News and Information
- Rockin' the Regionals
Beautiful weather for racing and a fast track brought great results for KCHS at Albion on Friday, May 18th.
Alison Bosch, with a throw over two feet further than her previous personal best, qualified for states in the Discus. Kate Mclain qualified with a second place showing in both the 1600 and 3200 meter runs.
For the Boys, 2012 All-State runner Doug Hollett delivered sterling performances to become regional champion in the 1600 & 3200 meter runs with two personal records. Clayton Meldrum repeated his double championship performance from last year in the 110m and 300m hurdles, and our resident rock chucker, Cole VanOosten, earned his first berth to states with a championship throw in the Shot Put. Kyle Munson also qualified for states in the Shot Put with a big personal record.
The boys team finished third overall, in a close meet, while the Girls team finished sixth (of thirteen overall).
Results: http://kchristianrunning.com/meet_results.php?mid=75&sport=2
- The Buzz at Pennfield KVA Jamboree
Pictured: the sun says goodbye to winter behind a nice windbreak of trees. Not pictured: six gazillion mosquitoes who came to introduce us all back to summer.
The KVA Jamboree was held at Battle Creek Pennfield's track on May 14th, featuring teams from Pennfield, Olivet, Galesburg-Augusta, Schoolcraft, and KCHS.
Both the boys and girls teams represented themselves well, with the Boys team finishing third, and the Girls fourth, but the big news of the night was the mosquito hordes that arose while daylight descended.
No one was immune to the need for incessant swatting and brushing of the unrelenting hordes, and everyone would have paid dearly for a bottle of bug spray, but the meet went on.
For the Boys team, Cole VanOosten started things off right with a win in the Shot Put. Clayton Meldrum produced a decisive double in the hurdles, while Doug Hollett remains undefeated in the 1600 and 800 meter runs.
The Girls team started right off with a win in the 3200 meter relay. Allison Bosch grabbed a gold in the discus with a new PR.
A number of personal records were set at this meet, lots of results to see. You can view them here: http://kchristianrunning.com/meet_results.php?mid=85&sport=2
- Gold Medals at Gobles
Pictured: the Three Caballeros, from left to right, Clayton, Cole, and Doug.
The KCHS boys team had several athletes earning gold medals in their events at the Goble "Little Guys" Invitational ("little guys" = schools with enrollment of less than 500) on Friday, May 10th. The meet was excellent preparation for the state meet.
Clayton Meldrum scored a double win in the 100 meter High Hurdles and the 300 meter Intermediate Hurdles with dominating performances. Doug Hollett grabbed a gold to continue his unbroken streak in the 1600 meter run with a personal record time of 4:34.84 in an impressive and exciting race over 3200m state champion Sean Kelly. Cole VanOosten was again king of the rock chuckers with a win in the Shot Put.
The Boys team finished fourth overall, of sixteen teams competing.
Other athletes adding to the point pile for the boys include: the 400m Relay team of Jordan Corstange, Levi Wolthuis, Nate Neiwonder and Brennan Heidema, Nate again in the 200m Dash, Doug in the 3200m Run, Clayton in the High Jump, Cole in the Discus, and Kyle Munson and Ben Doorn in the Shot Put.
The Girls team finished seventh of sixteen, with a wide array of athletes contributing to the cause.
Starting in the first race, the girls 3200 meter relay team of Carley Ackerman, Kate McLain, Erika DeKoekkoek and Brooke Leep was in the money. The 800 meter relay team did likewise, comprised of Becca Dykstra, Hanna Wolthuis, Catherine Lilek, and Drea Youngblood. The 400 meter relay team of Tess DeJong, Tori Veldkamp, Drea Youngblood, and Erika DeKoekkoek also made medals.
Brooke Leep earned a place in the points with her run in the 800 meter Run, as did Tess DeJong in the 200 meter Dash. Kate McLain was close to the eventual winner in the 3200 meter run.
In field events, Hannah Wolthuis pulled points in the Long Jump and Shot Put, while Allison Bosch doubled also in the Discus and Shot Put.
Full results: http://kchristianrunning.com/meet_results.php?mid=84&sport=2
- PR Parade at Maple Valley
With a steady stream of clouds in attendance like white ships on a blue parade, KCHS had a great day for running at Maple Valley Vermontville on Tuesday, May 7th.
Making up for a missed meet earlier in the season, KCHS put up a good fight in the contest. Olivet was also in attendance but did not officially compete against KCHS.
With a string of seventeen Personal Records, lots of KCHS boys put on their best show, with perhaps Daniel Baljeu making the greatest improvement with a dramatic come-from-behind victory in the 3200 meter run, passing and then pulling away from all competitors on the last lap to set a new PR by seventeen seconds.
