EVANSVILLE — The final weekend of the high school girls track and field season is set.
A handful of athletes from Southwestern Indiana advanced from the regional at Central High School on Tuesday, May 26. The state finals will be held on Friday, June 5 at North Central High School in Indianapolis.
The top three finishers in each event advanced to state, plus any individual or relay team meeting the three-participant standard in the finals of their event.
Here are a few takeaways from the regional and a list of everyone who advanced.
North sprinter broke a record previously held by Evansville legend
De’Janay Layne had this meet circled for some time.
Part of it is the nature of the state tournament. There couldn’t be any missteps with a spot in Indianapolis on the line. The North senior also knew this group of sprinters would push her more than at any point this spring. A challenge she embraced.
The result was another milestone performance in a career full of them. Layne was a double regional champion in the 100 (11.86 seconds) and 200 (24.40), in addition to running a strong leg of the 4×400 relay to help the Huskies advance to the state finals. The winning time in the 100 was a meet record, while the 200 was only .01 seconds off the mark she set last year.
“I’ve been practicing and pushing myself as hard as I can to get to this moment,” Layne said. “I’m not surprised, but I am blessed to be able to trust the process. I just tell myself it’s me against the clock. I’m not focused on anybody else and just run my race.”
The time in the 100 is the notable achievement. The regional meet record was previously held by Alexia Smith at 12.03 seconds in 2023. The Bosse star completed her high school career as one of the top track athletes in Evansville history. Among her accolades were two individual state titles and a trio of top-five finishes her senior year.
Layne was a freshman that spring. Smith was the runner she aspired to become. The North star could join her as a two-time state champion next week in the state finals. Layne will be among the top athletes in the 100 and 200.
“She was a dog,” Layne remembers of Smith. “I saw how strong she was. I loved watching her. I knew I would get to her level and never doubted myself.”
Who won the IHSAA regional team championship?
Floyd Central won its third straight regional title by a comfortable margin. The Highlanders won four individual championships (two relays) and advanced five others to the IHSAA state championship.
Jasper was the runner-up after earning advancing spots in five events, highlighted by victories from Madelyn Knies (300 hurdles) and Katherine Woebkenberg (pole vault). The latter was a regional meet record at 12-feet, 6 inches. The previous mark was 12-01.5 by Sarah Hayhurst in 2014.
Castle advanced to state in four events, including a victory from the 4×400 relay team. Gibson Southern finished fifth with five advancing spots. Boonville was sixth with five advancing events, with senior Ava Kelley earning three of them (100, long jump, 4×100 relay).
The other individual regional champions from Southwestern Indiana were Ellie Meunier (Forest Park), Ruth Dickason (Mater Dei), Mallory Watt (Princeton), Whitney Shoup (Boonville), Leah Heldman (Mater Dei) and Jenna Herr (Memorial).
Below is every individual who advanced to the state finals.
Evansville Central Regional
Team standings: Floyd Central 95, Jasper 60, Castle 52, Corydon Central 45, Gibson Southern 43, Boonville 41, North 36, Forest Park 33, Mount Vernon 28, Mater Dei 25, New Albany 19, Memorial 18, Perry Central 14.5, Princeton 13, Borden 12, North Posey 10, Heritage Hills 7.5, Wood Memorial 7, Vincennes Rivet 6, Southridge 6, Washington 6, Reitz 6, Crawford County 5, North Harrison 5, South Knox 5, Tecumseh 4, Harrison 4, Eastern (Pekin) 3, North Knox 3, Pike Central 3, Tell City 2, Providence 2, Barr-Reeve 2.
100: De’Janay Layne (North) 11.86; Ava Kelley (Boonville) 12.07; Ayanna Starks (New Albany) 12.33
200: De’Janay Layne (North) 24.40; Aubree Adams (Corydon Central) 25.16; Ayanna Starks (New Albany) 25.38
400: Ellie Meunier (Forest Park) 57.97; Iana Tecson (North) 58.83; Brooklyn Lutz (Castle) 59.00
800: Ruth Dickason (Mater Dei) 2:15.78; Adeline Shultz (Floyd Central) 2:18.39; Emma Campbell (Floyd Central) 2:21.57
1,600: Mallory Watt (Princeton) 5:02.91; Isabella Milliner (Floyd Central) 5:11.09; Eve Vinson (Heritage Hills) 5:12.29
3,200: Noel Nifong (Floyd Central) 11:17.27; Rowen Engelbright (North Posey) 11:18.57; Maddie Graber (Southridge) 11:19.84
100 hurdles: Whitney Shoup (Boonville) 14.81; Kynlee Reeves (Gibson Southern) 15.03; Stella Hall (Mount Vernon) 15.12
300 hurdles: Madelyn Knies (Jasper) 45.92; Stella Hall (Mount Vernon) 45.97; Jackie Smith (Floyd Central) 46.01
4×100 relay: Floyd Central (Conway, Smith, Jackson, Lewis) 48.93; Castle 49.27; Boonville 49.48
4×400 relay: Castle (Cunningham, Mominee, Zaccardelli, Lutz) 4:03.13; North 4:04.91; Jasper 4:05.12
4×800 relay: Floyd Central (Campbell, Milliner, Nifong, Shultz) 9:33.03; Gibson Southern 9:50.95; Jasper 9:54.13
High jump: Leah Heldman (Mater Dei) 5-4; Riley Rarick (Borden) 5-4; Addison Luff (Boonville) 5-3; Paige Schnaus (Gibson Southern) 5-3; Emery Stroud (Crawford County) 5-3
Pole vault: Katherine Woebkenberg (Jasper) 12-6; Riley Hinson (Forest Park) 10-6; Rachel Rowan (Corydon Central) 10-3
Long jump: Aubree Adams (Corydon Central) 18-2.25; Lyla Conway (Floyd Central) 17-7; Ava Kelley (Boonville) 17-3.25
Shot put: Jenna Herr (Memorial) 38-3.50; Samantha Hulse (Jasper) 37-9; Izabell Grantz (Castle) 36-3.50
Discus: Riley Jackson (Floyd Central) 133-4; Ashlyn Hopf (Gibson Southern) 119-7; Makenna Cummings (Gibson Southern) 114-11
Kyle Sokeland is a sports reporter for the Courier & Press. Follow him on X (formerly Twitter) @kylesokeland or email at kyle.sokeland@courierpress.com.
This article originally appeared on Evansville Courier & Press: Evansville-area athletes qualify for 2026 IHSAA girls track and field state finals
Reporting by Kyle Sokeland, Evansville Courier & Press / Evansville Courier & Press
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
