DRAGONS TAKE 3RD; BEST REGION 6 FINISH SINCE 2013

Blue Dragon runners Titus Kiprotich (right) and Farrin Mangelson celebrate after their 2-3 finish in the men's 5,000 meters which secured a third-place Region VI team performance for Hutchinson Saturday in Pratt. (Billy Watson/Blue Dragon Sports Information)

May 4, 2024

Hutchinson CC Sports Information

PRATT – The Hutchinson Community College men's track and field team had its best Region VI Outdoor performance since 2013 when the Blue Dragons finished in third place on Saturday at Pratt's Green Athletic Complex.

The Blue Dragons amassed 107.5 points to post its best regional team finish since winning the 2013 team championship. Cloud County won the men's team title with 131 points. Barton was second with 127 points. The Blue Dragons also finished third in the Jayhawk West standings with 165 points.

Hutchinson head coach Robert Spies was named the Jayhawk West Coach of the Year.

Overall, the Blue Dragons scored points in 16 of 22 events, including 12 events on Saturday.

The Blue Dragons earned two Region 6 individual championships and three Jayhawk West championships this weekend.

Freshman Chris Johnson, the NJCAA's No. 1 pole vaulter, won the Region VI crown on Saturday clearing 15 feet 7 3/4.

Freshman David Thid won the 400-meter hurdle championship with a time of 51.39 seconds.

Sophomore Ezekiel Seamster won the Jayhawk West 200 meters with a career-best time of 20.79 seconds. That time was third in the region and is now No. 2 in Blue Dragon outdoor history.

The Blue Dragons had three regional runner-up and six other overall top-three finishes on Saturday.

Sophomore Christian Darrah got the day on the track started positively for the Blue Dragons as he finished second in the 3,000-meter steeplechase with a PR time of 9:40.66. Posting the 10th-fastest time in Blue Dragon history, Darrah made up three places to move into second over the final two laps of the race.

Freshman Ty'Rique Roland was the Region 6 runner-up in the high jump at 6-7 1/2.

The Blue Dragons secured third place in the team standings with a combined 14 points in the 5,000 meters from runner-up Titus Kiprotich (14:52.71) and third-place finish from Farrin Mangelson (15:20.57).

Freshman Leo LeGrand placed third in the 1,500 meters with a time of 3:58.27.

Other Blue Dragon placers on Saturday were:

+ The 4x100 relay team of D'Antonio Warren, Omari Smith, Trenton Bronaugh and Seamster placed fifth with a season-low time of 41.04 seconds, the ninth-fastest time in program history.

+ Seamster placed fifth in the 100-meter finals with a career-best time of 10.29 seconds, which moved him into fifth place on the Blue Dragon career charts. Warren was seventh in the 100 meters with a time of 10.58 seconds.

+ The Blue Dragon 4x400 relay team of Elisha Williams, Rickyle Telemaque, Warren and Thid placed sixth in a time of 3:15.63.

+ Christopher Brown was sixth in the shot put at 49-1. Brown was also sixth in the hammer throw at 164-5.

+ Warren placed seventh in the 200-meter finals with a time of 21.26 seconds.

+ Jayse Spencer tied for seventh in the pole vault after clearing 13-4 1/4.

+ Grady Bare placed eighth in the shot put at 44-4 1/4.

Next up for the Blue Dragons will be the NJCAA Outdoor Championships – Hutchinson has 20 qualifiers – in two weeks in Monroe, Louisiana.