Added on May 5, 2025 Sara Swanson

Blackhawk Invitational and Michigan Center Dual Recap

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Caroline Mason running in the 1600m in the downpour. Photo courtesty of Michael Coltre.

submitted by Michael Coltre, Coach, Manchester Track and Field

The Dutch competed in the Blackhawk Invitational on Friday April 25 and fought through some heavy rain in the middle portion of the meet. The Boys took home 2nd place out of nine teams with 111 points and only trailed host Leslie. The boys won six of the 17 events and were 2nd in two others. The Girls just missed out on 3rd place by three points and finished with 59 points. Leslie also won the girls side. Some highlights:

On the boys side:

Grant Johnson took home 1st place honors in the 110H, 300H, and 200m, while also running the winning anchor leg of the top 4×4 Relay. The rest of the 4×4 Relay consisted of Brennan Woods, Sawyer Lutton, and Gavin Horky
Nathan Fletcher won both the Discus and tied his PR in Shot Put with a throw of 45’
Gavin Horky tied his best High Jump of 5’10 for 2nd place
The 4×8 Relay took home a 2nd place and ran 8:59.80 (12 seconds faster than their previous best time). This team consisted of Cade Sayer, Jesse Sangster, Justin Gale, and Gavin Horky. This squad is currently ranked 2nd in our Region
Sawyer Lutton took 3rd in the 110H with a PR time and also took 4th in the 300H
Alec Dodak took 3rd in the 3200 and 5th in the 1600
The 4×2 Relay running in heavy rain took 3rd and this team consisted of Walter Ahrens, Sawyer Lutton, Gavin Horky, and Gavin Lindeman
The 4×1 Relay of Walter Ahrens, Ethan Hittle, Gavin Lindeman, and Jesse Sangster also took 3rd place
Cade Sayer took 5th in the 800
Brady Reed PR’ed by a foot in the Pole Vault to 10’6 for a 6th place finish
Ethan Hittle PR’ed in Pole Vault at 8’0
Eli Finnegan and Vince Budd ran PR’s in the 800
Liam Pierce PR’ed in the 1600
Rocco Guido PR’ed in the Discus

On the girls side:

Siera Jedele took home 2nd place in four events which included the 100H, 300H, and anchoring both the 4×2 and 4×4 Relays
The 4×2 Relay running in a big down pour ran a season best time and also consisted of Elle Woods, Olivia Woods, and Valorie Hieber
The 4×4 Relay ran a three second improvement and consisted of Elle Woods, Caroline Mason, and Valorie Hieber
Olivia Woods had a great night in equaling her best HJ of 4’10 and taking 3rd while also taking 4th in the 200m
Teagan Clarke took 4th in the Pole Vault and 6th in the 3200
Audrina Lauer took 4th in the Long Jump
Natasha Seaman tied for 5th in the Pole Vault
Caroline Mason took 6th in the 1600 (after running half the race when they stopped it with a weather delay in very heavy rain), and just missed out on medaling in the 800
Valorie Hieber took 6th in the 300H
Amanda Hieber had big improvements in her 400m (dropped 2 seconds) and just missed out on a medal and had an 11.5 second improvement in the 800!
Lucy Baran was also running in the monsoon for the 1600 before they had to restart it, but she ran a season best time!

On Tuesday April 29, the Flying Dutchmen came away with a split at Michigan Center in a Conference dual. The boys overcame a rocky start to pull away late as they defeated Michigan Center 82-54! The win moves the boys to 3-1 in the Dual meet season and tied for 1st in the East Division! The girls lost a close hard fought dual 61.5-74.5. They move to 2-2 in the Dual meet season.

Some standouts on the girls side:

Siera Jedele continued her strong season in winning the 100H and 300H, and taking 2nd in the 200 in a season best time
Teagan Clarke scored in all 4 of her events in taking 1st in the 3200, 2nd in PV, 2nd in the 1600, and 3rd in the 300H with a PR
Olivia Woods had a stellar jumping night in winning both the HJ and LJ (1st time jumping in Long Jump), as well as running a great anchor leg on the 4×4 Relay
Valorie Hieber won the Shot Put with a PR of 27’2 and took a 2nd in the 300H
Faith Branner PR’ed in the Discus 87’3 (and Shot 23’2) and took 1st in Disc
Caroline Mason placed in all four of her events in taking 2nd in the 800, and 3rds in the 100H, HJ, and 1600
Audrina Lauer took 2nd in the Long Jump

Special Shout Outs:

Girls sprint crew of Audrina Lauer, Natasha Seaman, Memphis Conklin, and Maya Freeman all running PR times in the 100m
Maya Freeman also PR’ed in the Discus!

Some standouts on the boys side:

Grant Johnson running a tough four events in winning the 110H, 400, 300H, and taking 2nd in the 200
Gavin Horky in winning the HJ, running legs on the winning 4×8 and 4×4 Relay and taking 2nd in the 800
Cade Sayer in winning the 800 and winning legs of the 4×8 and 4×4 Relay
Alec Dodak taking care of business and winning the 1600 and 3200
Nathan Fletcher winning Discus with another throw over 140’ and taking 2nd in the Shot Put
Jayden Johnson taking 1st in the 100
Sawyer Lutton running great in both hurdle races and taking 2nd in the 110H and a huge 2 second PR in the 300H, as well as running a winning 4×4 Relay leg
Justin Gale for running great in the 1600 and taking 2nd, as well as running a good leg on the 4×8 Relay team that took 1st
Gavin Lindeman for taking 2nd in the Long Jump and running a great leg of the winning 4×4 Relay
Brady Reed for taking 2nd place in the Pole Vault
Ethan Hittle for taking 3rd place in the Pole Vault
Walter Ahrens for taking 3rd place in the Long Jump
Liam Pierce for running a PR in the 3200 and taking 3rd

Special Shout Outs:

Lucas and Brett Brothers throwing big PR’s in the Discus as they close in on 100’
Julian Waters, Braylin Deschoff, and Sullivan Lahuis for PR’s in the Discus. Julian also PR’ed in the Shot Put

MITCA does their weekly Power Rankings and both Teams have been ranked inside the top 10 the last three weeks. The Boys are currently ranked 4th in the State in D4 and the Girls are currently ranked 8th in the State in D4. This is a ranking of your total team depth as it ranks 3 athletes in every event as well as your relays. The rankings become more accurate as the season progresses. The Dutch are in a good spot after the first month of competition.

Look for results next week, as Manchester travels to East Jackson for the big annual tune up meet of the EJ Dome Classic on Friday May 2, and then on Tuesday May 6 for their last Conference Dual Meet in Napoleon. Go Dutch!