The online student news source of Lovejoy High School

The Red Ledger

The online student news source of Lovejoy High School

The Red Ledger

The online student news source of Lovejoy High School

The Red Ledger

Track, field athletes advance to regionals

Sophomore+runner+Leila+Ngapout+sprints+towards+the+handoff+to+freshman+runner+Kendall+Coppinger+in+the+4x200+meter+relay.+Freshman+runners+Lauren+Dolberry+and+Madeline+Smith+are+also+on+the+relay+team.
Katie Dolberry
Sophomore runner Leila Ngapout sprints towards the handoff to freshman runner Kendall Coppinger in the 4×200 meter relay. Freshman runners Lauren Dolberry and Madeline Smith are also on the relay team.

The track team competed in the UIL area meet on Wednesday, and 10 athletes advanced to the regional meet, which will take place on Saturday, April 24.

“We had a good amount of kids make it past area,” sophomore runner Mason Wallace said. “We will be preparing the same as we have been preparing all year to go into the meet ready to perform at a top level.”

One of the athletes to advance, freshman Kailey Littlefield, won the 800- and 1600- meter races, finishing the 800 meter in 2 minutes 12 seconds, and the 1600 meter in 5 minutes 2 seconds.

“I am very satisfied with my performance,” freshman runner Kailey Littlefield said. “Our 4×4 [relay team] had a great comeback to win the Area title, and it was an amazing experience.”

There were a total of five female athletes that advanced to the regional meet including sophomore Amy Morefield, sophomore Chloe Schaeffer, sophomore Bella Landrum, senior Audrey Bensmiller and Littlefield. There were also five male athletes to advance to the regional meet including freshman Colston Adamson, senior Mason Stein, junior Tate Barr, senior Reed Westervelt and sophomore Lance Stubbs. 

“I love how the team performed as a whole, especially the relay teams,” freshman runner Lauren Dolberry said. “We were all competing for each other and as one team, rather than individually.”

The team will practice every day of the week to prepare for the regional meet.

“We will continue to train hard and do lots of speed and technique,” Littlefield said. “Regionals are next Saturday, and we are so excited to show up and compete to our best ability.”

Freshman Colston Adamson placed second in the high jump and third in the long jump.

Athletes, including Wallace, broke their record times in events at the area meet.

“I am very happy with my performance,” Wallace said. “I came in as the seventh fastest, and I finished in fourth place.”

The girls 4×400 meter relay team placed first, completing the race in 3 minutes 58 seconds.

Our 4×4 had a huge race and won the meet,” head coach Carly Littlefield said. “Both relays are made up of all freshmen and sophomores.”

Junior Tate Barr won the 3200 meter race and placed second 1600 meter race, finishing the 3200 meter race in 9 minutes 38 seconds, and the 1600 meter race in 4 minutes 24 seconds.

“I walked away with the main goal of making it out to regionals, but obviously, I would have liked to take first,” junior runner Tate Barr said.

Leave a Comment
More to Discover
About the Contributors
Christian Giordano
Christian Giordano, LJP Staff, LIVE! Crew (Technical Director)

Sophomore Christian Giordano returns for his second year as the Technical Director for LJP LIVE! crew as well as the Producer/Writer for Leopard Re-Cap. Christian loves to spend as much time as he can at ice rinks and is very passionate about ice hockey. After winning a hockey state championship in Illinois while he was living in Chicago, Giordano moved to Lucas and won a state championship with Lovejoy. This season, Giordano will play hockey on the varsity team as the starting goaltender. Besides playing hockey, Giordano loves writing and hanging out with his friends. If you can’t find him at the rink, you can probably find him spending time with his two cats. Giordano is excited to continue to pursue his passion for journalism this year.

Katie Dolberry
Katie Dolberry, Section Editor
Heading into her second year on staff, senior Katie Dolberry is excited to take on the role of sports editor and photographer. She would like to pursue journalism as a sports broadcaster. Outside of the newsroom, Katie puts her height and long wingspan to use by playing post in basketball and first base in softball; she is also a part of PALS. More often than not, Katie can be found talking to her Sky Ranch friends or talking about camp in general. If you were to drive past her, you would likely hear her jamming to lots of country music. Katie is also a chapstick addict and has some in her pocket 24/7. Her favorite flavor is candy cane. More things Katie loves include chocolate, bucket hats, throwing the football, Bible journaling, picnics with friends and the sky. Katie cannot wait to see what her second year on staff has to offer.

Comments (0)

The Red Ledger values the opinion of its readers and encourages them to discuss its content. All comments are subject to approval by The Red Ledger staff. The Red Ledger does not allow anonymous comments and requires a valid email address. The email address will not be displayed but will be used to confirm your comments. Comments are reviewed as often as possible. Comments with inappropriate content will not be published. Once submitted, comments become the property of The Red Ledger. To see our full Comment Policy, visit https://www.theredledger.net/about-us/policies/
All The Red Ledger Picks Reader Picks Sort: Newest

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *