Special to the HT
RANGELY | The Rangely High School track and field team turned in a strong performance at the Phil Wertman Invitational on April 10, competing against 21 teams largely from larger 3A, 4A and 5A schools.
The Panthers’ girls team placed eighth overall, while the boys finished 12th.
Taya Wren led the way with a standout performance in the 1,600-meter run, breaking the school record with a time of 5 minutes, 10.58 seconds to take second place. The mark also set a new personal record.
On the girls side, Natalie Bollinger recorded a second-place finish in pole vault (8 feet, 9 inches), while Taylor Fouch placed second in shot put (34-2). Aubrianna Tapia added a fourth-place finish in shot put (31-9). The 4×400 relay team of Wren, Haiden Garcia, Aubrey Yates and Kira Jo Benson posted a personal-best time of 4:29.78.
Additional personal records came from Yates in the 200-meter dash (29.04), Rachel Larsen in the 400 (1:32.57) and Isabella Cox in shot put (27-2).
For the boys, the Panthers saw several top finishes and personal records. Joseph Valdez placed seventh in the 400-meter dash with a personal-best 52.28, and the 4×400 relay team of Chance Allred, Logan Peterson, Valdez and Tavan Morgan took fourth with a personal-best 3:39.12. The 4×800 relay team also recorded a personal best, finishing fifth in 8:55.89.
In field events, Kacey Allred placed third in pole vault (11-3), while Landon Bollinger took fifth in long jump (19-6). Cutler Mergelman added a fifth-place finish in shot put (43-2) with a personal record.
The Panthers will return to action at home Saturday, April 18, hosting the Rangely Panther Invitational. Field events begin at 9:30 a.m., followed by running events at 10 a.m.