Girls Track & Field: Pioneer edges Huron in race to the wire at SEC Championships

The Huron girls’ track and field team gave talented Pioneer a run for their money on Friday at the SEC Red Championships, but the Pioneers crossed the finish line in first place at the league finals at Temperance Bedford High School.

Pioneer finished first overall with 171 points while Huron was a close second with 163 points. Saline took third with 130.16 followed by Bedford (69), Monroe (51.5), Skyline (28.33) and Ypsilanti (14).

Huron dominated the sprints as Fatouma Conde, Mackenzie Robinson and Rachel Overgaard went one-two-three in both the 100 and 200 meters. Pioneer’s Jackie Brines was seventh in 100 meters and Pioneer’s Maya Rollins was fourth in the 200 meters.

Robinson, a senior, was second in the 400 meters for Huron with a time of 1 minute, .82 seconds. Pioneer’s Skylar Fletcher was fourth (1:02.41) and Overgaard was sixth (1:02.98) and Royce Smith seventh (1:03.05) for the River Rats.

As the races got longer, the Pioneers moved up in the results.

Pioneer freshman Rachel Forsyth won her first of two individual races when she won the 800 meters in 2:12.90. Huron’s Samantha Hastie was second (2:15.46) and Skyline’s Catrin Koselka was third (2:23.73).

Forsyth went 4:55.43 to win the 1600 meters. Hastie was second (5:04.98) and Pioneer’s Sylvia Sanok Dufallo was fourth (5:12.42).

Pioneer junior Cookie Baugh was second (11:22.24) in the 3200 meters with teammates Emily Cooper fifth (11:31.55) and Lydia Bowman seventh (11:51.32).

In the 100 hurdles, Pioneer’s Maya Rollins was first in 14.84. Huron’s Kay-Lee McSwain was second (14.87) and teammate Mya Georgiadis was fourth (15.74).

Georgiadis, a junior, won the 300 hurdles for Huron in 44.98 with McSwain finishing fourth (49.53). Pioneer’s Grace Jackel was fifth (50.65).

Huron (Jaliyah Girma-Walls, Christabelle Obi, Kaylee McSwain and Fatouma Conde) won the 4×100 relay in 49.06. Pioneer was third in 55.27 and Skyline fifth (56.41).

In the 4×200 relay, Pioneer’s team of Skylar Fletcher, Jackie Brines, Kayla Rollins and Mahawa Kaba finished first in 1:47.34. Huron was third in 1:52.51 and Skyline was fourth in 1:55.48.

In a very close 4×400 relay, Huron’s team of Samantha Hastie, Christabelle Obi, Royce Smith and Mya Georgiadis took first in 4:06.32. Pioneer’s team was second in 4:07.59.

Pioneer’s Sadie Freisthler took third in both the shot put (31-03.50) and the discus (87-02). Huron’s Mackenzie Robinson was fourth in the shot (30-05).

Newman won the high jump for Pioneer with a leap of 5-06 with Huron’s Georgiadis second (5-02) and Pioneer’s Margriet Poppens third (4-10).

Huron went one-two in the long jump with Sela Gur-Arie first (17-05.25) and Kay-Lee McSwain second (16-08). Pioneer’s Maya Rollins was fourth (16-04) and Kayla Rollins fifth (15-08).

Pioneer freshman Natalie Mello won the pole vault at 9-00. Skyline’s Natalie Kessler was fourth (8-06).