Winamac girls track update: Wegner places 7th in 800 at regional

Popejoy takes 9th in discus

BY VAL TSOUTSOURIS

Sports Editor, RTC

Girls track

Avery Wegner Sadie Popejoy

Avery Wegner finished seventh in the 800 meters in 2:26.14 at the Portage regional Tuesday in the final race of her high school track career.

Wegner accounted for the two points Winamac scored as a team. Winamac finished in 23rd place.

Merrillville won with 109 points, 12 more than runner-up Lake Central.

The other Winamac athlete competing at the regional was junior Sadie Popejoy, who placed ninth in the discus with a throw of 99-4.

Winamac coach Mike Haschel said both Wegner and Popejoy “held their own against elite competition from across the region in a night that balanced a final farewell with a look toward the future.”

Wegner ran a 2:23.57 and finished third at the Kankakee Valley sectional to earn her regional berth.

“This race marked a poignant moment for the program, as it served as the regional swan song for Wegner,” Haschel said. “As a senior, Avery has been a cornerstone of the Warriors’ middle-distance squad, providing leadership and consistent scoring throughout her high school career.”

Haschel added praise for Popejoy, who is also a top sprinter.

“With another year of strength training and technique refinement ahead of her, she is poised to be a dominant force and a top contender for a state berth in 2027,” he said.

PORTAGE GIRLS TRACK REGIONAL RESULTS (TOP 10 TEAMS PLUS WINAMAC): Merrillville 109, Lake Central 97, Valparaiso 78.5, Crown Point 70, Chesterton 54, Munster 35, Kankakee Valley 29, Highland 24, Illiana Christian 19, Kouts 17, WINAMAC 2

Scoring on 10-8-6-5-4-3-2-1 basis for all events

State qualifiers (top three) plus all Winamac results

100 m

1. Bradley (Chesterton) – 11.71 seconds, 2. Smith (Valparaiso) – 12.09, 3. Stephens (Highland) – 12.25

200 m

1. Bradley (Chesterton) – 24.82 seconds, 2. Smith (Valparaiso) – 25.28, 3. Fincannon (Valparaiso) – 25.43

400 m

1. Fincannon (Valparaiso) – 57.13 seconds, 2. Maldonado (Crown Point) – 57.64, 3. Wesby (Merrillville) – 57.69

800 m

1. Thompson (Lake Central) – 2:15.31, 2. Belstra (DeMotte Christian) – 2:18.32, 3. Brezden (Crown Point) – 2:21.53, 7. Avery Wegner (Winamac) – 2:26.14

1,600 m

1. Thompson (Lake Central) – 5:00.30, 2. Walker (Kankakee Valley) – 5:06.30, 3. Sytsma (Kankakee Valley) – 5:09.43

3,200 m

1. Bruggeman (Lake Central) – 10:52.71, 2. Bliss (Munster) – 10:56.60, 3. Lauzon (Merrillville) – 11:21.57

100 m hurdles

1. Fort (Merrillville) – 13.65 seconds, 2. Sole (Highland) – 14.52, 3. Pearson (Merrillville) – 14.65, 4. Paramantgis (Crown Point) – 14.80

(NOTE: Paramantgis beat the state qualifying standard of 14.87 and also advances to state.)

300 m hurdles

1. Fort (Merrillville) – 45.13 seconds, 2. Cowger (Morgan Township) – 45.48, 3. Dieck (Crown Point) – 45.88

4 x 100 m relay

1. Merrillville – 47.48 seconds, 2. Valparaiso – 47.57, 3. Chesterton – 48.11

4 x 400 m relay

1. Merrillville – 3:52.43, 2. Valparaiso – 3:57.44, 3. Chesterton – 4:02.17

4 x 800 m relay

1. Lake Central – 9:27.56, 2. Crown Point – 9”27.98, 3. Munster – 9:32.72

Long jump

1. Stephens (Highland) – 18-0 ¼, 2. Pearson (Merrillville) – 17-9 ½, 3. Mudde (Illiana Christian) – 17-5

High jump

1. Ware (Merrillville) – 5-1, 2. Callaway (Lake Central) – 5-1, 3. Frederick (Washington Township) – 5-1

Discus

1. Reyes (Lake Central) – 140-10, 2. Nemeth (Kouts) – 126-0, 3. Odeluga (Munster) – 124-5, 9. Saide Popejoy (Winamac) – 99-4

Shot put

1. Reyes (Lake Central) – 39-10 ¾, 2. Hart (Crown Point) – 39-3, 3. Brock (Crown Point) – 38-9 ¼

Pole vault

1. Hass (Kankakee Valley) – 11-6, 2. Lipscomb (Merrillville) – 11-6, 3. Krischke (Valparaiso) – 10-6

Winamac finishes 7th at Kankakee Valley sectional

The Winamac girls track team scored 29.5 points and finished seventh out of 14 teams at the Kankakee Valley sectional May 19.

