TIFFIN – The Ashland boys and girls track and field teams are ready to storm their regional meets in Lexington.
No one brought the lightning at this week’s rain-soaked district more than Sadie Walter.
One week after gathering honors as the Ohio Cardinal Conference Female Runner of the Year, the junior stacked up three individual Division II district titles in Tiffin. The star speedster guided the Ashland girls to second place out of 11 teams with 112.5 points in the two-day meet, trailing only Fremont Ross (166.3).
Walter ripped through the competition to win the 100-meter hurdles (15.00), the 300 hurdles (46.01) and the 100 dash (12.48), accounting for all of the AHS girls’ district gold medals.
She also was part of the runner-up 4×100 relay with Alyssa Sampson, Oaklynn Burns and Frankie Rupsis (season-best 50.27).
Burns, the OCC’s Female Track Athlete of the Year, nabbed second in the long jump (17-8.5), third in the 200 (26.44) and was on the regional-qualifying, fourth-place 4×200 relay with Evelyn Brockway, Makenna Oslie and Sampson (season-best 1:49.26).
Sampson also moved on in the 400 (fourth place in 1:00.60) and the Ashland girls got a runner-up outing from Ava Cline in the 3,200 with her PR of 11:49.89.
Third-place regional qualifiers for the Arrows include Alanah Cole in the pole vault (9-0), Aliviah Sauder in the 800 (season-best 2:25.35) and Kelsey Kaeser in the shot put (33-8.25).
Ashland’s boys squad was busy Wednesday and Friday sending plenty to the Lexington Regional as well, placing third out of 13 teams (103 points) behind only Fremont Ross (121) and the Minutemen (109.5).
The Arrows had three different champs, including Dakota Kruty in the 200 (22.85), Braden Donatini in the 300 hurdles (PR of 39.24) and Greyson Blough in the shot put (52-10).
Kruty was a week removed from being named Male OCC Track Athlete of the Year for the second time.
Known for his long-jumping prowess (he was district runner-up at 21-6.5), the senior Ashland University commit was happy to perform the way he did as a soaked sprinter Friday.
“My first 200-meter of the year, it was pouring (and that was) one of my favorite races,” Kruty said. “It was a little bit cold (Friday), so you’ve just gotta dig deep. I like it.”
“With how I’ve been running lately and everything, I think I can make some progress going towards (state),” he added. “Next week will be tough, but I’ve just got to push through it.”
Kruty also took a runner-up spot as part of the 4×100 relay with Harley O’Brien, Braden Donatini and Jayden Colvin (43.54) – and he was third in the 100 (11.32).
Blough, meanwhile, doubled up his regional qualifications with a third-place toss in the discus (145-2). Ashland’s other individual regional qualifiers were Colvin in the high jump (third-place PR of 6-0), O’Brien in the 110 hurdles (fourth in 15.22) and Ty Bates in the pole vault (12-0).
Two additional AHS relays moved on, too. The 4×800 of Brady Thompson, Jack Parsons, Jonah Coffee and Brady Anderson was second in a season-best 8:13.58, while the 4×400 of Donatini, Bates, O’Brien and Anderson was fourth in a season-best 3:25.66.
