Berlin (76), Nekoosa (50) and Adams-Friendship (27). On the girls’ side, Berlin defeated Ripon 107-71, with Adams-Friendship scoring 38 points and Nekoosa 17.
The Tigers were scheduled to compete last week Friday at Winneconne’s Under the Lights Invitational, but the meet was canceled due to rain and the threat of severe weather.
“The Berlin meet was a strong showing for our team, not just in results, but in effort and composure,” Ripon head coach Mark Bradley said. “Athletes competed with confidence and supported each other throughout, which set the tone for a positive day. We saw several personal bests in events that athletes have competed in before, a sign that our training and their effort has translated well into performance.”
He added that just as importantly, the team handled setbacks with a growth mindset of what do I need to do differently or what do I need to continue to work on to improve my results.
“That is a crucial piece because we are always trying to improve and get better in our events and if we don’t improve we need to identify what do we need to do differently to change that outcome from happening again,” Bradley said. “This was our first outdoor meet, and it reinforced that we’re moving in the right direction and building something solid together.”
Ripon’s boys were led by multiple event victories and several personal-best performances. Sophomore Noah Michael won the 100-meter dash in 11.33 seconds, while senior Harrison Julian captured the 800 run in 2 minutes, 8.07 seconds.
Senior Vicente Beltran was a double winner, taking the 1,600 run in a personal-best 5:00.49 and the 3,200 run in 11:57.84. The Tigers also won the 4×200 relay, as Michael, senior Keagen Propson, junior Zach Kelm and sophomore Ayden Gustavus combined for a time of 1:33.89.
In field events, sophomore Logan Beahm cleared a personal-best 12 feet, 6 inches to win the pole vault, while Propson earned first in the long jump with a personal-best leap of 20 feet, 2.75 inches.
Not only did Ripon win the 1,600 run and long jump, it also claimed two of the other top-three scoring spots in each event. In the 1,600, junior Breyden Hardie ran a 5:03.96 to place second and sophomore Eirnan Spillman finished in 5:47.31 to take fourth. The long jump saw Kelm leap 19-0.75 to place second and senior Kyler Rieder glide 18-0 to take fourth. The time/distance were personal bests for Hardie, Spillman and Kelm.
Additional top-four finishes for the boys included Gustavus in the 100 (third, personal-best 12.05), sophomore Mason Meenk in the 200 (fourth, 25.24), Hardie in the 800 (fourth, personal-best 2:20.16), senior Steven Brunhoefer in the shot put (fourth, 38-9), freshman Will Dragolovich in the high jump (fourth, personal-best 5-4), junior Peter Vandervelde in the pole vault (second, personal-best 11-0) and Rieder in the triple jump (second, personal-best 37-7.75).
For the Ripon girls, sophomore Alyssa Bradley won the 400 run in 1:05.85, while senior Adeline Baird claimed the 1,600 run with a personal-best 5:40.26. Senior Emma Resop added a win in the high jump (4-10), junior Clare Walker took the pole vault (9-6) and senior Reese Brooks won the long jump (15-9).
The Tigers dominated the 1,600 run, sweeping the top four spots. Freshman Kelsey Adams was second in a personal-best 5:40.26, senior Amelia Long took third (5:58.83) and sophomore Stella Pomplun finished fourth with a personal-best 6:21.82.
Ripon also showed depth in the 800 run, placing second through sixth with Baird, Long, Adams, sophomore Mackenzie Kraege and Pomplun.
Other top-four finishes for the girls included Walker in the 100 dash (fourth, personal-best 13.9), senior Emily Hunter in the 200 (fourth, personal-best 29.65) and triple jump (fourth, personal-best 28-3.75), Brooks in the 100 hurdles (second, 17.55) and 300 hurdles (second, 51.9), and the 4×200 relay team of sophomore Allayna Roh, junior Adelina Waite, sophomore Molly Hanson and sophomore Rayanna Chappa (third, 2:05.65). Kyah Peterson added a third-place finish in the long jump with a personal-best 15-2.
Ripon returned to action Tuesday at Berlin for another quadrangular that finished after press time. It then will travel Friday to Kewaskum for the Jerry Gosa Invitational. The competition will get underway at 4 p.m.
“Moving forward, we are really looking forward to competing twice this week,” Bradley said. “Last Friday, our Invite at Winneconne was cancelled due to weather and our kids were very disappointed as they really wanted to compete in a big meet. We will get another chance on Friday in Kewaskum, which will have some very good teams that we will be competing against. We understand that racing against tougher opponents is an opportunity for us to push ourselves to the limit and discover what they are capable of.
“As a coach, it is fun watching them embrace the challenge of these tougher meets rather than be afraid.”