Harrison runs away from competition to win boys track sectional
WEST LAFAYETTE − Andres Negron-Carrero could count on one certainty when he lined up to run the 400 meters Thursday night.
The Harrison junior knew McCutcheon's Kris Kirtz and West Lafayette's Connor Blankman were going to be at their best.
That meant Negron-Carrero had to be better than his best.
Blankman ran a 49.30, just .04 of a second off a 29-year-old sectional record. Kirtz was even better, beating Troy Larson's 1994 sectional time with a 48.91.
And Negron-Carrero, well, he ran away from them both, beating a nearly three-decades old sectional mark by nearly a second with a time of 48.33 seconds.
"I have an incredible amount of respect for Connor and Kris that they're always pushing me every single time we race," Negron-Carrero said. "Always pushing me. Being able to come out here and set the school record and meet record, it feels great."
Negron-Carrero's 400-meter performance was a microcosm for the entire boys track and field sectional at Straley Field Thursday night.
A lot of teams and individuals were really good.
Harrison was better.
The Raiders won their fifth-straight sectional championship, excluding the 2020 season that was canceled due to the coronavirus pandemic, by a wide margin, outscoring runner-up West Lafayette 180-104.5 with McCutcheon finishing third at 102.5.
More: Harrison fends off McCutcheon, West Lafayette to win third straight girls track sectional
"It was a little expected for us to get the win today. There's some really great competition here," said Harrison junior Finley Huber, who won the 100, 200 and was on the first-place 400 relay team. "We were using that as motivation. We'll be running against some of the same guys next week (at the regional)."
Harrison won nine of 16 events in all, including all three relays.
Clinton Prairie's Hayden Kemple finished first in the 3,200, the lone winner outside of the schools that finished in the top three in the team standings.
McCutcheon freshman Kamarion Ayres swept the hurdles races and Brock DeFreese won the discus for the Mavericks.
Wyatt Curl put on a show for pole vault fans, clearing 15 feet, 9 1/4 inches to break Malachi Baker's 10-year-old West Lafayette school record by a quarter inch. Matthew Richardson made it two field event wins for the Red Devils when he placed first in shot put. West Side Elijah Stenberg won the 1,600 meters.
Back to the original point that while many were on top of their game, Harrison was just that much better.
Stenberg blazed through an 800 meters Thursday in what was the race of the night. When Stenberg lunged at the finish line, so too did Harrison's Jaiden Goins.
Stenberg's time was 1:55.73. Goins won in 1:55.72.
"I really feel most comfortable in the 800 and I feel like that's what I have the most potential in, especially with competition," Goins said of how he decided which race he'd focus on in the postseason after succeeding in all the middle and long distance races throughout the season. "We (Stenberg and Goins) have a lot of respect for each other and I've been chasing him for years and it's really helped me get all of my goals. He's a great athlete to chase and compete against."
Harrison's Jacob Schwartz was the individual long jump champion and teammate Kasen Newton won the high jump.
The meet opened with George Hufendick, James Ford, Ethan Getz and Goins winning the 3,200 relay. Knoy, Elija Strong, Huber and Bennett McRoberts won the 400 relay, while Negron-Carrero closed the meet running again running away from Kirtz and Blankman during the anchor leg of the 1,600 relay to win with teammates Strong, Goins and McRoberts.
"All around, we're just there and we've got people in every event able to score points for us and keep us ahead," Negron-Carrero said. "It's incredible important to us. Every single time we talk about (winning the sectional), it's about the seniors. We're harping on them like, hey, this is your last year. Make sure you get that last one. That's going to be me next year and I am hopeful I will be able to get that last one."
Twin Lakes Sectional
Twin Lakes won two relays and had an individual win from Landon Hedington in the 200 meters to lead the Indians to a sectional title.
Gavin Businger, Jackson Fry, Oliver Wright and Avery Condo won the 3,200 relay for Twin Lakes, while the Indians foursome of Adyn Venters, Gage Custer, Maxston Baker-Hoover and Hedington won the 400 relay.
Twin Lakes' depth was able to provide the 17-point gap between the Indians and runner-up Tri-County, which won a meet-high five events.
Justin Kilmer placed first in the 100 and 800, Noah Oilar won the 400 and Will Getz was tops in the pole vault while Eric Minick, Getz, Oilar and Kilmer teamed up to win the 1,600 relay.
Carroll's Ashton Hollinger won the high jump and 300-meter hurdles. Benton Central's Jacob Lewellen was first in the 110 hurdles, Delphi's Johnny Martinez won the 1,600 and Fountain Central's Hayden Kler won the 3,200.
Sam King covers sports for the Journal & Courier. Email him at sking@jconline.com and follow him on Twitter and Instagram @samueltking.
This article originally appeared on Lafayette Journal & Courier: Harrison runs away from competition to win boys track sectional
