The Talawanda High School Track and Field team displays both promising young depth and senior strength as it sprints toward the end of the season.

The Brave’s April 28 meet at Ross High School provided an opportunity to strengthen that team depth. The team was split in two squads, with Talawanda athletes competing separately in meets at Ross and Wayne High School on the same day.

With occasional rain showers and a brisk chill in the air, the split-squad Brave team participated in what could be their final trip to the Ross Invitational. Current Southwest Ohio Conference (SWOC) members Ross and Edgewood will leave the SWOC to join the Southwestern Buckeye League starting in the 2023-24 school year.

At the Ross meet, Senior Long Jumper Kaydence Morris finished fourth in long jump.

“I wanted to hit 15 (feet) today. I didn’t quite hit 15 feet. My best today was 14 feet, 8 inches, but I’m still pretty satisfied given the weather conditions,” Morris said.

Freshman Callie McCullough placed third with a high jump of 4 feet, 10 inches. 

The boys’ team produced strong results as well. Junior pole vaulter Jonah Femiani finished first in the pole vault with a leap of 10 feet. Senior Logan Howard’s 100-meter dash time of 11.38 seconds earned a third-place finish.

As the boy’s and girl’s teams look toward the regular season finish line, Talawanda Assistant Coach Lizzie Compton took time to reflect.

“We’ve had a lot of athletes pr’ing (personal record) and breaking (school) records this season– that’s the cool thing about track. You’re competing against others, but half the time you’re competing against yourself,” Compton said. “We have a lot of depth, especially in distance. We have a core group of freshmen and sophomores, aside from seniors.” 

The Brave now turn its focus to hosting the SWOC Championships May 9.