Two runners heading to state track meet

The East Bernard track team put on a good showing at regionals, but only two athletes will be moving on to the state meet next week in Austin.

Brahma senior Colby Kurtz and Brahmarette sophomore Malaya Thomas both had second-place finishes in their events, earning an automatic trip to state.

Kurtz, a distance runner, placed second in the 1,600-meter run, just over one second away from the first-place runner from New Waverly. Kurtz had a time of 4:29.20, a personal best in the event, two seconds off his time from area. Kurtz also competed in the 3,200-meter run and came tenths of a second away from earning a second trip to state. He finished with a time of 9:51.76, a little more than a half second behind second place.

In the 200-meter dash, Thomas was neck-and-neck with the regional champion from Newton, placing second a tenth of a second behind her. Thomas shaved nearly a second off her time from area. Like Kurtz, Thomas nearly made it to state in a second event. The sophomore Brahmarette posted a 12.31 time in the 100-meter dash, blazing quick, but three-tenths of a second away from second place.

Overall, the East Bernard boys and girls teams showed well at regionals, placing inside the top 10. The Brahmas scored 34 points, tying them with Lexington for fifth place. The Brahmarettes came in eighth place with 23 points.

The Brahmas had five athletes place inside the top five in the region, not including Kurtz's two races. 

Brahma sophomore Malik Thomas has fifth in the 300-meter hurdles. In the 800-meter run, junior Christopher Kopecky came in fourth. Fellow junior Ty Domel came in third in the discus. In the pole vault, junior Randon Polak placed fifth. The 4x200-meter relay was fifth in the region. 

The Brahmarettes had five athletes place inside the top 10, with the 4x400-meter relay coming in fourth. Senior Bailey Leopold was sixth in the 100-meter hurdles. Sophomore Ashlynn Lemos was eighth in the 800-meter run. In the 3,200-meter run, junior Anna Witte placed ninth.