When Nathan VanDeventer took over the Columbus North Unified track team, he knew it had the potential to be something special.
After all, VanDeventer was a senior and one of the top performers on last year’s Bull Dog squad that won a regional title and finished fifth at state. Most of the other key performers returned this season.
“It’s really neat to be a part of something like this again,” VanDeventer said. “I knew going into the season we had most of the kids coming back from last year. We have a great group of senior leaders that really took the role this year. We knew going in our shot was to get back at state, and once you get to state, anything can happen.”
On Saturday, North won the Bedford North Lawrence Regional for the second consecutive year. Carmel won the state’s only other regional and likely will be the Bull Dogs’ top competition in Saturday’s state finals, which begin at 1 p.m. at Indiana University’s Robert C. Haugh Track and Field Complex.
North is led by Unified athletes Josh Holley, Randall Watts and Anthony Ashcroft and Unified partners Bailey Hester, Ross Gill, Matt Boldrey, Jackson Payne and Davin Greenlee.
“This group of kids, from the first day we came together, the teamwork they do is amazing,” VanDeventer said. “They’re all excited, and we’re trying to do something special. From the first day as coaches, we saw the potential in this group of kids, and now, we just have to go over there and do the best we can and let the results take care of themselves.”
North senior seeded 8th
Columbus North senior Brigham Kleinhenz, one of six Bull Dogs competing in seven events, is tied for the No. 8 seed in the pole vault going into Saturday’s 3 p.m. Boys Track and Field State Finals.
Senior Damon Hunter Jr. is 22nd in the 100 meters and 24th in the 200. Junior Sam Horak is 23rd in the 1,600, senior Drew Thompson is 26th in the 800 and senior Logan Abbott is 26th in the discus. North freshman Preston Terrell and Columbus East senior Zarrien Johnson-Bey are in a tie for 30th in the high jump.
Brown County senior Isaiah Keefauver, juniors Marino Dolph and Jackson McPheeters and senior Wyatt Wyman are 12th in the 4×800 relay. Wyman and McPheeters are 20th and 22nd in the 800; and Keefauver, junior Dale Phelps, McPheeters and Wyman are 27th in the 4×400 relay.
Jennings County junior Kayla Truesdell, who is sixth in the shot put and 10th in the discus, is the top local seed for the Girls Track and Field State Finals, which start at 3 p.m. Friday. Jennings freshman Sam Sproles is 27th in the long jump.
East sophomore Elena Stoughton is tied for 17th in the high jump, and North sophomore Sami Heathcote is tied for 20th in the pole vault. Edinburgh junior Taylor Tatlock is 22nd in the discus, and Brown County senior Vivien Crimmins is 23rd in the 100 hurdles.
Jets set for semistate
Hauser will try for its second trip to the Softball State Finals in four years when it travels to North Daviess for the semistate on Saturday.
The Class A No. 7 Jets (21-5) will play No. 8 North Central of Farmersburg (21-6) in the second semifinal at around 1 p.m. Lanesville (16-10) will meet the winner of the rain-delayed regional final between North Daviess and Wood Memorial in the opener at 11 a.m.
North Central won the 2A state title in 2015, the year Hauser won the Class A championship. The Thunderbirds dropped down to Class A the next year, and Jets beat them in the semistate semifinals before falling to eventual state champion Borden in the semistate final.
“I think when you get to this point in the season, I don’t think there’s a favorite,” Hauser coach Craig Sims said. “It’s who plays the best seven innings.”
The semistate championship will be at 7 p.m. Saturday. The winner advances to the Class A state finals, which will be at 10:30 a.m. June 9 at Purdue’s Bittinger Stadium.
East ready for regional
Columbus East will play in its first baseball regional since 1999 on Saturday at Evansville’s Bosse Field.
The Olympians (20-7) will play Castle (20-8) in the opener at 11 a.m. EST (10 a.m. CST). Franklin Central (12-15) and 4A No. 6 Jeffersonville (23-5) will follow in the second semifinal.
“It’s a one-game tournament,” East coach Jon Gratz said. “The last three games, that’s how we’ve handled it. I think our kids have done a great job of looking at it that way and not looking ahead of anybody.”
The regional championship will be at 7 p.m. EST (6 p.m. (CST). East will be trying for its first regional title since 1993.
Hauser back in regional
Hauser also broke a long baseball sectional title drought on Monday, winning its first since 2007. That’s also the last time the Jets won a regional crown.
Class A No. 2 Hauser (20-8) will take on No. 10 Shakamak (19-9) at around noon Saturday in the second semifinal at Morristown. Indianapolis Lutheran (14-10) and University (25-6) will meet in the opener at 10 a.m. The regional final will be at 7 p.m. Saturday.
“It’s a tough regional,” Hauser coach Nate Long said.
Doubles duo to compete
The Columbus East doubles team of junior Megna Chari and junior Kathryn Hodzen will play in the Individual Doubles Bedford North Regional on Saturday.
Chari and Hozden will face Evansville Memorial senior Claudia Jennings and freshman Abby Myers at 10 a.m. The winner will play the winner between Silver Creek’s Chloie Yost and Zoie Zimmerman and Vincennes Rivet’s Christina Smith and Macee Hamilton in the regional final at 2 p.m.
The winner will advance to the Individual Doubles State Tournament June 8-9 at Park Tudor. Columbus North senior Madelyn Sanders and sophomore Eva Chevalier already have qualified for the state doubles tourney.
East senior in Classic
Senior Britney Ballard, who helped lead Columbus East to a sectional girls basketball title, will play in the Hoosiers Reunion All-Star Classic Friday at Knightstown’s Hoosier Gym.
Ballard will play for the Terhune Tigers against the Hickory Huskers in the girls game, which will begin at 6 p.m. A boys game will follow at 8 p.m.
Columbus North girls coach Pat McKee will coach the Indiana All-Star girls next week. Indiana will play girls-boys doubleheaders against the Indiana Junior All-Stars beginning at 6 p.m. Wednesday at New Albany and against the Kentucky All-Stars starting at 6 p.m. June 1 at Bellarmine University in Louisville and 5 p.m. June 2 at Bankers Life Fieldhouse in Indianapolis.
