Brossart won the Class 1A girls state track meet for the second consecutive year by a wide margin.
By Terry Boehmker
NKyTribune sports reporter
Northern Kentucky continued its mastery in Class 1A girls track on Thursday when local athletes placed first in eight events and Brossart won the team title for the second consecutive year by a wide margin at the University of Kentucky.
A local team has won the last four Class 1A girls state meets and 24 of the last 27 dating back to 1995. During that span, St. Henry won 11 state titles, followed by Brossart (eight), Newport Central Catholic (three), Beechwood (one) and Dayton (one).
Walton-Verona senior Maggie Buerger set a state record in the discus and won a second gold medal in the shot put.
Brossart topped the team standings on Thursday with 104 points and Fort Campbell took second place with 41.6. The Mustangs won three relays, placed second in another and had two individual state champions.
Freshman sprinter Lexi Braun won the 400 run and was a member of Brossart’s 4×200 and 4×400 relay teams that placed first. The team’s other individual winner was junior Chloe Hein in the long jump.
Walton-Verona senior Maggie Buerger was a double-winner in the discus and shot put events. She set a new state record in the discus by reaching a distance of 128 feet, 11 inches.
“I’ve been working for this since the seventh grade so I’m so excited that I finally got here,” Buerger said of winning both events after placing first in the discus and fourth in the shot put last year.
The other local girls state champion was Lloyd senior Maddie Neary, who won the high jump for the second straight year.
Fort Knox won the Class 1A boys state meet by a 71-57 margin over Walton-Verona. The next three teams were Pikeville 45, Beechwood 44 and Brossart 43.
In the first two events, Brossart won the 4×800 relay and Walton-Verona junior Grady Shay crossed the finish line first in the 110 hurdles. Beechwood senior Natnael Weldemichael was a double-winner in the 1600 and 3200 runs and placed third in the 800 run.
Weldemichael capped an exceptional senior year that began with him winning the Class 1A boys state country meet in October after placing third in the region meet one week earlier.
Lloyd senior Jake Davidson won the pole vault for the fourth consecutive season by clearing 14 feet. Last year, he set a Class 1A boys state record by clearing 15 feet, 6 inches.
Class 1A state champions from local schools
GIRLS EVENTS
4×800 relay — Brossart (Amy Klocke, Emma Bezold, Izzy Hummel, Claire Curtsinger) 10:05.82
4×200 relay — Brossart (Kaitlyn Kramer, Hayley Hickman, Hannah Kramer, Lexi Braun) 1:49.12
4×400 relay — Brossart (Hannah Kramer, Emma Bezold, Lexi Braun, Sophie Neufelder) 4:14.26
400 run — Lexi Braun (Brossart) 1:01.66
Shot put — Maggie Buerger (Walton-Verona) 36-11.75
Discus — Maggie Buerger (Walton-Verona) 128-11 (Class 1A state record)
Long jump — Chloe Hein (Brossart) 17-04
High jump — Maddie Neary (Lloyd) 5-0
BOYS EVENTS
4×800 relay — Brossart (Ryan Branch, Ryan Clines, Parker Losure, Nathan Ruth) 8:26.39
110 hurdles — Grady Shay (Walton-Verona) 15.14
1600 run — Natnael Weldemichael (Beechwood) 4:23.25
3200 run — Natnael Weldemich (Beechwood) 9:52.79
Pole vault — Jake Davidson (Lloyd) 14-0
