Photo by Peter W. Zubaty
J.P. Willett celebrates after getting his second-straight individual state championship in the pole vault, giving Bardstown five consecutive wins in the event. At left is Tiger sophomore Clay Donaldson, who was fifth in the event.

By PETER W. ZUBATY

LOUISVILLE — Two Bardstown seniors participated in the final track meet of their high school career Saturday, and both experienced the joy of bowing out on top.

For one, it was the realization of finally snaring that state championship after a career’s worth of always being right there in contention, but having to settle for second.

“It was great,” said Adam Kahleifeh, who drilled the rest of the field by almost four full seconds in capturing the 800-meter run after running fourth (2009) and fifth (2008) in previous years. “I just told myself I was going to go out quick the first lap and I was just going to give it all I had on the second, but I guess nobody decided to go with me. I kind of wish I’d have had some competition to get a faster time.”

For another, it was living up to heavy personal expectations and maintaining what has become a Bardstown dynasty.

“It felt good,” J.P. Willett said of winning the pole vault, his second straight in the event to extend the streak of Bardstown pole vault state champs to five. “It felt good knowing I wasn’t the one to slip up and not get the job done.”

Before Willett, Matt Case (2008) and Michael Seaman (2006-07) had captured the event for Bardstown.

“I think he kind of had some pressure on him,” Bardstown coach Tom Williams said. “Each year the pressure mounts.”

Willett said he missed his first two opening bars at 12-00, and “I was kind of feeling it after that — I was kind of torn up after that.”

But Willett, who has gotten recruiting interest from Kentucky, Western Kentucky and Mississippi, recovered nicely to clear 12-06, and keep the legacy alive.

Photo by Peter W. Zubaty

Bardstown senior Adam Kahleifeh, right, blew away the rest of the field as he comes down the stretch in the Class 1A 800-meter run. It was the senior’s first individual state title in a career that includes 10 other individual or relay state medals. At far left is Tiger sophomore Josh Ceasar, who closed to finish eighth and grab a medal in the event.

“Michael and Matt — all of us — have built pole vaulting into something people really want to do around school,” Willett said. “Before this, they’d never heard of it. I think we’ve made something out of nothing over the past five years.”

For Kahleifeh, it was about finally grabbing that elusive state title to cap off a career that has seen the University of Kentucky-bound distance runner garner four runner-up finishes among his 11 state meet medals. That, and to make up for a disappointment earlier in the day.

Photo by Forrest Berkshire/Special To The Standard

Bardstown senior J.P. Willett said he had trouble with the heat and humidity on some of his early attempts, but recovered to win his second state championship in a row.

“To be honest, it was all out of anger from my mile run; it was one of my worst miles ever,” Kahleifeh said of his third-place finish in the 1600-meter run after being projected to win it.

“That 800 — I just told myself that I need to win one race, and I just gave it all I had.”

It was rewarding for Williams to watch, especially knowing how badly Kahleifeh wanted a state title.

“The state championships in his individual events have been elusive,” Williams said. “He showed the mark of a true champion by coming back and winning the 800 in convincing fashion.”

In addition, Kahleifeh was awarded the Forcht Bank Group KHSAA Sportsmanship Award for the meet. Kahleifeh won the same award after a second-place finish at the state cross country championships in November, and Damian Edelen won the award for Bardstown at the 2009 state track meet.

Photo by Peter W. Zubaty

Things got chaotic for Bardstown during the 4×400 final baton exchange as senior Adam Kahleifeh (center) had a hard time getting a clean break for the final lap.

“I think that’s a tribute to the school, individuals, parents and everyone involved,” Williams said. “I’m real happy our kids show that kind of character.”

