By Fred Kroner
Villa Grove athletes registered top-10 performances in 11 events on Friday (April 22) in the 36th Tuscola Open boys’ track and field meet.
The 400-meter relay foursome of Mason Carter, Gunner Cline, Layne Rund and Braydon Dowler teamed up for the best finish. They took third in 46.45 seconds.
Dowler (200 meters in 24.05 seconds) and Rund (400 meters in 54.70 seconds) achieved fourth-place finishes. Dowler also had a seventh-place showing in the 110-meter hurdles (18.96 seconds) while Rund shared fifth place in the high jump (5 feet, 6 inches).
Kurt Zimmerman finished eighth in the 1,600 meters (5:10.09) and Carter was ninth in the 100 meters (12.00 seconds).
In the field events, Elijah Kiesel was sixth in the triple jump (35 feet, 9 inches) and ninth in the long jump (17 feet, 9 inches). Kyler Williams was eighth in the triple jump (35 feet,1 inch) and ninth in the high jump (5 feet, 1 inch).
Two other relays also excelled.
The 800-meter unit of Dowler, Ryan Schlueter, Cline and Logan Turner ended sixth in 1:42.86.
The 3,200-meter foursome of Austin Zoch, Chase White, Zimmerman and Isaac Horein wound up in seventh place in 10:23.77.
In the team standings, Villa Grove captured 11th place with 17 points. Meet champion Arthur-Lovington/Atwood-Hammond totaled 118 points.
The Blue Devils return to action on Tuesday (April 26) at Arthur.
