Outdoor Track and Field | 3/11/2024 9:38:00 PM
VESTAVIA HILLS, AL – The Vestavia Hills High School Track Team hosted the King of the Mountain Invitational this past week. After enduring the cold, rainy conditions of the first Outdoor Varsity meet at Hewitt-Trussville on March 1st, the Rebels were thankful to have nice and sunny conditions on Saturday for the Home meet.
In hosting King of the Mountain, the Rebels are incredibly thankful for the sponsors who have helped make the event possible. This year the Platinum Sponsors included BMSS Advisors & CPAs, Warren Averett, 10X Physiotherapy, Southpace Properties, Hat Law, Dry Eye Center of Alabama, Ingram Equipment Company, and Bill & Kimeran Stevens. The Gold Sponsors were TherapySouth, Clayton Browne Orthodontics, Career Personnel, Bancography, The Trak Shak, and Norris Injury Lawyers.
In addition to this long list of outstanding sponsors, the Vestavia Hills crew could not have done such an excellent job with King of the Mountain without the hard work and devotion from our wonderful coaches, athletes, parents, and volunteers.
"We received several compliments from parents and officials about how the meet went," head coach Richard Anderson said. "And on top of that, I'm proud of how all the boys and girls competed. We had some outstanding results but the biggest thing to me is that they came out here, competed, and all helped out in any way they could to help the meet run smoothly. That says a lot about where we are heading as a program."
Aside from the chaos of hosting a meet, VHHS had 15 individual athletes and 6 relay teams that placed in the top 5 of their events.
The Rebels also had several athletes earn medals from placing in the top 3 of their events. Our individual gold medalists were Mitchell Schaaf, finishing 1st in the Boys 1600m with a time of 4:20.77, and Reese Beckner who won the Girls 100m Hurdles with a time of 16.06. Additionally, the Boys 4 by 800 'A' team, Boys 4 by 400 'A' team, and Girls 4 by 800 'A' team also received gold medals. Our individual silver medalists include Tyler Dressback (High Jump), Henry Drew (Shot Put), Chase Webb (200m), Christiana Belcher (Javelin), and Kennedy Moreland (Pole Vault). Our athletes earning bronze medals were Nate Bradshaw (Long Jump), Graham Gwaltney (300m Hurdles), Krislyn Thomas (Pole Vault), and Kaitlyn Wende (3200m).
Read below for this week's spotlight performances and to see the full list of Vestavia's top 5 finishers.
Next up will be the meet on this Saturday, March 16th, where Vestavia's Varsity team will compete in the Homewood Invitational at Waldrop Stadium.
PERFORMANCE OF THE WEEK
Girls 300m Hurdles | Finley Becker, Emily Spooner, Abby Allen, and Reese Beckner
While the Indoor Track Season only runs the 100m Hurdles, Outdoor Track includes both the 100m and the 300m Hurdle events, giving our hurdle athletes more opportunities to shine in their field. At the Husky Classic, three of our female hurdlers started their seasons off strong. Emily Spooner was first for the Rebels, finishing in 5th overall with a time of 51.27 seconds. Following her lead was Finley Becker with a 7th place finish and Reese Beckner in 11th place. Moving ahead to the King of the Mountain Invitational, Finley Becker improved her time from Hewitt with a 4th place finish, running a PR of 50.03 seconds. Spooner (9th), Beckner (18th), and Abby Allen (10th) also competed in the 300m hurdles for the Rebels.
"With the start of the season, I told them all they just need to dust the rust off," Coach Kelly Rainer said. "Everybody ran where I felt like they needed to be for the first meets of the season."