State Track and Field Results

Class 1A

Girls

4×800 Relay

11. Bardstown 11:00.68 (Christine Seaman, Jacey Welther, Tori McCarty, Lyndsay Spalding)

100 Hurdles

13. Marina Culver, Bardstown 17.69

100 Meter Dash

4. Cierra Allen, Bardstown 13.06

4×200 Relay

7. Bardstown 1:51.78 (Kourtney Rogers, Jocelyn Shouse, Karis Rogers, Cierra Allen)

1600 Meter Run

11. Jacey Welther, Bardstown 5:46.71

4×100 Relay

9. Bardstown 53.55 (Kourtney Rogers, Jocelyn Shouse, Karis Rogers, Cierra Allen)

400 Meter Dash

9. Karis Rogers, Bardstown 1:02.18

300 Hurdles

9. Marina Culver, Bardstown 51.07

800 Meter Run

9. Flannery Musk, Bethlehem 2:32.42

200 Meter Dash

3. Cierra Allen, Bardstown 26.72

9. Karis Rogers, Bardstown 27.85

3200 Meter Run

13. Jacey Welther, Bardstown 13:09.16

17. Nicole Riney, Bethlehem 13:29.06

Discus Throw

13. Jenna Ackley, Bardstown 87-00

Pole Vault

18. Haylee Dennison, Bardstown 6-06

21. Samantha Bowling, Bardstown 6-06

Boys

4×800 Relay

2. Bardstown 8:17.55 (Josh Ceasar, Justin Hubbard, Adam Kahleifeh, Paul Lanham)

110 Hurdles

13. John Sither, Bardstown 17.23

18. Nick McCarty, Bardstown 17.79

100 Meter Dash

16. J.P. Willett, Bardstown 12.01

22. Quintez Cissell, Bardstown 12.34

4×200 Relay

11. Bardstown 1:36.10 (Ben Lyvers, Quintez Cissell, Brandon Coulter, Ricky Harper)

1600 Meter Run

3. Adam Kahleifeh, Bardstown 4:29.46

4×100 Relay

12. Bardstown 46.24 (J.P. Willett, Quintez Cissell, Ricky Harper, DeAngelo Poynter)

400 Meter Dash

9. Ben Lyvers, Bardstown 52.92

19. Justin Hubbard, Bardstown 54.23

300 Hurdles

13. Chris Hall, Bardstown 44.45

800 Meter Run

1. Adam Kahleifeh, Bardstown 1:57.46

8. Josh Ceasar, Bardstown 2:05.50

200 Meter Dash

12. Ben Lyvers, Bardstown 24.18

3200 Meter Run

17. Paul Lanham, Bardstown 11:14.43

4×400 Relay

2. Bardstown 3:32.44 (Ben Lyvers, Justin Hubbard, Nick McCarty, Adam Kahleifeh)

High Jump

2. Nick McCarty, Bardstown 6-02

Pole Vault

1. J.P. Willett, Bardstown 12-06

5. Clay Donaldson, Bardstown 11-00

Bardstown’s Cierra Allen, right, flew to a fourth-place finish in the 100-meter dash (above) and also was third in the 200 and got a seventh-place medal in the girls’ 4×200 along with teammates Kourtney Rogers, Karis Rogers and Jocelyn Shouse.
 

By PETER W. ZUBATY

LOUISVILLE — Bardstown picked up first-place finishes in two events among its eight medals at Saturday’s Class 1A State Track and Field Championships, scoring 55 points to finish third in the boys’ team competition.

While the goal for the Tiger boys going into the meet was to snare the school’s 10th team title, coach Tom Williams said there was plenty of which to be proud, including individual state titles for seniors J.P. Willett (pole vault) and Adam Kahleifeh (800 meter run) considering “we were not a very good track team” at the beginning of the season.

“We went down there with an opportunity to win and we were within seven points of doing that,” he said. “This was probably the most competitive state meet I’ve been to in a long time. … There’s a lot of schools that would be happy to get third.”

The Tiger boys finished just two points behind runner-up St. Henry. Fort Campbell was the repeat champ with 62 points.

Bardstown’s girls slipped a bit from last year’s eighth-place finish — the best in school history — to 16th, scoring 13 points.

“We should be better next year,” said Cierra Allen, with the return of Daizah Kimberland and Victoria Yocum, both of whom are previous state medalists coming off injury layoffs.

Allen had a hand in all of the Tiger girls’ points, scoring fourth in the 100-meter dash (13.06) after being projected ninth, running third in the 200 (26.72), missing runner-up by .03 seconds, and anchoring the seventh-place 4×200 relay squad.

