The Jackson County Track & Field teams traveled to Maysville, KY on Saturday. They showed up and competed with strong effort, using the meet as an important early-season benchmark as the GENERALS transition into the outdoor season.
While athletes recorded several personal records, coaches noted that recent inclement weather has limited consistent training opportunities. As a result, performances reflected a team still building conditioning and race rhythm — with the primary goal of reaching peak form in May.
“There’s no cause for panic.,” Head Coach Dean Rader said. “We’re playing the long game. Weather slowed preparation, but the effort was excellent. This meet gave us a starting point and showed us exactly where we need to grow.”
Distance Events Highlight Progress
Jackson County’s distance runners continued to lead the way.
In the 3200 meters, Lillie Davidson recorded a personal record time of 15:37.04, crushing her previous by 17 seconds. For the boys, Malachi Shannon ran 11:30.50, followed closely by Jadyn Agee at 11:42.94.
The 1600 meters produced additional progress. Hunter Peters ran a personal record of 5:48.92, and Miranda Powell also recorded a personal best of 10:20.06. Brody Isaacs finished in 5:57.44, while Avery Stewart clocked 6:03.62.
In the 800 meters, MS athlete Miley Stepp (7th) turned in a personal record performance of 4:14.84, highlighting continued development within the program’s younger runners.
Sr. Jake Collett led the boys with 2:29.01, followed by Fr. Brody Isaacs at 2:47.20 and Fr Braxton Hoskins at 2:58.17, while Jr. Brooklyn Hammonds ran 2:56.91 for the girls.
Performance of the day, perhaps went to the boys' 4×8 team as they captured first place in the 4x800 meter relay with a time of 9:44.64, demonstrating strong teamwork and depth among the distance group that is poised to defend their regional title!
Sprint performance and Middle School Records
The sprint squad also showed encouraging progress.
So. Gavin Nelasco and So. Jake Jones each recorded personal records in the 55-meter dash, running 7.28 and 7.34, respectively. Jayce Dozier (8th) added another personal best performance with an 8.34.
In the 400 meters, Jayce Dozier and Heidi Brumback (6th) both posted personal record performances, while also establishing new Jackson County Middle School records with times of 1:14.19 and 1:29.49 respectively.
The boys’ 4x400 meter relay finished in 4:14.46, a performance coaches believe shows promise within that area but also highlights an event that will continue to improve as conditioning and race execution develop throughout the season.
Field Events
Continued improvement was shown as Jackson County athletes also competed well in the shot put competition:
Alicia Ohmit — 16-4.5
Alexis Ohmit — 16-2
Raylynn Davidson — 20-1.5
Chase Shearer — 25-4 (Personal Record)
Focused on the Long Game
Despite early-season challenges caused by weather interruptions, the coaching staff remains confident in the team’s direction.
“We’re not trying to be our best right now,” Rader said. “We want to be at our best in May. This meet was a launching pad for the outdoor season, and now we continue building. Best practice we've had all year. You can't duplicate what we did Saturday in the high school hallway.”
The Generals expect to learn early this week whether several performances will hold up and qualify athletes for state competition to be held in Louisville on Tuesday, March 3rd. Regardless of those outcomes, the meet provided valuable insight as the GENERALS move forward in preparation for outdoor season.
"We NEED more kids, plain and simple. This is a great opportunity that quite frankly more students should be taking advantage of."
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