Spartans girls track finishes runner-up at conference championship

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SCOTTVILLE — The Mason County Central girls track and field team delivered a strong all-around performance Friday night at Spartan Community Field, finishing runner-up at the West Michigan Conference Rivers Division Championships with 99 points.

The Lady Spartans finished behind champion Hart while holding off North Muskegon and Ravenna in a tightly contested meet highlighted by record-breaking performances, relay success and key contributions throughout the lineup.

Leading the way for MCC was standout hurdler and sprinter Maylan Sanders, who captured four conference championships and broke a meet record.

Sanders opened the meet by breaking her own Rivers Division meet record in the 100-meter hurdles with a personal-best time of 15.67 seconds, currently ranked third in Division 3. The performance also met the early state qualifying standard, securing her place at the state finals.

She later won the 400-meter dash in 1:01.42 before immediately returning to the track to claim the 300-meter hurdles title in 51.13. Sanders capped her dominant evening by anchoring the Spartans’ winning 4×400 relay team.

The quartet of Madelyn Sterley, Raelyn Wilson, Nevaeh Battice and Sanders won the 4×400 relay in 4:19.34 while also breaking the conference championship meet record.

MCC’s relay teams played a major role in the second-place finish throughout the night. The 4×800 relay team of Sterley, Wilson, Battice and Sophia Quick placed second in 10:47.35, while the 4×100 relay team of Reegan Healy, Lola Designe, Faith Hawke and Chloe Jabrocki also earned runner-up honors.

The Spartans also produced several strong individual efforts on the track.

Sterley and Healy both placed in the 200-meter dash while contributing to podium relay finishes. In the distance races, Battice finished third in the 800 meters and fourth in the 1,600, while Wilson posted a personal-record time of 2:48.60 in the 800.

MCC also scored valuable points in the field events.

Faith Hawke earned second place in the discus with a personal-record throw of 113 feet, 5.5 inches and added a third-place finish in the shot put. Aubrey Chye recorded a season-best jump of 13-3.75 to finish fourth in the long jump, while Bailey Bullard placed fourth in the pole vault.

In the high jump, Jabrocki cleared a personal-best 4-4 to tie for seventh alongside teammate Hailee Rogers.

“I am incredibly proud of how this team competed on our home track tonight,” Mason County Central coach Jacob Boone said. “To have a four-event champion like Maylan Sanders break the meet record and qualify for states in front of a home crowd is a special moment, but it was our depth that secured that second-place trophy.

“From our distance runners hitting season bests to our field athletes stepping up, it was a complete team effort. We are hitting our stride at exactly the right time as we head into the postseason.”

The Spartans will next compete in the Mason-Oceana-Manistee counties meet on Tuesday, May 12, at Spartan Community Field.