“She had a great day,” Bardstown girls’ coach Jeremy Dale said. “Cierra has aspirations of running at the next level, and she needed to make a statement this year. I think she did that.”

In addition, Allen’s 4×100 squad also featuring Kourtney Rogers, Karis Rogers and Jocelyn Shouse — the same four as on the 2×200 — shaved 1.28 seconds off their region seed time to finish ninth after being projected 19th.

Allen, who has tallied 10 medals in individual or relay events at the state meet, said her performance this year should set her up for a good senior season.

“It motivates me more to push harder and do a lot better, because I know colleges are looking at me right now,” she said.

Photo by Forrest Berkshire/Special To The Standard

Bardstown senior Nick McCarty takes off after the baton exchange in the 4×400 from teammate Justin Hubbard.

In addition to Kahleifeh and Willett garnering individual state crowns (see sidebar), the Tiger boys got solid performances from senior Nick McCarty, who was runner-up in the high jump, and the Bardstown 4×800 and 4×400 relay squads also garnered runner-up honors.

In the 4×400, the final event of the day, Bardstown leap-frogged Fort Knox to finish third overall in the team competition, and the Tigers might have come home with a tie for runner-up if not for some bad luck on the final exchange in the race.

Coming down the stretch in the third lap, McCarty had a slight lead but was passed by Walton-Verona’s Brandon Brockman, complicating things in the California exchange, where the leader coming into the final turn gets inside position for the baton hand-off.

Brockman cut off Bardstown anchorman Kahleifeh, who had to check in traffic to account for Brockman and a bunched-up exchange between Bishop Brossart runners Zach Holtkamp and Clay Elam. Walton-Verona anchor Ben Hoseus emerged from the confusion with a nice lead, and was able to hold off Kahleifeh on the final lap as the Bearcats won the event by a little more than a second.

“I thought I was going to run into them,” Kahleifeh said of the final exchange. “I couldn’t get a very good runout and that Walton-Verona kid was already gone. I gave it all I could to catch him.”

In the high jump, McCarty cleared 6-02 and grabbed second after being projected eighth, but he felt like an individual title was within reach. Eventual champion Ben Bessler of St. Henry cleared 6-04 to win it, but didn’t clear 6-02 until his final attempt at that height.

“I was really hoping to come out and do a little bit better, but I’ll take the second place,” McCarty said. “My best is 6-05 and I was hoping to come out and do the same.”

Other Bardstown medalists included sophomores Josh Ceasar (8th in the 800) and Clay Donaldson (5th in the pole vault), and Kahleifeh placed third in the 1600-meter run.

Photo by Forrest Berkshire/Special To The Standard

Bardstown junior Marina Culver clears a hurdle in the 300-meter hurdles. She was ninth in the event, missing out on a medal by .05 seconds. She also ran 13th in the 100 hurdles.

“If we scored a couple more points in a couple more events, I think we could have won,” Kahleifeh said. “That would have been a great ending.”

Bethlehem had two entrants in the state meet, with junior Flannery Musk running ninth in the 800 and freshman Nicole Riney 17th in the 1600.

For Nelson County, the girls’ 4×800 relay squad of Nicole Boone, Daniella Godenzi, Miranda Mattingly and Evelyn Tackett were 14th at the 3A state meet after being one of the last at-large qualifiers in the event. Their 10:31.65 time smashed the school record by more than two seconds and enabled the Cardinals to finish ahead of Meade County, the region champ.

The Cardinals’ Amber Thurman was 17th in the shot put and 22nd in the discus, while Addison Wheatley was 22nd in the 800. Antonio Railey missed his opening mark in the high jump.

Go online to www.kystandard.com for more results from Saturday’s Class 1A and 3A state track meets.

Photo by Peter W. Zubaty

Bardstown senior Adam Kahleifeh won the 1600 at the Bardstown All-Comers meet Tuesday, with University of Kentucky track head coach Don Weber, left, watching closely.

