The Sabetha Bluejay Track and Field team had 11 athletes compete at the KSHSAA State Track and Field Championship, however, senior Nohl Niehues was the only Bluejay to bring home hardware when he placed fifth in triple jump.

After long miles of conditioning, hours of drills and a little more than a handful of competitions behind them, an elite few members of the Bluejay track team qualified for the KSHSAA State Track and Field Championship on Friday, May 26, and Saturday, May 27, in Wichita. Kansas hosts the largest high school track meet in the country, with more than 3,000 athletes and as many as 20,000 spectators, and for an athlete to qualify and compete is a memory that will last a lifetime. Eleven Bluejay athletes qualified for the meet and tested their skills and endurance against the state’s finest.

“As expected, the State meet was a tough weekend with the best competition from all around the state,” said Head Coach Dave Remmers. “Although we would have loved for everyone to come home with a medal, it did not happen this year.”

Senior Nohl Niehues set a new personal record (PR) in the triple jump at Regionals with a measurement of 42 feet, four inches to qualify him for the State’s grandest stage in track and field. Niehues broke his previous PR during the State meet with his best jump marked at 43 feet, two inches to earn him a medal for a fifth-place in Wichita to complete his high school athletic career.

The team of senior Mary Lukert, sophomores Laura Metzger and Lauren Bowles, and freshman Abby Whittaker carved their entry into the State meet lineup after qualifying at Regionals. The team finished the race in Wichita with a time of 10 minutes, 31.89 seconds, which ranked them in 13th place overall.

Lukert earned her ticket to the State meet in the 1600-meter race with a new PR time of five minutes, 43.30 seconds that she ran at Regionals a week prior. She finished 12th in the 1600 at Wichita by breaking her own PR, crossing the finish line in five minutes, 38.27 seconds, to cap off her illustrious, high school athletic career.

Senior Halle Scoby punched her ticket to State in the shot put and discus events. She threw 32 feet, eight and a half inches in the shot put to earn her a 15th-place finish. Her best throw in the discus measured 106 feet, nine inches to give her a 13th-place finish overall to bring her high school sports career to a close.

For the Bluejay boys, the 4×800-meter relay team of junior Nate Menold, sophomore Brody Deters, and freshmen Charlie Lukert and Josh Enneking ran a tough race and finished with a time of eight minutes, 53.29 seconds to put them in 13th place overall.

Junior Joshua Grimm qualified for State in the shot put and discus events. His best mark in the shot put landed at 50 feet, seven and 3/4 inches to give him a ninth-place finish overall in the event. In the discus, he logged a distance of 140 feet, 11 inches for his best throw of the meet to put him 12th place.

“As a coaching staff, we feel good that our kids competed hard and did the best they could on the day of competition. This was a great experience for our underclassmen, and we hope it motivates them to continue working hard and set a goal to finish higher next year,” Coach Remmers said.