Oak Park has done it again, winning a fourth-straight Division 1 girls track and field championship, pulling away late from Detroit Cass Tech at Rockford High School.
Oak Park has now won 10 of the last 12 titles in Division 1, a streak dating to 2014 under head coach Brandon Jiles.
Oak Park was expectedly good in the relays, winning out in the 400 meter run by Leah Thomas, Rhian Jeffries, Sophie Menker and Nevaeh Burns and the 800 meters, run by Payton Gee, Burns, Jordan McNeely and Aubrey Douglas.
But Cass Tech was right on its heels for much of the meet, with Malise Brown winning in the 200 and Laila Hawkins winning in the 100 meter hurdles.
And though Oak Park didn’t win a spate of events, it peeled off enough points in the sprints, hurdles and relays to win the team title ahead of Cass Tech.
At the Division 2 meet, Macy Subka’s wins in both hurdle events helped fuel Spring Lake to a team title, pushing past Holland Christian.
In Division 3, Olivet pulled off a repeat, beating out Lansing Catholic by a handful of points in a close meet. Wins in the 300 meter hurdles and the 400 and 800 meter relays, plus strong finishes elsewhere, propelled Olivet to its title.
And the Division 4 title went to Kalamazoo Hackett, which managed to beat Hudson by a single point, 44-43, as both teams went toe-to-toe across a handful of events.
For individual titles in Division 1, West Bloomfield senior Kamryn Tatum won the 100 for the second straight year but couldn’t make history with a fourth straight title in the 200.
In the individual distance races, Hartland’s Elliana Neuer won the 1600 and Ann Arbor Pioneer’s Natasza Dudek won the 3200 by a comfortable margin.
In the relays, Tatum helped West Bloomfield win the 400 meter race, running alongside Lauryn Choice, Mharei Sampson and Ese Uwedjojevwe.
Ann Arbor Skyline added to the trophy cabinet, winning the 3200 meter relay. Skyline won that race with a 9:05.75 put down by Irie Scrase, Isla Tharp, Lucia Llanes and Becca Van Lent.
In the field, Troy junior Kyleigh Peacock repeated as the long jump champion, leaping 19 feet, 1 inch.
Star Dearborn Divine Child sprinter Aubrey Wilson won another title in the 100 meter dash in Division 2, her third in three years. Wilson also won an individual title in the 200 for the second straight year.
Orchard Lake St. Mary’s 800 meter relay team of Carina Ogle, Victoria Andrzejczak, Josie Andrzejczak and Vonessa Gonzales is bringing home a state title in that event.
At the Division 3 meet, Giuliana Nastale dominated the 100 and 200 once again, repeating as champion in both of those events to cap the Erie-Mason senior’s season.
Clinton’s Ella Claus, a sophomore, won her race in the 400 to be a state champion, and Monroe St. Mary’s Catholic Central senior Olivia Beaudrie won the high jump title.
Whitmore Lake junior Kaylie Livingston won the Division 4 championship in the 1600, but the repeat champion in the 3200 did finish second in that race.
This article originally appeared on The Detroit News: Girls track: Oak Park reigns with fourth straight Division 1 title
Reporting by Andrew Graham, Special to The Detroit News / The Detroit News
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