Republic track qualifies eight for upcoming state competition

Republic’s track and field team qualified eight athletes to compete in the state championship at their sectional meet on  Saturday. Seniors Gracie Troester and Keiran Govan led the charge with multiple qualifying performances.
Govan broke a 1991 school record in the triple jump twice in one day, setting a new mark on his final attempt to win the event with a distance of 14.08 meters. He had already qualified for state earlier by finishing second in the high jump with a leap of 1.87 meters. AJ Uhl finished seventh in the high jump at 1.77 meters.
The 4x800m relay team of Josie Stalzer, Brylie Harris, Zoey Johns, and Troester finished fourth in 10:04.41 to earn a state bid.
Troester became a state qualifier in four different events for the third time in her career. She began her day as part of the qualifying 4x800m relay team, then finished fourth in the 1600m run in 5:20.08. She delivered one of her most spectacular finishes in the 800m run, sitting in seventh place with about 250 meters remaining before surging past five competitors down the stretch to finish second in 2:18.45. She capped her day with a third-place finish in the 3200m run in 11:39.44.
Sophomore Sienna Blankenship jumped a personal best in the pole vault, turning a seventh seed into a third-place finish at 3.14 meters to qualify for state.
Kaleb Norman found himself in last place among eight competitors after the first two throws in the javelin. His third throw earned him third place and a state berth with a distance of 47.96 meters. He had been seeded fourth.
Reese Finley also qualified for state with a second-place finish in the 400m dash in 58.53.
Will Payne fell just short in the 300m hurdles, finishing fifth in 41.22. He missed the fourth-place finisher by .14 seconds and was .43 out of second place. Danny Fair’s season ended at sectionals when he fell short in the pole vault.