The Oxford Varsity Boys and Girls Track team faired very well at the Division I MHSAA Regional Meet on Friday at Holly High. Only teams that finished in the top two of each event would qualify for the MHSAA State Finals on Saturday, June 4 at Rockford. Nine Wildcats qualified for the state finals.
Girl’s Results
In their quest to qualify for state finals, the girl’s 800M-relay team (sophomores Tiara Tatarczuk and Ashlee Eller, freshman Jacqui Sylva, and senior Deann Kujawa) not only placed first in the race, but also set a new school record. The old record was set at 1 min47.7secs, and the team finished at 1min47.3secs. The 400M-relay team (Jacqui Sylva, freshman Lauren Curtis, Deann Kujawa, and senior Krysten Sylva) qualified by placing second in the meet with a time of 51.1 seconds. Senior Kacey Cookingham set two personal records in both the shot put and the discus and placed second in both, sealing her State Meet berth. Cookingham threw 36?8.25? in the shot put, and 114?1? in the discus.
Boy’s Results
Senior Vince Belistsos is one step closer to proving he is the top thrower in the state. Ranked Top 5 in Michigan in both the shot put and the discus, Belistsos took first in the shot with a throw of 55?1? and second in the discus at 148?1.? Head coach Andrew McDonald feels Vince Belistsos has a great chance to take it all at states. ‘There is not a thrower in the state that is better,? stated McDonald. One factor going for Belitsos: Intimidation. Standing at 6?5? and weighing 260lbs., any competitor stepping into the pit to throw against him would have a hard time overlooking him, literally. Oxford’s current school record in the shot put was set back on 1968 by Mike Lantry with a throw of 60 feet, according to McDonald. The Oxford Discus record is currently held by George Belistsos, Vince’s older brother. George set the record in 2002 with a throw of 167?4.?
Sophomore Nick Collier will be heading to states as well. Collier placed third in the 100M-dash with a time of 11.1 seconds; however, his finishing time beat the state time requirement and was granted entry to the state meet as an additional qualifier.
This week will prove to be a busy one. The Oxford Track team will host the Flint Metro League Meet Wednesday and then, with one day rest, head to the Oakland County Meet at Milford on Friday. Then, Coach McDonald will head back to Milford Saturday for the Freshman Oakland County Meet.