By PETER W. ZUBATY

Bardstown’s Adam Kahleifeh just keeps on chuggin’ on.

The Tiger senior relished the strong competition in last week’s inaugural Dream Mile — a race designed to pit the top milers in Kentucky regardless of school size against one another — coming in fifth and shattering the Bardstown school record by nearly five seconds in the process.

Kahleifeh’s 4:24.88 at the Eastern Relays originally set the school record and was the ninth-best mile time in Kentucky until the Dream Mile, held last Friday at St. Xavier. Greenwood’s Ryan Eaton, the defending Class 3A state champion in the mile (1600 meters), won the race with a time of 4:16.22, and will be the favorite in next month’s state meet.

Kahleifeh’s fifth-place time of 4:20.09 outran his ninth-place expectations, and established him as the favorite in the mile at next month’s Class 1A state meet. His top competition figures to come from Holy Cross’ Jacob Thomson, who ran sixth in the Dream Mile (4:20.77), and James Maglasang of Paducah St. Mary’s, who finished eighth (4:23.53).

The Kentucky Track and Field State Meet for Class 1A and 3A are June 5 at Owsley Brown Frazier Cardinal Park on the University of Louisville campus.

The Bardstown girls are in action tonight in the Boyle County Invitational, while the Tiger boys are in Saturday’s Dunbar Invitational. Nelson County is participating in Saturday’s St. Xavier Invitational, and all local teams are in Tuesday’s Heartland Conference meet at Central Hardin.

Bardstown All-Comers

Bardstown’s boys and girls squads each rolled up more than 200 points in winning their home meet Tuesday. The Tiger girls captured 10 of the 18 events, while the boys grabbed firsts in eight events. Nelson County was runner-up in boys and girls, while Bethlehem’s boys and girls were sixth.

Bardstown’s Cierra Allen dominated the sprint events, winning the 100- and 200-meter dash, and the junior anchored the Tigers’ winning 4×100 and 4×200 relay squads. Freshman Karis Rogers won the 400, and joined Allen as part of the winning relay squads.

Nelson senior Amber Thurman won the shot put (29-08) and discus (88-08).

Bardstown’s boys won three of the four relay events, and just missed a clean sweep as Marion County edged the Tigers’ 4×100 squad by .24 seconds.

Seniors Adam Kahleifeh and Nick McCarty had a hand in the Tigers’ winning 4×400 relay squad, while Kahleifeh also crushed the field by more than 13 seconds in the mile and McCarty won the 110-meter high hurdles by more than a second over his nearest competitor.

Bardstown’s Keith Mattingly won the shot put and was second in the discus, and Nelson’s Antonio Railey won the high jump.

Bryan Station Invitational

Bardstown’s “Big Three” of seniors Adam Kahleifeh, Nick McCarty and J.P. Willett accounted for 38 of the Tigers’ 57 points amassed in a fourth-place performance at the 17-team Bryan Station Invitational on Saturday.

Kahleifeh won the 3200-meter run, besting his nearest competitor by nearly 15 seconds. Willett, the defending Class 1A pole vault state champion, delivered a first-place vault of 11-06 to top 14 other rivals. McCarty won the high jump (6-00), was third in the triple jump and placed fifth in the 110 high hurdles.

By PETER W. ZUBATY

Bardstown’s boys posted a third-place result at the Heartland Conference Championships Tuesday, a meet highlighted by senior Adam Kahleifeh’s wins in the 1600- and 800-meter runs.

Kahleifeh covered the 1600-meter course in 4:26.95, well ahead of Meade County’s Tyler Blair by more than 15 seconds. Later on that day, the senior bested the field in the 800 with a time of 1:57.53.

J.P. Willett added to his lengthy trophy case with a winning pole vault of 13-00. Willett is favored to repeat his Class 1A state championship in the event at the June 5 state meet.

Bardstown’s girls had a rougher go of it, finishing seventh out of 10 teams, just behind Nelson County. The Cardinals were sixth in the boys’ competition as well, while Bethlehem’s girls were 10th.

Local runners also posted strong results in the girls’ distance events.

