Unified Kats (100) vs Carroll High School (83), Valparaiso High School (57) The Unified Kats made the two-hour drive up to the North Side Unified Relays in Fort Wayne on Saturday (5/4) to have the opportunity to compete against 12 other schools. Being able to compete in such a unique event is one of the highlights of our season. Teams compete against everyone but are only scored against schools in their Pods. The Kats were placed in Pod 1 with Carroll and Valparaiso High School, the three largest teams in the meet. Also, all times and distances are combined with a team or teammate, and placing is decided based on those performances. The weather stayed in the mid-70s with sunshine, making it a perfect day for some stellar performances. Let’s get into it: Shot Put The Unified Kats girls’ team of Aubreanna Fitts, Elizabeth Geiselman, Lakyn Williams, and Katie Haverkamp placed 2nd with a total distance of 61’ 2 ¾. The boys’ team of Andrew Barker, Terrion Wilson, Dakota Hildman, and Ethan Lee also placed 2nd with a total distance of 140’ 3 ¾. Notable performances in the Shot Put by Terrion Wilson 39’9, Maddie Armstrong 20’11, Elizabeth Arvay 20’, Elizabeth Geiselman 16’8, Bella Steele 19’10.5, Emerson Cooper 16’2.5, and Claire Rowe 12’1. Long Jump Dishita Sood, Ellie Neuhauser, Braedyn Booker, and MJ McColl took first in the combined Long Jump with 49’ 9 ½. Donovan Davis, Erik Carter, Claire Rowe, and Tear’Ria Coatie placed 2nd in their flight with a combined jump of 22’ 10 ¼. Notable individual performances were Danielle Gomez 10’6, Iris Harlan 5’11.5, Claire Rowe 3’9.5, and Terrion Wilson 11’. 800 Meter Combined The Kats took first place in the 800 Meter Combined race. The team of Des McDonald and Ethan Lytle had a combined time of 5:18.53. Hayden Moore and Justin Smith ran a combined time of 5:47.47. Des McDonald was just shy of his own individual meet record (2:20.63) with a time of 2:22.38 and took first for the second year in a row. It would be the pack running of Moore (2:53.44), Smith (2:54.30), and Lytle (2:56.15) that separated the other teams’ first and second runners that made the difference and started our win streak in the running events. 100 Meter Dash Combined The Kats swept the 100 Meter Dash combined team events with the teams of MJ McColl and Ryan Gilliam (27.51), Andrew Barker and Justin Smith (29.1), Maddie Armstrong and Ellie Neuhauser (33.34), Donovan Davis and Ethan Lee (34.47). Notable individual performances were from Andrew Barker who broke the meet individual 100M Record with 12.63. 400 Meter Combined The teams of Des McDonald and Andrew Guerre and Justin Smith and Mara Tackett (2:39.26) took first in their combined races. McDonald broke the individual meet record (1:02) with a time of 57.33 and with Guerre, running 1:03.30, the seniors broke the 400M Combined record (2:06.57) with a time of 2:01.3. 4X100 Meter Relays The Girls 4x100M Relay team of Katie Haverkamp, Iris Harlan, Lakyn Williams, and Taylor Belzer finished 3rd with a time of 1:28.51. The Boys 4X100M team of MJ McColl, Des McDonald, Braedyn Booker, and Andrew Barker finished 1st and broke the meet (51.49) and team record (48.74) with a time of 48.59. 4x200M Relay The team of Justin Smith, Maddie Armstrong, Macy Rakestraw, and Ellie Neuhauser placed 2nd and team best for the season with a time of 2:19.71. The 4X200M Relay is a regular event at the Northside Unified Relays but is also being piloted this year and may become the newest event in Unified Track and Field next year. Sprint Medley The Kats were less than a second off the meet record (1:52.96) with a time of 1:53.51. The team of McColl/Guerre/McDonald/Barker, in their first and last medley together took first place and broke the old team record of 1:59.60. The Unified Kats truly left their mark at the North Side Unified Relays. We are looking forward to heading to the Jim Brown Invitational in Fishers on Friday (5/10) for what looks to be the most competitive meet of the season.