Kankakee Valley won the sectional with 132 points, 27 more than runner-up Kouts.

Wegner accounted for 11 of Winamac’s points by herself by finishing third in the 800 and fourth in the 1,600 in 5:36.35.

Popejoy also accounted for 11 points. In addition to her third-place showing in the discus with a throw of 100-4, she also took fourth in the 200 meters in 27.65 seconds.

The other Winamac athlete to score in an individual event was senior high jumper Kandace Kroft, who tied for fifth with a jump of 4-8.

Winamac’s other points came in the 4 x 400 and 4 x 800 relays, both of which finished seventh. The 4 x 800 relay consisted of Kroft, Maci Earp, Madelyn Goodman and Wegner. The 4 x 400 relay was not listed on the results.

KANKAKEE VALLEY GIRLS TRACK SECTIONAL RESULTS MAY 19: Kankakee Valley 132, Kouts 105, Morgan Township 99.5, DeMotte Christian 88, Rensselaer 51, Hebron 38, WINAMAC 29.5, West Central 26, North Judson 19, South Newton 11, North Newton 10, Knox 10, Oregon-Davis 3, Boone Grove 1

Scoring on 10-8-6-5-4-3-2-1 basis for all events

Top three finishers plus all Winamac results

100 m

1. Rakowski (MT) – 12.77 seconds, 2. Nauseda (KOU) – 12.84, 3. Bunger (WC) – 13.09, 11. Katelyn Burgess (WIN) – 14.02

200 m

1. Rakowski (MT) – 26.37 seconds, 2. Birky (KOU) – 27.22, 3. Gillette (KV) – 27.49, 4. Sadie Popejoy (WIN) – 27.65, 10. Katelyn Burgess (WIN) – 28.99

400 m

1. Mudde (DMC) – 59.68 seconds, 2. Twedt (KOU) – 59.98, 3. Brackman (KNOX) – 1:00.66, 14. Madelyn Goodman (WIN) – 1:11.70

800 m

1. Sytsma (KV) – 2:17.51, 2. Belstra (DMC) – 2:23.31, 3. Avery Wegner (WIN) – 2:23.57

1,600 m

1. Sytsma (KV) – 5:05.69, 2. Walker (KV) – 5:18.86, 3. Bucher (MT) – 5:21.51, 4. Avery Wegner (WIN) – 5:36.35, 18. Roni Garbison (WIN) – 6:59.75

3,200 m

1. Sytsma (KV) – 11:40.37, 2. Bucher (MT) – 11:55.62, 3. Frump (DMC) – 12:22.88, 15. Roni Garbison (WIN) – 18:19.19, 16. Micaela Godina (WIN) – 18:30.55

100 m hurdles

1. Hood (KOU) – 15.72 seconds, 2. Galvin (HEB) – 16.40, 3. Cowger (MT) – 16.43, 17. Addison Redweik (WIN) – 21.47, 21. Jordyn Hounchell (WIN) – 22.48

300 m hurdles

1. Cowger (MT) – 46.49 seconds, 2. Bunger (WC) – 47.15, 3. Hood (KOU) – 47.27, 13. Kandace Kroft (WIN) – 57.00, 20. Jordyn Hounchell (WIN) – 1:12.19

4 x 100 m relay

1. Kouts – 50.50 seconds, 2. Kankakee Valley – 51.50, 3. North Judson – 52.72, 

4 x 400 m relay

1. Kouts – 4:10.33, 2. DeMotte Christian – 4:13.80, 3. Morgan Township – 4:14.27, 7. Winamac – 4:35.44

4 x 800 m relay

1. Morgan Township – 9:55.45, 2. DeMotte Christian – 10:02.27, 3. Kankakee Valley – 10:34.28, 7. Winamac (Kandace Kroft, Maci Earp, Madelyn Goodman, Avery Wegner) – 12:51.29

Long jump

1. Lowe (NJSP) – 17-3 ½, 2. Singleton (KV) – 17-2 ½, 3. Kingma (DMC) – 17-0 ½, 9. Mylie Foster (WIN) – 15-1, 18. Madelyn Goodman (WIN) – 13-4

High jump

1. Mudde (DMC) – 5-1, 2. Leininger (NN) – 5-0, 3. Hanselman (KV) – 4-10, t-5. Kandace Kroft (WIN) – 4-8

Discus

1. Nemeth (KOU) – 135-10, 2. Radtke (REN) – 101-11, 3. Sadie Popejoy (WIN) – 100-4, 19. Alia Gourley (WIN) – 60-0

Shot put

1. Kasten (WC) – 36-10, 2. Vander Woude (KV) – 36-0, 3. Adams (KV) – 32-10, 17. Lillian Dell (WIN) – 24-0, 22. Alison Vides (WIN) – 19-10

Pole vault

1. Hass (KV) – 10-6, 2. Davis (DMC) – 10-0, 3. Overholt (KOU) – 9-6