BOYS SPOTLIGHT OF THE WEEK
Chase Webb | Boys 100m & 200m Dash
Chase Webb is a Junior who has been a staple in the Rebels' Track program for several years. He currently holds the Indoor school record for the 60m dash and has been working hard to continue his success through the Outdoor season. Chase's main events are the individual 100m and 200m dash, but he also frequently runs a leg in the Boys 4 by 100m and 4 by 400m relays. Webb opened the Outdoor season strong at the Husky Classic with a 5th place finish in the 100m, running 11.18, and winning the 200m dash with a time of 22.39. Then, at King of the Mountain on Saturday he improved on his seasonal times with an 11.07 in the 100m and 22.05 in the 200m. At King of the Mountain, Webb was also a part of the 2nd place 4 by 100m relay and the 1st place 4 by 400m relay.
"I'm really proud of Chase in this meet," Coach Delandus ONeal said. "What I've talked to Chase about is that this is chapter one of a multi-chapter book. We want to take what we get from each meet and build on it. He's worked extremely hard all year and constantly shows his perseverance to compete and do the best that he can."
GIRLS SPOTLIGHT OF THE WEEK
Christiana Belcher | Girls Javelin | 132-01
Christiana is one of Vestavia's newest athletes, coming into the sport in her senior year after having been an athlete for the Rebels' Flag Football team and the Women's Wrestling team. Belcher's Track and Field debut was in the Husky Classic meet on March 1st, where she placed 2nd overall with a throw of 113 feet and 6 inches. Then, after another week of practice, she continued to improve on her throws with another 2nd place finish and a throw of 132 feet and 1 inches this past Saturday at King of the Mountain. With this performance, Belcher now holds the Vestavia school record in the Women's Javelin.
"Christiana is a great addition to our team," Vestavia throws Coach Jeremy Andrews said. "She has been throwing for just a few weeks and is fun to work with because she's bright and she works hard to learn the event." On top of that, Christiana has been a distinctly positive team player for the Rebels by always seeking out ways to encourage and lift up her teammates.
ATHLETES MENTIONED:
Nate Bradshaw | Boys Long Jump, 3rd, 20-08.25
Tyler Dressback | Boys High Jump, 2nd, 6-00.00
Henry Drew | Boys Shot Put, 2nd, 49-07.00 (PR)
Graham Gwaltney | Boys 300m Hurdles, 3rd, 40.61 (PR)
John Hayes | Boys 3200, 4th, 9:37.18 (PR)
Mitchell Schaaf | Boys 1600, 1st, 4:20.77
Timothy Hollis Smith | Boys High Jump, 5th, 5-10.00
Chase Webb | Boys 100m Dash, 3rd, 11.07; Boys 200m Dash, 2nd, 22.05
Abby Allen | Girls 400m, 5th, 1:00.82
Finley Becker | Girls 300m Hurdles, 4th, 50.03 (PR)
Reese Beckner | Girls 100m Hurdles, 1st, 16.06
Christiana Belcher | Girls Javelin, 2nd, 132-01 (PR)
Kennedy Moreland | Girls Pole Vault, 2nd, 11-06.00
Krislyn Thomas | Girls Pole Vault, 3rd, 11-00.00
Kaitlyn Wende | Girls 3200, 3rd, 11:35.89
Boys 4 by 800 relay 'A' | 1st, 8:17.42 | JT Hayes, Mason Thompson, Jackson Mize, Ethan Meadows
Boys 4 by 100 relay | 2nd, 43.61 | Chance Mills, Chase Webb, Graham Gwaltney, and Nate Bradshaw
Boys 4 by 400 relay 'A' | 1st, 3:30.94 | Walker McInnis, Chase Webb, Graham Gwaltney, and Mitchell Schaaf
Girls 4 by 800 relay 'A' | 1st, 10:01.87 | Millie Black, Maddie Hazelton, Anna James Litty, and Riley Zeanah
Girls 4 by 800 relay 'B' | 5th, 10:29.91 | Olivia Carroll, Kendall Field, Kaitlyn Wende, Kate McKinnon
Girls 4 by 400 relay 'A' | 2nd, 4:14.89 | Riley Zeanah, Anna James Litty, Finley Becker, and Barclay Brown
A full list of results are available here: https://live.xpresstiming.com/meets/31464
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