Bardstown eighth-grader Jacey Welther powered to a first-place finish in the 1600 in 5:42.51, edging Nelson freshman Daniella Godenzi by three seconds and beating third-place Evie Tackett, a Cardinal seventh-grader, by more than seven seconds.

Welther nearly matched Kahleifeh’s daily double with a strong second-place result in the 800, her 2:33.84 time just .43 seconds behind North Hardin’s Markeshia Woods. Nelson’s Miranda Mattingly was third with a 2:35.44 time.

Godenzi also delivered a second-place finish in the 3200, covering the course in 12:35.06.

Bardstown’s Ben Lyvers grabbed third in the 400-meter dash, and teammate Nick McCarty was third in the high jump.

Class 3A power North Hardin won the boys’ and girls’ team competition.

Meet postponed

Tonight’s Bardstown Invitational has been postponed to Monday. The meet will begin at 5:30 p.m.

St. Xavier Invitational

In the high jump, seniors Antonio Railey (sixth) and Demarcus Collins (seventh) posted the only medal performances for the Nelson County boys in the rugged St. Xavier meet, while senior Amber Thurman (eighth) medaled in the discus. The Cardinal boys were 19th in the team competition, while the girls were 20th.

Dunbar Invitational

Bardstown’s boys finished fifth in the team competition Saturday at Paul Lawrence Dunbar, with 3A powers Bryan Station, Tates Creek, Henry Clay and Campbell County snagging the top four slots.

Willett delivered his top performance of the year in winning the pole vault competition, clearing 13-06. McCarty grabbed first in the high jump with a 6-02 result.

Kahleifeh won the 800 with a 1:57.07 time, and was second in the 1600.

Boyle Co. Invitational

Bardstown’s girls tallied 62.5 points while coming in sixth in the 16-team Boyle meet last Friday.

Tiger junior Cierra Allen claimed second in both the 100- and 200-meter dash, and also was part of the Tigers’ second-place relay squad in the 4×200 and the third-place 4×100 team.

Tiger sophomore Jenna Ackley took second in the discus with a toss of 87-04.

Photo by Peter W. Zubaty

Bardstown senior Adam Kahleifeh won the 1600 at the Bardstown All-Comers meet Tuesday, with University of Kentucky track head coach Don Weber, left, watching closely.

By PETER W. ZUBATY

Bardstown’s Adam Kahleifeh just keeps on chuggin’ on.

The Tiger senior relished the strong competition in last week’s inaugural Dream Mile — a race designed to pit the top milers in Kentucky regardless of school size against one another — coming in fifth and shattering the Bardstown school record by nearly five seconds in the process.

Kahleifeh’s 4:24.88 at the Eastern Relays originally set the school record and was the ninth-best mile time in Kentucky until the Dream Mile, held last Friday at St. Xavier. Greenwood’s Ryan Eaton, the defending Class 3A state champion in the mile (1600 meters), won the race with a time of 4:16.22, and will be the favorite in next month’s state meet.

Kahleifeh’s fifth-place time of 4:20.09 outran his ninth-place expectations, and established him as the favorite in the mile at next month’s Class 1A state meet. His top competition figures to come from Holy Cross’ Jacob Thomson, who ran sixth in the Dream Mile (4:20.77), and James Maglasang of Paducah St. Mary’s, who finished eighth (4:23.53).

The Kentucky Track and Field State Meet for Class 1A and 3A are June 5 at Owsley Brown Frazier Cardinal Park on the University of Louisville campus.

The Bardstown girls are in action tonight in the Boyle County Invitational, while the Tiger boys are in Saturday’s Dunbar Invitational. Nelson County is participating in Saturday’s St. Xavier Invitational, and all local teams are in Tuesday’s Heartland Conference meet at Central Hardin.

Bardstown All-Comers

Bardstown’s boys and girls squads each rolled up more than 200 points in winning their home meet Tuesday. The Tiger girls captured 10 of the 18 events, while the boys grabbed firsts in eight events. Nelson County was runner-up in boys and girls, while Bethlehem’s boys and girls were sixth.

