NTL TRACK & FIELD: WYALUSING TO HAVE A MIX OF VETERANS AND YOUTH (2024-03-26)

BY CHRIS MANNING
Northern Tier Sports Report
Wyalusing returns a district champion on the girls’ side and plenty of youthful talent for the boys as they get ready for the track and field season.

“We have a really good turnout for the number of girls and guys on the team,” said coach James Schools. “They’ve been working really hard for this the first two weeks of the season.”

On the girls’ side they return Olivia Haley, who won the 400 meters at districts last year. At states she just missed the podium, taking 10th overall, which is a big motivating factor going into this season.

“My senior season so I’m trying to make it the best year,” Haley said. “It’s my biggest goal this year to try and get on the podium.”

She spent much of her winter getting ready for track this year, putting down some times that would have been good for outdoor.

“It’s very encouraging,” Haley said. “I feel more prepared coming into this season than in past years. I’m trying to be more consistent in the 59s this year.”

Schools notes that he’s slowly been building her up for the season.

“We actually started working out back in December,” he said. “We’ve been going a couple of days a week, then slowly turned into three days a week, and then four days a week as the season progressed. She is faster than what she was doing last year so we’re definitely excited for that.”

She’ll also be doing the 100, 200, and 4x100 but will focus mostly on the 400. The 400 relay they’ve just been on the outside looking in when it comes to states the past few years, so if that hits she could be going in multiple events.

“Layla (Botts) and Hannah (Ely) were a really big impact on our relay team, but we do have a lot of fast girls moving up, so I’m really curious as to where it will take us this year,” Haley said.

“We have a pretty good returning crew,” added Schools. “We have a very good freshman girl that’s going to be taking the place of Hannah or Layla, that graduated last year. I think we put together a good race we will be right there like last year.”

Other girls to watch are Mia Wilcox, Makenzie Kintner, Kassandra Kerin, Megan King, and Addy Sutton. 

“We’ve got a good bunch of veterans coming back to help lead because we have a really good number of ninth and 10th graders on both the boys and the girls side of the team,” said Schools.

The Lady Rams were the runners up at the NTL Championships a year ago, but will have some holes to replace. 

“We did take a pretty big hit last year,” Schools said. “We have to see how everything plays out as far as the rest of the league goes. Athens is going to be tough, we’ll be competitive. I’m not sure if we’ll be up to quite the level we were last year with some hits that we take but, hopefully, we can get back there.”

On the boys’ side they return last year’s top seed in the high jump for District IV in Dylan Johns. Johns just missed states during the competition, and hopes to get some redemption this year.

“I barely missed it,” Johns said. “Hopefully we can go to states this year.”

He jumped 6-foot, 2-inches at an indoor meet earlier this season, which is just below the state standard.

“It’s the first jumps of the season so far, so it is a pretty good feeling that I go 6-2,” Johns said. 

6-feet, 4-inches is the automatic qualifier and the number he’s shooting for at districts.

“I’m definitely getting in the gym more, work on my knee tendinitis,” he said.

Johns will also be doing the 4x100 relay and javelin.

Schools is excited but what Johns did this winter.

“He jumped with literally no practice,” said Schools. “He jumped 6-2, and just missed 6-4, just missed, so there’s high hopes for him.”

He’s also looking forward to see what his distance crew can do, along with Joey Gonsauls and James Rogan.

“We’ve got Trennan (Tewksbury) to lead us through that,” Schools said about their distance guys. “They’re a good, hard working crew that ran cross-country.”

ROSTER

BOYS (Grade)

Kaleb Anderson (10)

Sam Bluhm (10)

Tyler Caplan (9)

Mason Culver (12)

Owen Culver (9)

Jonathan Earle (10)

Jack Fisher (9)

Lyric Garrison (9)

Shay Gartland (9)

Gage Golden (9)

Joey Gonsauls (12)

Dominick Hadlock (10)

Bradyn Heeman (9)

Johnny Heeman (10)

Dylan Johns (10)

Landen Kaufmann (11)

John Kerin (10)

Jacob Marchion (12)

Lucas McGroarty (12)

Harry Meyer (9)

Zac Otten (9)

Joe Palfreyman (9)

Sergio Rodriguez-Orella (9)

James Rogan (11)

Francis Scarborough (10)

Josh Stoddard (12)

Trennan Tewksbury (11)

Shay Ting Tang (11)

Ethan Vanderpool (10)

Zibiah Walton (11)

Colton Watkins (12)

James Weaver (9)

GIRLS

Claire Allen (9)

Kira Allen (9)

Sophia Alvarez (11)

Hayley Anaya (12)

Alissa Baldwin (10)

Laina Beebe (11)

Chloe Bennett (11)

Alysha Botts (9)

Bella Clark (10)

Kami Gesford (9)

Gabryella Gromley (10)

Savannah Gromley (11)

Olivia Haley (12)

Lia Hart (10)

Mea Johnson (9)

Kassandra Kerin (12)

Liz Kilmer (9)

Megan King (10)

Makenzie Kintner (10)

Chloe Kunkle (12)

Madysyn Lockburner (11)

Carolyn MacAllister (10)

Alyssa Neagle (10)

Ashlyn Neiley (11)

Aletta O’Connor (9)

Gabriella Palfreyman (11)

Riley Porter (10)

Celia Rohan (11)

Vayda Rought (9)

Carol Scarborough (10)

Adeline Sutton (12)

Kenzie Tunnicliff (9)

Abbi Tuttle (9)

Addie Vanderpool (9)

Allie Vanderpool (9)

Nell Vanderpool (9)

Trinity Watkins (12)

Ruth Weaver (12)

Mia Wilcox (12)

Shana Smith (9)

SCHEDULE

Mar. 26 vs Canton, NEB, 4 p.m.

April 3 at Athens, with Troy, 4 p.m.

April 10 vs Athens, Williamson, 4 p.m.

April 13 at Don Wilhour Selinsgrove Classic, 9 a.m.

April 16 at Wellsboro, withSayre, 4 p.m.

April 19 at North Pocono Invitational, 4 p.m.

April 23 at Towanda with NPM, NEB, 4 p.m.

April 26 hosts Lasagna Invitational, 3 p.m.

April 30 vs Wellsboro, Williamson, 4 p.m.

May 3 at Central Columbia Invitational, 3:30 p.m.

May 10 at NTL Championships (Athens), 1:30 p.m.

May 16 at District IV Championships (Williamsport), 5 p.m.

May 18 at District IV Championships (Williamsport), 9 a.m.

May 24 at PIAA Championships

May 25 at PIAA Championships