Clayton Meldrum continues his stellar season by again sweeping the Hurdle events. Doug Hollett remains undefeated in the 1600 and 800 meter runs.
The 800m Relay team (4 x 200) of Brennan Heidema, Levi Wolthuis, Nate Niewoonder, and Jordan Corstange topped Maple Valley for a win in their event.
Other point gatherers for the boys include Cole VanOosten in the Shot Put and Discus. Nate Neiwonder scored in both the 100m and 200m Dash. Kyle Munson added to our total in the Shot Put and Jacob Dedoes did likewise in the Long Jump. Clayton shook off the rust on his Fosbury Flop and snagged points in the High Jump. Levi Wolthuis merits a mention for his run in the 400m Dash, and Ted Schering, with a good fight at the finish, placed in the 800m Run with a new PR.
Results: http://kchristianrunning.com/meet_results.php?mid=76&sport=2
- Happy at Hackett
--New School Record Mark--
K-Christian posted its first KVA win in several seasons in its meet yesterday, May 7th, at Hackett's nice track facility.
Cole VanOosten continued his stellar season with a Shot Put throw of 51' 6", winning first place and setting a new school record for KHCS.
Clayton Meldrum swept the hurdle events and Doug Hollett swept the 1600 & 3200 meter runs.
Kate McLain also won the 1600 & 3200 meter runs for the girls team.
More info when we get full results
Current Results: http://kchristianrunning.com/meet_results.php?mid=72&sport=2
School Records: http://kchristianrunning.com/records.php?sport=2
- Partly Cloudy, Lot of Fun at Bangor
A nice day to race was had on May 3rd, nestled in Bangor's well-designed track facility, presided over by their giant viking on the West end of the field. Both teams did well in some very competitive contests. The boys team placed fifth, overcome by home team Bangor as well as Lawton and Division II powers Otsego and Comstock, but edging league rival Hackett (by just two points!), and also toppling Coloma and Hartford. The girls team placed sixth.
Cole VanOosten was crowned king of the rock crushers, after his Shot Put throw was measured (twice, to overcome disbelief) at 47' 11".
Doug Hollett led the entire distance and fought off contenders at the finish to take the win in the 1600m run.
Other point scorers for the boys team included Cole in the Discus, Clayton Meldrum (110m Hurdles, 300m Hurdles, and 200m Dash), and Doug in the 3200m Run. Our 400m Relay (Brennan Heidema, Jordan Corstange, Nate Neiwonder, and Ben Doorn) and 1600m Relay (Brennan Heidema, Levi Wolthuis, Doug Hollett, and Clayton Meldrum) teams also added to the total.
Kate McLain was the class of the field in the 3200m run for the girls team, winning by 100 meters.
Other news to come
Meet Pictures: http://kchristianrunning.com/meet_pictures.php?meetid=83
Results: http://kchristianrunning.com/meet_results.php?mid=83&sport=2
- Pretty Good at Parchment
--New School Record Mark--
Sunny and warm, with the breeze at your back in the home stretch, it was a great day for racing on Parchment's track on Tuesday, April 30.
The Parchment boys dominated in the sprint events and relays, but K-Christian responded with their own top performances in the distance and field events. Hard fought competition in many exciting races finally yielded a Parchment win as K-Christian couldn't compete in numbers.
Clayton Meldrum set a new school record in winning the 110 meter High Hurdles with a blistering time of 15.09. Cole VanOosten set another PR with a win in the Shot Put which K-Christian swept (taking all the points), and Doug Hollett took the 1600 (another sweep for KC) and 800 meter runs.
Others collecting points for the KC boys team were Kyle Munson (Discus & Shot Put), Ben Doorn (Shot Put & 800m Relay), Clayton (Long Jump & 400m Dash), Jordan Corstange (High Jump), Daniel Baljeu (1600m run), Mitch Westendorp (1600m run), and Levi Wothuis in the 300m Hurdles.
The girls team won their meet, with Kate McLain winning both her distance events and Jodi Stoffer winning both hurdle events.
Click for results: http://kchristianrunning.com/meet_results.php?mid=82&sport=2
School Records: http://kchristianrunning.com/records.php?sport=2
- Spring in Schoolcraft
For the first time in any recent memories, Spring gave clear signs it was going to arrive this year by carrying a sunny breeze into Schoolcraft on Friday, April 26th.
K-Christian finished fourth at the 2013 Schoolcraft Track Invitational, falling behind Constantine, Marcellus, and Lawton, but edging out Hackett by a point and a half, and also defeating Schoolcraft and Fennville.
Both the boys and girls teams made a good showing at the meet with several notable performances.
