All-RTC4 girls track: Rochester’s record-setting hurdler Wagner is Athlete of the Year

Val T.
1 hour ago
4 min read

BY VAL TSOUTSOURIS

Sports Editor, RTC

**RTC4 Girls Track Athlete of the Year Audrey Wagner**

Rochester senior Audrey Wagner, who kept breaking the school record in the 300 hurdles and eventually made her way to the state finals, is the RTC4 Girls Track Athlete of the Year.

Wagner is proof that a late start in an event does not have to doom an athlete as long as they have a strong work ethic and a passionate attention to improve.

While Wagner was our top athlete, certain groups from particular schools stood out – for example, the jumpers and vaulters from Pioneer and the distance runners from Winamac.

The only area team to win a conference title was Pioneer, and Pioneer junior Aspen Moolenaar was the only area athlete to advance to regionals in four different events.

Wagner and Moolenaar are among the athletes who made our All-RTC4 girls track team.

We thank the coaches in our area for sending us their results and for sharing their thoughts with us on their teams.

Having said that, this list is ours and ours alone, and we take full responsibility for it. We place extra emphasis on conference meets and postseason meets since those are the biggest meets of the year and, thankfully, the meets least likely to be affected by bad weather.

Sprinters

Michelle Harding (Pioneer) – It’s not uncommon to hear athletes complain about how hard it is to run the curve in the 200 meters, but Harding was a natural at it. Her winning time at the Hoosier North meet was 28.01 seconds, but she was down under 27.5 by the end of the season and was a regional qualifier. She was also the conference runner-up in the 100 and the long jump.
Sadie Popejoy (Winamac) – Popejoy showed off an versatile skill set combining strength and speed, taking sixth in the 100 and third in the 200 at the conference meet while also finishing fourth in the discus.
Camila Hernandez-Rios (Caston) – We had seen Hernandez-Rios excel in cross-country through her athletic career, but her display of raw speed stood out this year when she won the Hoosier North title in the 400 in 1:03.18. She was also fourth in the Hoosier North in the 100.

Distance runners

Allyson Calloway (Rochester) – Calloway is the best 3,200 meter runner in the area. She made it to regionals for the second straight year in the event and cut her regional time from 12:57 in 2024 to 12:25 in 2025.
Kadence Hoover (Winamac) – Hoover won both the 1,600 and the 3,200 at the conference meet, and she then got faster at the Kankakee Valley sectional.
Claire Goodman (Winamac) – A senior like Hoover, Goodman formed a 1-2 scoring punch for Winamac at the conference meet in the 1,600 and 3,200 and scored points in both events at the Kankakee Valley sectional.

Hurdlers

Audrey Wagner (Rochester) – It was a big deal when Wagner got under 48 seconds at the start of the year in the 300 hurdles. By the end of the year, she was down to 45.33 seconds at the regional to qualify for state. She finished 18th at state in 46.09 seconds. Her 400 meter experience showed up throughout her two-year run in the 300 hurdles.
Betty Shepherd (Tippecanoe Valley) – Our 2024 Athlete of the Year was actually a little faster this year than she was last, and breaking the 46-second barrier at the regional was an exceptional performance. Wagner was just a little bit better this year.
Madi Douglass (Caston) – A sophomore, Douglass switched over from softball to track and finished fourth at conference in both the 100 hurdles and 300 hurdles. Wagner’s experience aside, hurdles are very difficult for first-time track and field athletes, and a 54.6 in the 300 hurdles was a pretty good time for a newcomer.

Jumpers/pole vaulters

Aspen Moolenaar (Pioneer) – Moolenaar became a bigger, stronger athlete as a junior but also improved her form in the pole vault. In an area where we had no other 8-foot pole vaulters, Moolenaar routinely cleared 10 feet. She could be a state contender in 2026, and we have not even brought up how good she is at the hurdles.
Kyra Doran (Rochester) – We could have also listed Doran, a sophomore, as a sprinter or a hurdler, but we put her here since she advanced to regionals in the long jump. She went 16-3 ½ at the Tipton Invitational and 15-9 at the sectional.
Keirsten Nies (Pioneer) – Nies, a senior, was the most consistent area high jumper, clearing 4-10 at conference, sectionals and regionals to end her career.

Throwers

Ashlynn Weyant (Rochester) – Weyant, a junior, was seventh in the discus and eighth in the shot put at the Bremen sectional and was the only area athlete to score in both events. She is a 90-foot discus thrower and a 30-foot shot putter.
Savanna Harrington (Culver) – A sophomore, Harrington was one of the few Culver individuals to score points at the sectional meet when she finished eighth at Bremen in the discus with a throw of 89-0. She was also sixth in the discus at conference.
Haley Derf (Tippecanoe Valley) – Derf is a 30-foot shot putter, and she narrowly missed scoring for her team at the Bremen sectional.

Honorable mention