Brunette, Zahn shine for Grafton at home invitational; depth leads Port boys to title
 PORT WASHINGTON’S Sarah Carini placed second in the discus at the Black Hawk Invitational. Photo by Sam ArendtWho says team leadership has to come from seniors?
The Grafton track and field squads continued to buck the trend last Friday when they turned underclassman talent loose in their biggest home meet of the year, the Black Hawk Invitational.
Led by three individual wins apiece by sophomores Cathy Brunette and Sara Grange, the host Hawks grabbed the girls’ team title.
With junior Jason Zahn winning the shot put and discus, the Grafton boys turned in a strong second-place finish, trailing only Port Washington in the overall standings.
“I was very happy,” Hawks coach Kevin Kriegel said. “Our girls went out there to win it, and I was looking for them to do well.
“The guys don’t have enough depth, but they also did a good job.”
Brunette and Grange continued to show their versatility by excelling on the track and in the field. They helped the Grafton girls score 143 points, 11 more than runner-up Whitefish Bay, in the nine-team standings.
Port was third with 128 points, followed by Random Lake (75), West Bend East (24), Milwaukee Madison (16), Milwaukee Washington (15), St. Francis (11) and Milwaukee Marshall/Morse (10).
Brunette won both hurdles races, taking the 100-meter event in 15.33 seconds and the 300 in 50.72. She shared top honors with Grange in the high jump, where both cleared 4 feet, 10 inches.
Grange shined in the sprints, placing first in the 100 dash (12.77) and 200 dash (26.3).
The duo also joined juniors Emily Schreiner and Carrie Herian on a first-place 400 relay team (50.84).
The Hawks’ other win came from the 800 relay of Herian, Samantha Smith, Victoria Boyer and Schreiner (1:55.05).
Kriegel singled out the contributions of his sophomores, noting they have been among Grafton’s top scorers all season.
Brunette “has had a phenomenal season,” he said. “She just takes things in stride and goes out there and does a great job.”
Port nearly matched Grafton’s standouts by winning six events.
Taking first for the Pirates in individual competition were Bianca Benkley in the 1,500 run (5:05.4), Payton Greisch in the 400 dash (1:00.8), Emma Shelander in the triple jump (32-7) and Marly Trier in the discus (113-0).
 GRAFTON’S Jack Howman raced to the finish line in the 100-meter dash.
Photo by Sam ArendtPort got relay wins from the 3,200 team of Anna Bartlein, Sydney Greisch, Bonnie Allen and Kristina Rossi (10:34.47) and 1,600 team of Sydney Greisch, Rossi, Benkley and Payton Greisch (4:16.46).
“We had a pretty solid all-around performance,” Port coach Joe Adamak said. “There was some good competition.”
Other strong finishes for the Pirates included seconds by Diana Seer in the 800 run (2:32.37), Anna Pierringer in the long jump (15-4) and Sarah Carini in the discus (112-11) and thirds from Seer in the 1,500 run (5:15.33), Pierringer in the triple jump (30-10), Trier in the shot put (31-11) and the 800 relay of Julia Von Buddenbrock, Kristen Smith, Sydney Greisch and Rossi (1:57.15).
Grafton’s other top efforts included seconds by Amber Duchney in the 1,500 run (5:14.6), Katelyn Gallun in the 400 dash (1:02.77), Schreiner in the 200 dash (27.4), the 3,200 relay of Kylie Longoria, Emily Volkmann, Catherine Lundgren and Jamie Karrels (10:59.92) and the 1,600 relay of Gallun, Megan Pawlak, Smith and Herian (4:19.97).
Taking third were Karrels in the 3,200 run (12:55.82) and Boyer in the pole vault (7-6).
Schoenfeld’s jump wins pace Pirate boys
Adam Schoenfeld dominated the jumping events to lead the Port boys to their championship.
The junior took first in the high jump (a personal-best 6-0), long jump (19-11) and triple jump (41-8), helping the Pirates pile up 139 points.
Grafton was second with 103.5 points, followed by Sheboygan North (87), Whitefish Bay (78), West Bend East (63.5), Milwaukee Washington and St. Francis (both 20), Milwaukee Custer (17), Milwaukee Marshall/Morse (15), Milwaukee Madison (8) and Random Lake (7).
“We were happy with our performances,” Port boys’ coach Mark Pasten said.
“We put together a lineup I thought would give us a chance to win, and it worked out.”
The Pirates’ other firsts came from Jared Sandlin in the 1,500 run (a meet-record 4:23.74), Jason Marhal in the 3,200 run (10:28.45), the 3,200 relay of Justin Fote, Jake Verfuerth, Jared Burris and Augie Yates (8:35.95) and the 1,600 relay of Boomer Scheel, Fote, Sandlin and Joe McIlree (3:32.96).
Port also got second-place finishes from Yates in the 800 run (2:03.35), Brandon Hinneburg in the 3,200 run (10:28.61) and Zach Hauser in the discus (148-1) and thirds from Quentin Lueck in the 100 hurdles (18.05), Nathan Penkwitz in the shot put
(45-3-3/4) and the 400 relay of Mick Clarke, Marty Franzkowiak, Andrew Wood and Nathan Kitzerow (45.91).
Zahn was again the star for the Grafton boys, winning both of his specialties handily. He broke his own school record in the discus with a toss of 176-2 and took the shot put at 51-10.
Zahn’s discus victory continued an eye-opening string of performances in which he has improved his personal-best mark by 18 feet this season.
“Jason’s always refining his technique,” Kriegel said. “He also works hard in the off-season, and it’s been paying off for him.”
The Grafton boys also got first-place finishes from Marcus Hill in the 400 dash (50.49) and Justin Tomashek in the 800 run (2:03.02)
The Hawks’ other top efforts included seconds by Adam Kahmann in the 1,500 run (4:28.2), the 1,600 relay of freshmen Alex Gall, Patrick Tobianski, Zach Greenwood and Erick Huertas (3:38.93) and 3,200 relay of Stefan Lundgren, Steven Duarte,
Alex Konop and Chris Rose (8:58.53) and thirds from Rose in the 800 run (2:06.99), Zach DeBuhr in the 200 dash (23.48), Ryan Grange in the triple jump (38-9-1/2) and the 800 relay of Jack Howman, Kyle Terry, Ryan Grange and DeBuhr (1:36.02).
The 1,600 relay team set the Grafton freshman record.
Conference outdoor, regionals next
Grafton and Port participated in the North Shore Conference outdoor meet Tuesday and will begin WIAA Division 1 postseason competition at 3:30 p.m. Monday, May 23.
Grafton will host a regional meet that also includes Cedarburg, Homestead, Milwaukee King, Milwaukee Riverside, Milwaukee Marshall/Morse, Nicolet and Whitefish Bay.
Port will vie for honors at the Sheboygan North Regional along with North, Beaver Dam, Hartford, Plymouth, Sheboygan South, Slinger, West Bend East and West Bend West.
The top four finishers in each regional event will advance to the sectional level Thursday, May 26.
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