Cole VanOosten continued his good season, chucking the rock for 45' 11.5" to best the field in the Shot Put with a new Personal Record. Clayton Meldrum convincingly won the 300 meter intermediate hurdles, and Doug Hollett took the gold in the 1600 meter run with a dramatic finish.
Other point scorers include Kyle Munson (Shot Put), Levi Wolthuis (Long Jump), Jordan Corstange (High Jump), Daniel Baljeu (3200 meter run), and Ben Havenaar (110m Hurdles & 300m Hurdles).
A good-sized crowd was treated to some stellar efforts and exciting races by the wide array of athletes from the several schools.
Girls team placed second. KCHS also earned the Best Sportsmanship plaque.
Results are here: http://kchristianrunning.com/meet_results.php?mid=81&sport=2
- Wet and Wild against Constantine
Other sports were cancelled but the track teams braved the April showers to host a very competitive meet against Constantine on Tuesday afternoon, April 23rd.
After forfeiting nine points in the pole vault, KCHS played Constantine to a virtual tie, losing by only nine points.
Clayton Meldrum swept both hurdle events, the 200 meter dash, and anchored the winning 1600 meter relay team.
Doug Hollett swept the distance events, winning the 800, 1600, and 3200 meter runs.
Cole VanOosten picked up points in the Shot Put and Discus, Ben Doorn did likewise in the 100 and 200 meter dashes. Levi Wolthuis and Jordan Corstange added to the team total in the jumping events. Brennan Heidema (100m Dash), Daniel Baljeu (3200m Run), Ben Havenaar (300m Hurdles), and Ted Schering (400m Dash) all contributed to a furious accumulation of points at the end of the meet to try to catch Constantine.
The 400m, 800m and 1600m Relay teams from K-Christian also won their races.
Kate McLain won the 1600 and 3200 meter runs for the girls team.
There were many notable performances.
Every athlete who competed in those conditions showed their mettle and earned honorary membership on the KCHS swim team!
Results: http://kchristianrunning.com/meet_results.php?mid=80&sport=2
- Comstock Meet Canceled
The Comstock Invitational scheduled for April 20 was cancelled.
- Close meet at Delton
KCHS put in a great effort in a close loss to Delton yesterday, April 16th.
The boys team swept up all the points in two events, the Shot Put, and the 3200 meter run.
Cole VanOosten was a double winner in the shot and discus. Clayton Meldrum (110m Hurdles, 200m dash) also was a double winner, as was Doug Hollett (1600m run, 3200m run).
New runner, Ben Doorn, showed some speed in winning the 100m Dash. Levi Wolthuis took the 400m dash with a great come-from-behind win and leaped to third place in the Long Jump. Daniel Baljeu set a PR and grabbed second place in the 1600 meter run and also picked up points in the 3200m.
Other point gatherers were: Kyle Munson in the Shot Put, Ben Doorn in the Shot and 200 meter Dash, Freshman Jordan Corstange in the High Jump, Ted Schering in the 400 meter Dash, and Freshman Mitch Westendorp in the 3200 meter run.
Results: http://kchristianrunning.com/meet_results.php?mid=78&sport=2
- KCHS takes Third Place at Marcellus Co-ed
The combined boys and girls team of Kalamazoo Christian took the third place trophy at the Marcellus Co-Ed Invitational on Friday, April 12th.
Neither rain nor sleet nor wind nor cold would stay our athletes from their appointed events.
The meet is all relays and (almost) all co-ed. It was a rare chance to do some of the more "fun" relays like the Sprint Medley, the Distance Medley Relay, and the Freshman 400.
K-Christian took the Shot Put and Discus "Relay" events, where all the team's throws for each event are combined for a total length (133' 9" in the Shot, 353' 8" in the Discus).
The Girls Sprint Medley (400 meters, 200m, 200m, and 800m), run by Carley Ackerman, Erica Dekoekkoek, Brooke Leep, and Kate McLain, also grabbed a win with a first place time of 5:02.78.
Those who were there witnessed the drama of Clayton pulling out a come-from-behind win in their heat of the Shuttle Hurdle Relay. Other athletes set Personal Records in their events, including Cole in the Shot Put and Doug in the 800.
Full results here: http://kchristianrunning.com/meet_results.php?mid=77&sport=2
- Maple Valley Re-scheduled
The meet with Maple Valley has been resheduled to May 7.
Today is Sunday, May 19th
High Schoolers! KVA Conference Championship is in 2 days (Tuesday, May 21, 2013, 1:30 PM) Driving Directions Weather
Random Meet Pictures ...
Sprint to the finish.Photo courtesy of Jim Brouwer.
From KVA Championship on October 16, 2012