By Andrew Moser
Leader Staff Writer
In the final home meet of the season before the track and athletic fields are rebuilt, the varsity boys went out and won Oxford’s Elmer Ball Track and Field Invitational on Saturday, April 16.
The conditions weren’t ideal as off and on wind and rain caused a couple of events, the pole vault and the jumps, to be canceled. However, the boys overcame the adverse conditions, racking up 102 points on the day and taking home the trophy.
?(I’m) very pleased with the Oxford Invitational,? varsity head coach Bob Blunk said. ‘The day didn’t start out very well with the weather, but the meet ran smoothly and we had a lot of support from the athletes and parents and winning the meet was a big bonus for us.?
Finishing second was Lake Orion with 96 points. Walled Lake Central High School finished third with 76 points.
Sir Ralph Rodriguez finished second in both the shot put and discus throw. In the shot put, his longest throw was 49 feet, five inches, while in the discus he posted a throw of 140 feet, eight inches.
Darren Lumpkin finished first in the 100 meter dash, finishing with a time of 11.36 seconds, and Aaron Stuk and Doug Klimbal finished in the top four in the 110 meter hurdles. Stuk finished first with a time of 15.05 seconds, while Klimbal finished fourth in 15.61 seconds.
Stuk and Klimbal also finished first and fourth, respectively, in the 300 meter hurdles. Stuk ran a 41.14, while Klimbal finished with a 43.49.
The boys relay teams also had a strong day.
The 400 meter relay of Stuk, Anthony McDugald, Mike Cynowa and Lumpkin finished second with a time of 44.84.
The Wildcats 800 meter relay of Terrance Webb, Connor Risinger, Dan Peck and Lumpkin finished second with a time of 1:33.20.
In addition, the 3200 meter team of Webb, Stuk, Risinger and Peck finished second with a time of 3:33.09.
‘It’s nice to see all of these kids working hard and having all of these results pan out for us,? Blunk said. ‘It was a good day for all of us.?
Meanwhile, the varsity girls managed an eighth place finish for the Invitational. They finished with 30 points, 54 points behind girls Invitational winner Novi High School.
Starring for the girls was 1600 meter and 3200 meter runner Brooke Kovacic. She finished the 1600 run in fifth place with a time of 5:25.38 while finishing third in the 3200 run , with a time of 11:40.69.
Brittany Johnson came home fifth (2:28.08) in the 800 meter run and the 800 meter relay team of Michelle Gilmore, Rachel Lerma, Aminah Pettiford and Briana Jackson came in fifth with a time of 1:54.45.
On Wednesday, April 13, Oxford took on Rochester Hills Stoney Creek in their only home meet of the season. The boys were able to beat Stoney Creek 98-30, while the girls won 81-46.
‘It was a great way to start out in a new league with both wins,? Blunk said.