Bardstown’s Cierra Allen dominated the sprint events, winning the 100- and 200-meter dash, and the junior anchored the Tigers’ winning 4×100 and 4×200 relay squads. Freshman Karis Rogers won the 400, and joined Allen as part of the winning relay squads.

Nelson senior Amber Thurman won the shot put (29-08) and discus (88-08).

Photo by Peter W. Zubaty

Bardstown’s Jacey Welther (right) watches closely just off the pace of the lead pair of Nelson County’s Daniella Godenzi (left) and Evie Tackett during the middle parts of the 1600-meter run Tuesday at the Bardstown All-Comers meet. Welther, an eighth-grader, eventually overtook Godenzi and Tackett — who finished second and third, respectively — to win the race.

Bardstown’s boys won three of the four relay events, and just missed a clean sweep as Marion County edged the Tigers’ 4×100 squad by .24 seconds.

Seniors Adam Kahleifeh and Nick McCarty had a hand in the Tigers’ winning 4×400 relay squad, while Kahleifeh also crushed the field by more than 13 seconds in the mile and McCarty won the 110-meter high hurdles by more than a second over his nearest competitor.

Bardstown’s Keith Mattingly won the shot put and was second in the discus, and Nelson’s Antonio Railey won the high jump.

Bryan Station Invitational

Bardstown’s “Big Three” of seniors Adam Kahleifeh, Nick McCarty and J.P. Willett accounted for 38 of the Tigers’ 57 points amassed in a fourth-place performance at the 17-team Bryan Station Invitational on Saturday.

Kahleifeh won the 3200-meter run, besting his nearest competitor by nearly 15 seconds. Willett, the defending Class 1A pole vault state champion, delivered a first-place vault of 11-06 to top 14 other rivals. McCarty won the high jump (6-00), was third in the triple jump and placed fifth in the 110 high hurdles.

Photo by Peter W. Zubaty

Keith Mattingly winds up for a shot put toss. The Bardstown junior is coming off a knee injury that prematurely ended his football season.

By Peter W. Zubaty

Bardstown senior distance runner Adam Kahleifeh gets his chance to try his hand against some of the best mile specialists, regardless of school size, in Kentucky in tonight’s Dream Mile at St. Xavier.

“We’re very excited for him to be able to represent the school” in this event, Bardstown coach Tom Williams said.

Participants include the top 15 mile specialists (1600 meters) in Kentucky, based on seed time. At last month’s Eastern Relays, Kahleifeh delivered a school-record 4:24.88, the ninth-best time in the state this year at that distance. He will be facing many of the same runners tonight that he faced at Eastern (starters listed below).

B’town Invitational

The Bardstown Invitational, set for May 21, is shaping up to be a very strong meet. Bardstown coach Tom Williams said state powers Covington Holmes and Erlanger St. Henry have been added to the roster of teams, which now stands at 13 and could swell.

Bardstown, Nelson County and Bethlehem will all be in action that day as well.

Recent highlights

Male Meet

Bardstown’s boys and girls grabbed second place at Male last week, the host team dominating 216-103.5 in girls, but nipping the boys 146-139.

The Tiger girls got first place performances by Marina Culver in the 100-meter hurdles and Haylee Dennison in the pole vault. Culver also took second in the 300 hurdles, while Cierra Allen (200-meter dash), Jenna Ackley (discus), Caprisha Green (shot put) and Jacey Welther (3200-meter run) were runners-up in their events.

For the Tiger boys, J.P. Willett won the pole vault and Adam Kahleifeh posted a winning 800-meter run. Ben Lyvers was runner-up in the 400-meter dash.

Photo by Peter W. Zubaty

Bardstown’s Cierra Allen (far right) gets the jump on Bethlehem’s Shawn Zellers (center) and the rest of the field in winning the 100-meter dash at Tuesday’s Bardstown All-Comers meet.

Bardstown All-Comers

The Tiger boys and girls dominated in winning their home meet.

The Tiger girls got firsts in 12 of 18 events, with Cierra Allen getting the win in the 100- and 200-meter dash. Marina Culver won the 100 and 300 high hurdles.

