Oakwood Shines in Track and Field Meet with Multiple Wins and Personal Bests at Gibson City-Melvin-Sibley
By Fred Kroner
Oakwood’s Bryson McDaniel was a double winner on Monday (April 29) in a six-school boys’ track and field meet at Gibson City-Melvin-Sibley.
The Comets also won three of the four relays and had two other individual winners in Macen Phillips and Trevor McCall.
McDaniel won the long jump (20 feet, 4 inches) as well as the triple jump (39 feet). Phillips was triumphant in the 800 meters (personal-best 2:10.94). McCall took top honors in the 300-meter hurdles (personal-best 45.19 seconds).
McDaniel was part of the winning 400-meter relay. He teamed up with Connor Moss, Jacob Pricer and Connor Smith for a 45.65-second time.
The Comets also won the 1,600-meter relay. Sharing the baton were Jakob Rupp, Jacob Taflinger, Phillips and Smith. Their combined time was 3:42.75.
Oakwood was also first in the 3200-meter relay with a unit consisting of Rupp, Lucas Tyas, Phillips and Thomas Wells. Their cumulative time was 12:49.93.
In the 800-meter relay Oakwood took third (1:42.80). The runners consisted of Connor Taflinger, Cale Thomas, Kyler Johnson and Trevor Hanner.
Oakwood had runner-up finishes in two events. McCall took second in the 110-meter hurdles (personal-best 17.36 seconds) and Wells was the runner-up in the 800 meters (2:11.47).
Four Comets wound up in third place.
Pricer was third in the 100 meters (personal-best 11.91 seconds), Jacob Taflinger was third in the 400 meters (personal-best 57.30 seconds), Johnson was third in the 110-meter hurdles (personal-best 17.99 seconds) and Thomas was third in the discus (98 feet, 6 inches).
Moss wound up fourth in the 200 meters (personal-best 24.83 seconds).
Placing fifth for the Comets were Saul Carrillo (400 meters in 1:00.02), Rupp (800 meters in 2:15.24), Ben Darling (1,600 meters in 5:47.60) and Johnson (shot put at 33 feet and discus at a personal-best 96 feet, 1 inch).
Also establishing a personal-best was Darling in the 3,200 meters (12:34.24), an event where he finished sixth.
In the team race, Gibson City-Melvin-Sibley was first (151 points) and was followed by Oakwood (134 ½ points).
The Comets will return to action on Thursday (May 2) in the Vermilion Valley Conference Meet at Westville.
