BCTF Competition Week 1 Rundown
What a week.
At this time last week, it had been multiple years since the last time the boys had won two duals, and either team had won an invite. Those streaks have been broken, and we are rolling.
Wednesday we were at Grand Rapids Christian High, competing against Lowell and Greenville. All offseason I’ve been bullish on our teams making a big step forward. The signs and building blocks are there. We have experience and talent spread across the entire program, and the kids have been working. I should do the math, but I estimate that 90% of the team is either in other sports in the fall and winter, OR participates in offseason and preseason workouts.
This week was time to show proof of concept.
Wednesday - OK White Quad #1 at Christian High
Boys
BC 72 - Lowell 65
BC 98.5 - Greenville 38.5
Girls
BC 51 - Lowell 86
BC 90 - Greenville 47We can sum this one up with a text from Mrs Coach Hunter “Your sprinters are actually winning now.”
Yes, they are. A few of the dudes who have been here since they were little freshmen are now placing in races, and winning relays. Our 4x200 and 4x400 teams each won outright, and the 4x800 team lost only to an experienced Lowell squad, and the 4x100 team beat but dual opponents, losing to Christian High’s team, featuring 3 of the fastest returning 100 Meter sprinters in the conference.
In the open races, Jackson Perez (11th grade) competes in his first meet as a highschooler, and runs 11.42 and 23.77. This is big because his 9th grade season was wiped out by COVID, and in fall of 2020 he tore his ACL. An 11.42 debut is a rich reward for somebody who worked hard to come back and compete.
Other notable performances from the boys
The 4x400 team wins for the first time in years. Fredricks, McConnel, Lennon, and Pollock run 3:40.86 for the overall win.
Jason Fredricks (4:25.02 indoor) opens his outdoor season with a 4:36 and 2:06, getting beat at the line by Christian High’s Reuben Wiering, who had a career day
Nathan Holwerda runs 10:14 to place second in the 3200
Eli Maxwell jumps 20-07 to win Long Jump
Jared Gallert throws 41-09 to win Shot Put
The same general story can be told for the girls. Senior Natalie Carey sprints 13.76 and 29.28 to take third and first in the open 100 and 200, and Ava Putnam runs 29.36 to place third. The girls 4x100 team wins their duals, and places second to GRC. The 4x200 would have won outright, if not for a zone violation and DQ.
Senior Avery Zeinstra started her season with second places in the High Jump (4-10), and 800 (2:34). She lead off and gave the 4x400 team the lead, but that team was also DQd (more on that team later…)
Four girls Pole Vaulters cleared opening height, which is a great thing for week 1. Avery Booth (8-00) Avery Mouw (6-06) Rowan Pellow (6-06) and Lizzy Szymaniak (6-00).
Madi Leifer (10th grade) opens her discus season with a 103-0.
Freshman Natalie Formsma wins the 300 hurdles with a 51.13, breaking the BC freshman record. She also ran 6:03 in the mile, ran on the 4x800 team, and jumped 4-06.
Gull Lake Invite
The last time we competed at this meet in 2019, was my first year coaching here. Our boys scored, 21.5 points (finishing 9th), and the girls 71.5 (5th). So, this meet provided the perfect opportunity to get a gauge on how far we have come.
Boys finish 4th, with 68.5 points, just 2 points out of 3rd place. The 3 teams ahead of us are regional opponents.
Some highlights
4x100 team of Maxwell, Yeomans, Wolfe, and Perez finishes second in 45.29 (faster than last years fastest time) only to the meet winners and meet record breakers of Kalamazoo Central (43.74)
4x200 team (same as 4x100) leads through 3 legs, but Sturgis charges hard down the home stretch, beating us 1:34.31 to 1:34.79.
The 4x400 team of Fredricks, McConnell, Lennon, and Pollock compete hard for 3rd place, getting narrowly beaten by Portage Northern 3:42.74 to 3:42.93.
Paul Kimball finishes 3rd in Pole Vault, with an 11-00 vault.
Jason Fredricks takes 2nd in the 1600, running 4:33.
The girls won, scoring 104.5 points, beating Kalamazoo Central who scored 99.5.
This one went down to the wire. Avery booth won the pole vault, and Avery Mouw took 5th, giving us an early 14 points. Madi Leifer, Chloe Feather, and Esa Seirsma added 20 points in the throws. Every time I checked the score, I expected the other shoe to drop… but it never did. Until the very end of the meet, when KZC went 1-2 in the 800, and won the 3200. BC has a promising young girls distance squad, but I did not want to max them out for the points yet. Thankfully, our 4x400 team of Zeinstra, Formsma, Mata, and Wisener won the whole thing in 4:32.71.