Flannery Musk’s second-place performance in the 800-meter run was the best result for a Bethlehem athlete. The Banshees were fourth of five teams.

Bardstown’s boys won 15 of 18 events, as Ben Lyvers snared firsts in the 100- and 200-meter dash, while J.P. Willett scored wins in the pole vault and long jump. Nick McCarty won the triple jump and 110-meter high hurdles, but fell just short of a trifecta with a second-place finish in the high jump.

Dream Mile starters

Boys

(All times 1600 Meters unless noted)

Name Class School Time  

1. Ryan Eaton, 12, Greenwood – 4:15.57

2. Robbie Scharold, 12, Campbell County – 4:20.64

3. Andrew Stewart, 11, North Hardin – 4:21.12

4. Jake Wildenmann, 11, Trinity – 4:22.22

5. Jacob Thomson, 09, Holy Cross – 4:22.99

6. Matt Hillenbrand, 12, St. Xavier – 4:23.06

7. Justin House, 11, Apollo – 4:23.12

8. Austin Carter, 11, St. Xavier – 4:23.57

9. Adam Kahleifeh, 12, Bardstown – 4:24.88

10. Stacey Eden, 12, Shelby County – 4:25.30

11. Ryan Smith, 12, Dixie Heights – 4:25.54*

12. James Maglasang, 12, St. Mary – 4:27.40

13. Reece Johns, 11, duPont Manual – 4:27.47

14. Austin Houchens, 12, Greenwood – 4:28.70

15. Jackson Carnes, 12, St. Xavier – 4:28.90

16. Aaron Graves, 11, St. Xavier

*Indoor Mile

Girls

(All times 1600 Meters unless noted)

Name Class School Time

1. Emma Brink, 11, Sacred Heart – 4:50.81

2. Liz Anderson, 12, duPont Manual – 5:06.70

3. Ashley El Rady, 11, Assumption – 5:12.45

4. Caterina Karas, 10, Shelby County – 5:12.67

5. Kayla Hill, 11, duPont Manual – 5:22.33

6. Julia Means, 11, Sacred Heart – 5:22.42

7. Emily Frith, 11, Lincoln County – 5:25.00

8. Cassidy Hale, 09, duPont Manual – 5:25.47*

9. Ally Conrad, 10, Scott County – 5:28.42

10. Claire Grogan, 12, Oldham County – 5:28.57

11. Jasmine Athanasakes, 10, duPont Manual – 5:29.15

12. Catherine Allen, 11, Sacred Heart – 5:29.34

13. Anna Schreiner, 12, Eastern – 5:29.60

14. Jessie Murner, 11, South Oldham – 5:31.50

15. Jenna Rogers, 11, Christian Academy of Louisville – 5:33.20

16. Margaret Grogan, 10, Oldham County

*Indoor Mile

 Photo by Peter W. Zubaty

Bardstown’s J.P. Willett won the Class 1A individual state pole vault crown as a junior, and he’s gunning for a repeat this season.

By Peter W. Zubaty

Bardstown senior J.P. Willett is this week’s nominee for Bearno’s Student-Athlete of the Week.

Willett, one of a long line of state-champion pole-vaulters at Bardstown High, carries a 3.3 GPA and hopes to continue his track career at either Ole Miss or Western Kentucky, where he would like to study physical therapy.

Willett is rebounding from a hand injury that cut short his senior football season, and is also involved in the Pep Club and Teens Being Active.

Kentucky Standard sports editor Peter W. Zubaty caught up with Willett to better get to know him.

 PZ: What do you enjoy most about track and field?

JPW: The thing I enjoy most about track and field is the time of year and being with my friends.

PZ: What’s your favorite TV show?

JPW: Sportscenter

PZ: What does it mean to you to be a leader?

JPW: To be a leader means to pick up your team and encourage them to work harder during practice when they are slacking off.

PZ: Do you have a favorite pre-meet or pre-game meal?

JPW: Subway

PZ: What has been your biggest thrill in track?

JPW: My biggest thrill in track has been being able to win a state championship as a team, and winning an individual state title as well.

PZ: Do you have a favorite singer?

