Rochester’s Keranko, Valley’s Jones win sectional track titles

Caston hurdler Evans makes regionals by 0.02 seconds, joins Rochester’s Rohr, 4 x 800 relay, Valley’s Alber, Burke, 4 x 100 relay, Culver’s Green, Burkett as regional qualifiers

BY VAL TSOUTSOURIS

Sports Editor, RTC

PLYMOUTH — Just like last year, Rochester senior R.J. Keranko is the 800-meter champion at the Plymouth boys track sectional.

While it might have been a repeat victory for Keranko, Tippecanoe Valley junior Wade Jones is finally a sectional champion after multiple second-place finishes over the last two years.

Rochester athletes who will join Keranko at the Warsaw regional at 6 p.m. next Tuesday include Chris Rohr, who took third in the 3,200 meters after missing the Three Rivers Conference meet with a knee injury; and the 4 x 800 relay team of Rohr, Grant Bailey, Wes Steininger and Keranko, which took second behind Culver Academy.

Jones won the 200 and finished second in the 100, and he is regional-bound in both events. He had finished second in both events at last year’s sectional and this year’s TRC meet. Valley teammates who will join him at the regional included Dalton Alber, who placed second in the shot put with a toss of 44-10; Eric Burke, a first-time regional qualifier in the high jump after clearing 6-0 and finishing second; Nate Parker, who ran the 400 in 53.25 seconds and took third; and the 4 x 100 relay consisting of Grady Moriarty, Jones, Cody Black and Parker, who took third.

The lone Caston regional qualifier was senior Brady Evans, who edged out Manchester’s Eli Metzger by 0.02 seconds for the third spot in the 300 hurdles.

Culver’s Destin Green and Devin Burkett also advanced. Green was second in the 1,600 in 4:37.39, improving on his 2022 sectional time by 31 seconds. Burkett was third in the shot put with a heave of 44-7, finishing behind Culver Academy’s Henry Martello at 45-6 and Alber.

Culver Academy won the team title with 155 points. Rochester was fifth in the 11-team field with 62, Valley was sixth with 52, Culver was eighth with 19, and Caston was 11th with eight.

The team title was Culver Academy’s third straight and their seventh in school history.

Rochester