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RANDOLPH – The Randolph track and field team began its season 11:30 a.m. Tuesday at the University of South Dakota Indoor Invite and head coach Eric Brown is feeling pretty good about how his team will do this spring.
This is Brown’s fourth year steering the Cardinals’ ship and weather permitting, the program will have a meet every weekend through May 8 with hopes of a state appearance two weeks later in Omaha.
“Last year ended with a lot of promise and a strong hope for a good future,” Brown said. “We had a few returning athletes that were close to making it to state and we hope that they can reach that mark this season.”
The team returns some seniors on the girls side that could make some impact including Jacey Bartels who has grown in the discus and was a finalist at every meet last year while missing out a district finals spot by a disappointing half inch.
Her classmate Nicole Haselhorst excelled in multiple sprint events and has been at the upper end of the standings on the 100-yard hurdles. She too missed out on state by a narrow two seconds last spring.
Sophomore Stewart Umberger could also have a breakout in 2024 as his shot put performance has been strong to date. He almost threw for 40 feet as a freshman and the hope for Brown and company is that Umberger can continue to elevate his numbers with expected growth and strength as he matures.
Newcomers also offer some serious intrigue for Randolph and some may have breakout seasons after a slow burn throughout junior high.
Hunter McGhee, a freshman, will run the 100-yard dash as he finished at least in the top two of every meet of his eighth-grade campaign last spring. His classmate, Lilly Kuchta will also run in the same event as she was a regular top-five finisher at every junior high meet a year ago.
“We expect to work hard and improve every day,” Brown said. “The potential is there and we hope to not just reach, but surpass it throughout the season.”
