The Ballard men's track and field team turned in a strong overall performance at the Roland-Story Invitational, finishing fourth in the team standings with 81 points in a competitive 12-team field. Host Roland-Story won the meet with 142 points, followed by Denver in second and Nevada in third. Ballard's effort was highlighted by a relay victory, multiple podium finishes, and consistent scoring across nearly every event group.

The Bombers earned their lone event title in the 1600m distance medley relay, where Liam Hurst, Tate Leland, Jude Jones, and Max Davidson combined for a winning time of 3:49.919. Ballard also showed depth in the relays, placing fourth in both the 4x200m relay (1:40.214) with Blakely Carlson, Grant Fulkerson, Parker Ihle, and Dylan Kruger, and the 4x400m relay (3:39.616) with Jude Jones, Tate Leland, Declan O'Brien, and Dylan Kruger. The 4x800m relay group of Declan O'Brien, Eli North, Nash Wunder, and Drew Kruger added a seventh-place finish in 9:39.962.

In individual distance events, Ballard picked up significant points, led by Austin Vance, who placed second in the 3200m run in 10:18.770 and also finished sixth in the 800m run in 2:11.799. Max Davidson added another key performance with a third-place finish in the 1600m run in 4:45.317. Nash Wunder also contributed in the distance races, finishing 18th in the 1600m.

In the 400m dash, Jackson Hunt placed seventh in 56.958, followed closely by Drew Kruger in ninth. Ballard also picked up points in the hurdles, as Curtis Hinzman finished second in the 110m hurdles in 15.306, while Grant Fulkerson added a 13th-place finish in the 400m hurdles.

In the field events, Carter Sparks led the way with a third-place finish in the shot put at 43-03, and Tyson Pingel contributed with an 3rd-place finish in the discus at 136-02.  Bowen Benedict won the high jump with a jump of 6-01. 

The Bombers will next compete on Wednesday, May 6 at North Polk for the RRC meet beginning at 4:00 PM.

Photo Credit: Davidson Photography