The MHS girls finally got some fresh air with last Tuesday’s three-team Wausau West meet.
West was best at 101.6, leading Merrill (54) and East (29.3).
“The first night with an outdoor meet ran smoothly with great performances by everyone,” Bluejay coach Bethany Martinovici said. “The meet had a lot of tough and fast competition. It is nice to see our girls fare well in their events.
“Lauren Hojan was a spark tonight. There was more competitive energy tonight than I have seen out of her in the early part of the season.
“A competitor that we were glad to see return was Rylee Folz. She adds so much to our team. Ashley Berton and Morgan Marnholtz were the jumpers of the night in triple and long jumps. Morgan Pettit has the endurance and stamina, now we have to work on when to build up the speed to push out of her comfort level.
“The 4-by-1 was a test tonight with the fierce wind down the back stretch. The team of (Kaitlin) Berry, (Renee) Sladek, (Christa) Schleif and (Kennedy) Soderberg gave it a great amount of effort. All their hand-offs were smooth and not one lost momentum. It is great seeing Renee back to her old self. She will be able to fit right in to a relay or two as the season continues.”
The Jays went 1-2 in the triple jump with Marnholtz (35’ 8”) and Berton (35’ .75”), and they tied for 2nd in the long jump at 15’ 7.5”.
Merrill ranked 1st and 3rd in the 3200 with Pettit (14:50.49) and Rachael Romanowski (15:17.48).
Sladek and Aubrey Wardall ranked 2-3 in the discus (106’ 8”/91’ 3”) and shot put (37’ 1”/30’ 6”). Hojan (4’ 8”) and Folz (4’ 6”) matched it in the high jump.
Other runner-up finishes came in the: 400M (Berry, Sadek, Schleif, Soderberg, :54.72); 800M (McKenna Folz, McKenna Robbins, Soderberg, Berry, 2:03.38); the 1600 (Berry, Hojan, Berton, Marnholtz, 4:28.64); and the 3200 (Kate Williams, Mickenna Comstock, Pettit, Sarah Ranta, 12:06.97).
Schleif placed 3rd in the pole vault (8’ 0”) and 100 hurdles (:17.56).