Lewis County’s Austin Howard hopes to make a return trip to the state meet in the 100-meter dash. (Evan Dennison, The Ledger Independent)
HIGH SCHOOL TRACK AND FIELD
Lewis County is hopeful to get more athletes to the state track and field meet this season.
After Austin Howard was the lone participant last year, coach Wes Bloomfield is optimistic more will be able to make it out of region and compete in Lexington at the end of the season.
Howard qualified in the 100 meters last year and should be a contender in the sprints in region this year.
“Austin is just a heck of an athlete,” Bloomfield said.
Bloomfield also feels senior Brianna Horsley should be strong in the 100 and 200 meters, already owning a few school records.
Distance they’ll look to junior Ethan Johnson in the 3,200 and Wesley Wilburn in the 800.
“We’re expecting big things from them this year. They’ve been working hard in the off-season and hit a bit of a growth spurt,” Bloomfield said. “Hard work and a growth spurt are going to propel them to being competitive on a weekly basis.”
From there they’ve got junior Madison Westwater and senior Kelly Armstrong in the 100 and 300-meter hurdles. Armstrong finished third in region in the hurdles last year and Westwater fourth.
”After sniffing state last year both are ready to get back at it and capitalize on a new season,” Bloomfield said.
Getting numbers up on the team is still a struggle, but with what they have currently, Bloomfield expects to see a few more competitors qualify for state.
“We’ve definitely got some solid pieces. We’re all ready to get after it this year that’s for sure,” Bloomfield said.
