Staff
Maybe it was good karma coming home to roost for the Muskie track-and-field team.
Fort High bettered its season-opening medal count by four with a total of 13 top-three finishes at the Border State Bank Invitational meet in Baudette on Tuesday.
The Muskies not only excelled in competition but also in the way they supported other teams—even their archrivals, the Dryden Eagles.
“The team were amazingly good ambassadors for FFHS, with great sportsmanship,” noted Muskie coach Ilka Milne.
“We shared our batons with Dryden, who had forgotten them and regularly beats us,” she added.
“This meant we had to get our one remaining relay baton into the next relay team’s hands all day.
“It was inconvenient and often stressful,” Milne admitted. “It took communication and organization.
“[But] they never complained once,” she lauded.
“They cheered for everyone, congratulated everyone, took their losses gracefully, and celebrated personal improvements.”
It was the male Muskies taking care of the gold mining Tuesday.
Jason Bazylewski was tops in the discus throw (96 feet, five inches) while Arthur Van Ael left the field in his wake to capture the boys’ 3,200m in a time of 11:34—43 seconds faster than his closest challenger.
The rest of the Muskie medal haul came in the form of bronze—beginning with a three-pack of thirds from team captain Jenny Hammond in the girls’ 200m (29.51), 400m (1:10.15), and 800m (2:57.64).
Meanwhile, Bailey Jones, Ellie Petsnick, and Jyllian Westover were part of a rare six-way tie for third in the girls’ high jump, each reaching a height of four feet, two inches.
The Muskie girls’ 4x100m relay team (58.45) and the 4x200m squad (2:02.12) also reeled in bronze medals.
So, too, did Jacob Empey in the boys’ triple jump (35 feet, 9.5 inches) and Sekina Scheibler in the boys’ long jump (18 feet, 8.25 inches).
Scheibler’s effort may have been the most impressive of the day, considering he only is in Grade 9 but still was able to post a distance that would have won gold at NWOSSAA last year.
Fort High rounded out its bronze blitz in the boys’ 4x100m relay (51.16).
The Muskies are back in action this Tuesday with a return visit to Falls High School.
Competition gets underway at 4 p.m.