JPW: Lil Wayne

PZ: What’s different about track as opposed to other sports?

JPW: Track is different because even though you train and perform as an individual, the greatest rewards come from what you achieve as a team.

PZ: There’s a lot of down time in between vaults while at a meet. How do you manage that down time and stay focused?

JPW: I manage to stay focused between vaults by trying to stay warmed up, doing drills, and not worrying about what bars the other competitors miss or make.

PZ: There probably isn’t much time left over after fulfilling your school-related obligations. What do you like to do when you have some precious free time?

JPW: I like to hang out with friends and watch UK basketball during my free time.

Watch Willett’s TV interview today on Zubaty-Bahm Sports Week at 3:30, 4:30 and 5:30 p.m. on PLG-TV 13 or online at www.plgtv.com.

Photo by Peter W. Zubaty

Ben Lyvers and the rest of Bardstown’s 4×400 squad grabbed a first place in the final event of the day to lift the Tigers to the indoor state championship at Broadbent Arena in Louisville.

By Peter W. Zubaty

The high school indoor track and field season tends to get lost in the shuffle while basketball hogs the limelight during the winter months.

However, that doesn’t mean last Saturday’s win by the Bardstown boys in the Class A division of the 50th Anniversary Mason-Dixon Games at Broadbent Arena at the University of Louisville isn’t a big deal.

“That’s the second-biggest track meet in the state” outside of the outdoor state meet, Bardstown coach Tom Williams said. “It’s considered the state championship of the indoor season.”

Bardstown won the games in 2004 and has been runner-up twice. The Tiger girls did not participate in the meet.

While not an official state championship — that comes in June — the Mason-Dixon Games has a long history as a gathering place for top athletes, and not just at the high school level, including people such as Bob Beamon, who Jess Wheat watched compete there back in the day. The meet also has a master’s and open competition, but college athletes no longer participate.

“I actually ran in this meet in the early ’60s when I was in college,” said Wheat, who is an official at Kentucky and USA Track and Field events. “The meet was then one of the best indoor meets in the country and many famous runners ran there.”

Bardstown claimed three first-place finishes and three seconds at the meet, rolling up 81 points to beat out St. Henry’s total of 69. Thirty-one teams competed in the meet.

“It’s a great thrill to be able to win it, particularly on such an important anniversary,” Williams said.

Holding a slim 71-63 lead over St. Henry going into the final event of the day, the Tigers came up with a big performance in the 4×400-meter relay to capture the state title.

“That was a surprise,” Williams said. “We needed at least three points (in the event) to hold off St. Henry.”

So, Williams sent senior Adam Kahleifeh to run the lead leg along with juniors Chris Hall and Ben Lyvers and sophomore Josh Caesar. Kahleifeh had already posted second-place finishes in 800- and 1600-meter runs earlier in the day.

“He gave us a pretty good margin, and the other kids ran well enough to win,” Williams said. Bishop Brossart ran second, about a half-second back of Bardstown, and St. Henry was third in the event.

Lyvers also grabbed second place in the 400-meter dash.

Tiger senior Nick McCarty grabbed first with a high jump of 6-00, an impressive performance considering his basketball season had finished just two nights earlier. He also placed fourth in the triple jump.

“Nick had practiced one day” leading up to the meet, Williams said.

Senior J.P. Willett, the reigning Class A outdoor pole vault champion, added an indoor crown to his resume´ by clearing 11-00, a feat made all the more impressive when you consider he was fighting a leg injury. Willett’s football season ended prematurely with a broken thumb as well.

“He’s been having good success,” Williams said. “(His thumb) has not affected him, at least to this point. He looks to be in pretty good shape.”

Senior Ricky Harper also had a “strong day,” Williams said, finishing third in the shot put and fourth in the 55-meter dash. Senior Paul Lanham was fourth in the 3000-meter run.

“He ran the strongest 3,000 he’s ever run,” Williams said. “He didn’t think he could do that well.”

Williams said the win could serve as a jumping-off point for the spring.

“I think it gives the kids a lot of confidence going into the outdoor season,” he said.