By DOUG DONNELLY
OTTAWA LAKE — Five Tri-County Conference teams went home happy Tuesday.
Madison won the girls meet and Erie Mason won the boys meet. When calculating in the league dual-meet season, it made for a three-way tie for the girls league championship. For Whiteford’s it is the first TCC track and field championship in school history.
Erie Mason edged Whiteford 167-165.5 to force a share of the boys league title. Madison came in third.
“It was a great day for track, an exciting day,” said Erie Mason boys coach Alex Russeau. “Everybody brought it today.”
In the girls championship meet, Madison finished with 153 points, Erie Mason 141, Whiteford 91, Sand Creek 72, Morenci 41, Britton Deerfield 14 and Summerfield.
“We knew what our goal was, what we had to do,” Erie Mason head coach Julie Ravary said. “I don’t have a big team. The girls wanted to do it so bad for each other.”
In the boys meet, Erie Mason and Whiteford finished well ahead of Madison, who scored 88 points. Summerfield was fourth with 45.5 points, Britton Deerfield was fifth with 25, Morenci sixth with 20 and Sand Creek seventh with 16 points.
The boys race came down to the final two events – the 3200 and the mile relay. In both events, Mason’s Jackson Ansel did exactly what the Eagles needed him to. He finished second with a PR in the 3200 then anchored the 3200-relay team to second place. Those points enabled Erie Mason to hold off Whiteford, who won both events.
“Jackson was sick yesterday and running sick today,” Erie Mason coach Alex Russeau said. “He did the mile, the two-mile, the 800 and came back for the four-by-four. Absolutely incredible.”
Ansel was exhausted, but happy.
“The two-mile was torture,” Ansel said. “I didn’t think I had it in me.”
Knowing all the Eagles needed was the final relay team to place second for the win, Erie Mason’s track team was running back and forth across the Whiteford track, cheering on the relay runners.
“I was not going to give up after that,” Ansel said. “That was great.”
Russeau said he knew the race would be close.
“I told the guys yesterday it was going to come down to one point,” Russeau said. “Both teams scored 20 more points than I thought they were going to score. It was so crazy. Both teams just kept going at each other. I was crunching the numbers all day. Everyone knew the situation. The guys were so into it.”
Landen Nastale took first in the 400 with a PR of 51.61, ahead of Whiteford’s Shea Ruddy, the regional champ in the 400, who ran it in 51.63.
Louden Murbach won the 110 hurdles for Mason and the Eagles went 1-2-3 in the high jump with Logan Goodin, Jackson Iocoangeli and Carson Brown sweeping the top three.
“That was huge because we were trailing them by a ton of points before that,” Russeau said.
Whiteford still had a strong day.
Keegan Masters won the 1600 by eight seconds and the 3200 by five seconds. Ryin Ruddy was first in the 300 Hurdles and Kolby Masserant won the long jump. Whiteford also took the 4×100, 4×200 and 4×400 relays. The 4×400 unit of Shea Ruddy, Ryin Ruddy, Dylan Anderson and Jake Iott came home in 3:27.34, a school record.
“A good track meet always comes down to the four-by-four,” Whiteford coach Jay Yockey said. “Alex is a phenomenal coach. He has a very talented team. It just fell short for us, but it was a good meet. I’m not disappointed.”
“I couldn’t happier than to share it with Whiteford,” Russeau said. “They are one of the best teams in the state. They are a loaded team. They are going to score fantastic at the MHSAA meet.”
Summerfield had three champions. Dakota Kohn swept the throws and Brandon Thompson won the 800.
Erie Mason’s girls had some gutty performances.
Cameron Zaleski won the 800, Audrey Trainor the 1600 and Elizabeth Lambert the 3200. The Eagles also took both hurdles – Kaylie Bash winning the 110 and Beth Sweeney the longer hurdles event. Sweeney also took the high jump, clearing a personal-best 5-2. The 4×800 Replay unit of Bailey Meiring, Trainor, Lambert and Zaleski won by five seconds.
“Whiteford beat us in a dual meet by three points the first meet of the year,” Ravary said. “It took me all year to get them to believe.”
The Bobcats didn’t have a league champion, but Mackenzie Ulery was second in the 100, Alaina McClain was second in the 800 and Kenzie Gray was second in the shot put. Haley Luse was third in the shot put.
