TWO HARBORS—Titles were up for grabs at the Polar League Championship track meet in Two Harbors on May 15, but North Woods tracksters competing with the South Ridge Panthers came home without any gold hardware to show for their efforts.
The Panthers finished well down the team standings, with the boys placing seventh and the girls placing ninth in the ten-team event. The combined squad had numerous top-five finishers, but failed to top the winner’s podium.
For the boys, North Woods’ Alex Burckhardt took advantage of a break in the Grizzlies’ baseball schedule to run in the 3200 meters and ended up just shy of claiming a championship, finishing second with a time of 10:21.05. Khalil Lightfeather-Spears ran the race in 11:15.47 to place seventh, and Lincoln Antikainen finished right behind in eighth with a time of 11:15.47
The Grizzlies were represented on all of the relay teams. For the 4x100, Evan Kajala, Trajen Barto, Wyatt Ellefson, and Brady Hellman placed eighth with a time of 53.24. The 4x200 relay of Aidan Hartway, Barto, Kajala, and Darren Larson clocked in with a 1:44.54 and a sixth-place finish. Jonah Burnett, Hartway, Quinn FierkeLepp and Sawyer FierkeLepp raced to third-place finish in the 4x400 relay with a time of 3:50.8. Burnett also ran on the 4x800 relay team with Tyler Morse and both FierkeLepps, placing second with a time of 8:58.33.
Burnett placed fourth in the high jump with a leap of 5’6”, while Barto sailed to a 15th-place finish in the long jump with a 15’10” effort.
On the girls side, and mirroring her brother, Addison Burckhardt stepped away from the softball pitcher’s mound to compete in the 3200. She ran the circuit in 13:31.19, placing third. Izzy Pascuzzi also captured third in the high jump with a leap of 4’8”.
Other top-10 Grizzlies competitors included:
400 – Corra Brodeen, ninth, 70.17; Addy Hartway, tenth, 70.24.
1600 – Zoey Burckhardt, seventh, 6:10.77.
4x100 relay – Mya Kinsey, Gabby Franks, Alana Jensen, Makayla Gilbson, ninth, 62.72.
4x200 relay – Corra Brodeen, Addy Hartway, Harmony Aikey, Izzy Pascuzzi, sixth, 2:01.77.
4x400 relay – Corra Brodeen, Scarlett Vanderscheuren, Madison Ellefson, Violet Vanderscheuren, fourth, 4:44.61.
Long jump – Izzy Pascuzzi, sixth, 14’5.25”.