In the final week before Big Seven League competition, the Bluejays had a busy schedule of competition, which started with the Nemaha Central Invitational on Tuesday, May 2, in Seneca. The meet showcased 10 area schools, which included Seneca, Sabetha, Doniphan West, Marysville, Rock Creek, Jefferson County North, Jackson Heights, Axtell, Royal Valley and Riverside. The Bluejay boys earned a fifth place finish and the Lady Jays ended up in sixth place as a team.

“This was a very competitive meet with a few schools we will see at our next three meets,” said Head Coach Dave Remmers. “Some of our kids competed against some of the top athletes in Class 3A, and were able to lower their times in a few races as a result of it. We look forward to competing against them in the next few meets and our kids understand better how they need to keep working harder to improve.”

Boys

The Bluejays picked up some team points in the mid-distance, 800-meter race, which has become a standard in the event, with freshman Charlie Lukert earning a fourth-place finish and sophomore Brody Deters came in fifth place.

In the long distance races, junior Kalvin Evans earned a fifth-place finish in the 1600-meter race and brought home a bronze medal in the 3200-meter race.

Freshman Cole Menold continues to make noise in the hurdle races and he earned points for his team in the 100-meter race with a fifth-place finish. He also finished sixth overall in the 300-meter race.

Sabetha’s 4×400-meter relay, the team of freshman Josh Enneking, sophomore Brody Deters, and juniors Cole Hinton and Nate Menold finished in sixth place in the event. In the 4×800-meter relay, C. Lukert, Deters, Enneking and N. Menold earned a bronze medal.

In the field events, senior Nohl Niehues took a silver medal in the pole vault event and then brought home the gold in the triple jump. Senior Abe Wehner scored when he finished sixth in the high jump.

In the shot and discus events, junior Joshua Grimm took a fourth-place finish in both events. Senior Preston Michael earned a fifth-place finish in the javelin event.

Marysville took the top spot in the boy’s division as a team with 155.5 points, Axtell placed second with 118, Rock Creek placed third with 73 points, Nemaha Central placed fourth with 61, Sabetha placed fifth with 53, Jeff County North placed sixth with 32, Doniphan West placed seventh with 23, Royal Valley placed eighth with 21.5, Jackson Heights placed ninth with 16 and Riverside finished in 10th place with two points.

Girls

In the sprint races for the Lady Jays, freshman Samantha Schultejans finished fifth in the 200-meter race, and junior Bayley Wasinger finished in sixth place in the event. Schultejans also added a score to her team’s tally in the 400-meter race with a sixth-place finish.

Senior Mary Lukert continues to be a powerhouse in the mid- and long-distance competitions when she earned a silver medal in the 800-meter race and scored the gold in the 1600-meter race. Sophomores Laura Metzger and Lauren Bowles were forces to be reckoned with in the 3200-meter race. They finished second and third, respectively.

Freshman Abby Whittaker grabbed a sixth-place finish in the 100-meter hurdles to score for her team.

In the 4×100-meter relay race, the team of Whittaker, Schultejans, Wasinger and freshman Krysta Menold grabbed some points and finished fifth. In the 4×400-meter relay, M. Lukert, Whittaker, Wasinger and K. Menold finished fourth, and Whittaker, Bowles, K. Menold and Metzger grabbed a fourth-place finish in the 4×800-meter relay race.

Senior Halle Scoby brought home a bronze medal in the discus event.

Nemaha Central girls took first place in the meet with 125.33 points, Marysville placed second with 86.33, Jeff County North placed third with 81 points, Rock Creek placed fourth with 76 points, Doniphan West placed fifth with 54, Sabetha placed sixth with 53 points, Jackson Heights placed seventh with 45, Axtell placed eighth with 23, Royal Valley placed ninth with 9.33 and Riverside finished in 10th place with one point.