Madison’s girls were first in the 100, 200, the pole vault and three of the relays. The meet came down to the Trojans finishing first and fourth in the pole vault.
“Those two teams went head-to-head,” Yockey said. “It was great to watch. That’s what we needed to get this title and it played out. I’m very proud of the girls.”
“There are some young men who are beating themselves up,” Yockey said. “It’s been 16 years since Whiteford has had a conference title. I’m not disappointed in them.”
Masters broke the conference record in the 1600 and the Bobcat 4×4 relay team rebroke its school record.
“It’s exciting,” Yockey said. “I know our girls have never won a TCC title at all. They were very disappointed with regional. For them to be able to bounce back and come and perform today speaks volume about their grit. I feel like they’ve earned and deserve this finish.”
Meet Summary:
| Event | Men’s Champion | Women’s Champion |
| 100 | Dylan Glase, Mad, 11.18 | Jillian Kendrick, Mad, 13.09 |
| 200 | Dylan Glase, Mad, 22.61 | Jillian Kendrick, Mad, 27.42 |
| 400 | Landen Nastale, EM, 51.61 | Neili Pike, Mor, 1:01.80 |
| 800 | Brandon Thompson, Sum, 2:00.52 | Cameron Zaleski, EM, 2:30.49 |
| 1600 | Keegan Masters, Whs, 4:29.24* | Audrey Trainor, EM, 5:54.64 |
| 3200 | Keegan Masters, Whs, 10:06.5 | Elizabeth Lambert, EM, 13:41.35 |
| 110 H | Louden Murbach, EM, 15.57 | Kaylie Bash, EM, 16.93 |
| 300 H | Ryin Ruddy, Whs, 43.11 | Beth Sweeney, EM, 48.47 |
| 4×100 | Whiteford, 44.21 | Madison, 52.49 |
| Stepan Masserant | Kaylee Paulette | |
| Kolby Masserant | Madaline Goldmeyer | |
| Ryin Ruddy | Nevaeh Parish | |
| Shea Ruddy | Jillian Kendrick | |
| 4×200 | Whiteford, 1:33.66 | Madison, 1:50.85 |
| Cooper Bieber | Tatum Wilson | |
| Dylan Anderson | Madaline Goldmeyer | |
| Ryin Ruddy | Navaeh Parish | |
| Jake Iott | Christiana Allen | |
| 4×400 | Whiteford, 3:27.34 | Madison, 4:14.84 |
| Shea Ruddy | Jillian Kendrick | |
| Dylan Anderson | Madaline Goldmeyer | |
| Ryin Ruddy | Bella Lamley | |
| Jake Iott | Tatum Wilson | |
| 4×800 | Madison, 8:54.75 | Erie Mason, 10:13.45 |
| Mark Goodlock | Bailey Meiring | |
| Aiden Mahony | Audrey Trainor | |
| Jamari Williams | Elizabeth Lambert | |
| Henry Frederick | Cameron Zaleski | |
| Shot Put | Dakota Kohn, Sum, 45-11 | Emily Carbajal, SC, 35-7.5 |
| Discus | Dakota Kohn, Sum, 138-11 | Emily Carbajal, SC, 111-7 |
| High Jump | Jackson Iocoangeli, EM, 5-10 | Beth Sweeney, EM, 5-2 |
| Pole Vault | Steven Martin, BD, 13-0 | Halle Horwath, Mad, 9-0 |
| Long Jump | Kolby Masserant, Whs, 20-2.5 | Claire Molnar, BD, 15-4 |
| Meet | 1. Erie Mason, 167 | 1. Madison, 153 |
| Final | 2. Whiteford, 165.5 | 2. Erie Mason, 141 |
| Standings | 3. Madison, 88 | 3. Whiteford, 91 |
| 4. Summerfield, 45.5 | 4. Sand Creek, 72 | |
| 5. Britton Deerfield, 25 | 5. Morenci, 41 | |
| 6. Morenci, 20 | 6. Britton Deerfield, 14 | |
| 7. Sand Creek, 16 | 7. Summerfield, 13 | |
| * Meet Record |
WHITEFORD BOBCAT SPORTS 