Bruce McKean
Contributing Writer
The Pocahontas County High School Track teams did not get to run at their first scheduled meet at Keyser March 27. Head Coaches Abe Rittenhouse, Aaron Pugh and Josh Abbott were happy to finally get their squads in action at Oak Hill April 3 at the County Shop Invitational.
Fifteen schools competed and scored in one or both of the boys and girls meets. The Class A PCHS girls scored 51 points and placed third of the 12 teams who scored. Class AA Oak Hill won the girls A meet with 116 points, and Class AA Nicholas County came in second with 96.50 points. The Lady Warriors finished ahead of both Class AAA teams, five in AA and two in A.
The PCHS boys scored 47 points and finished in sixth place of the 17 teams who scored. Class AA Nicholas County placed #1 with 69 points followed by: #2 AA Independence – 68 points, #3 AA Oak Hill – 60.50, #4 AA Wyoming East – 57, and #5 AAA Greenbrier East – 49. The Warriors finished ahead of two AAA teams, five in AA and all four in A.
Senior Cora Hedrick brought home gold in the 3200m (14:04.72). The boys 4x800m relay team (9:10.65) of juniors Jacob Jones, Kyle Cohenour and Logan Woodruff plus senior Gus Foe also took gold. That PCHS boys time was ranked #7 in West Virginia Class A as of meets held by April 7 and reported to RunWV.com by April 9.
Hedrick also finished with a girls silver medal in the 1600m (6:09.39). Cora’s time was only 1.03 second slower than AA Oak Hill’s Courtney Smith’s #1 time. Junior Bridget Carroll also brought home a silver medal in the girls discus (93.01). Carroll’s effort ranks #6 in West Virginia Class A and was topped at this meet by two feet by #1 Naturi Paris of AA Liberty Raleigh.
Sophomore Sage McLaughlin brought home a bronze medal in the 400m (1:05.28). Twenty-five girls finished that event. McLaughlin’s time also ranks #6 in West Virginia Class A, and the #5 state ranked time of Magnolia’s Kennedy Parsons is only .04 second faster. Jones placed third in the boys 300m hurdles (45.89) and was the best A-time at the meet. Sophomore Thomas Smith joined the bronze club in the shot put (36-11.00).
The girls 4x100m relay team of freshmen Savannah McMillion, Kiara Davis and Cheylin Wood-ruff plus sophomore Kira Bircher took bronze (57.75). Their time ranks #7 in West Virginia A. Tucker County and East Hardy are ranked #5 and #6 in this event while Midland Trail has the #9 state time. The boys 4x400m relay team of Jones, Cohenour, Woodruff and Elijah Robertson, all juniors, landed in third (3:54.80), and that is #7 in West Virginia A. The boys 4x100m shuttle hurdle relay team of juniors Hunter Shafer, Robertson, Woodruff and Jones finished in third place (1:07.27) and now ranks #3 in West Virginia A, PCHS’s best ranking at this point in the season.
PCHS athletes who placed fourth in their events but were clocked in top-10 times in West Virginia A were: Cohenour 800m (2:12.27 – ranks #10 in West Virginia), and girls 4x400m relay team (4:47.81 – ranks #6 in West Virginia A – McLaughlin, freshman Savannah McMillion, Bircher and Hedrick).
Cora Hedrick (23 points) and Jacob Jones (11.5 points) each scored in the maximum four events.
The PCHS track teams will compete at Richwood Thursday, April 19, and at Nicholas County in Summerville on Tuesday, April 24. Both meets begin at 4 p.m.