Ram track dominates Dexter meet

DEXTER — If the first track and field meet of the spring is any indication, the Ram and Lady Ram runners could have a special season in store.

The Portales boys qualified for state in five events and placed first in nine events at the Dexter track and field competition Friday night.

As a team, the Rams finished in first place with 113 total points, followed in a distant second by Fort Sumner’s 59 points.

“Our kids really performed well,” Ram track coach Glen Johnson said. “(We’re) just really excited about them performing this well in the first meet of the year.”

The Lady Rams also had a good showing in their first meet this season, finishing in second place to Fort Sumner, but the Lady Rams had three key contributors out.

Junior Tara Johnson is out for the season after severely injuring her right knee late in basketball season, senior Jordan Roehl is visiting potential colleges and sophomore Jenna Wagner is on vacation for spring break.

The Portales girls earned four first place finishes and senior Kandace Bergsieker grabbed the girls high-point honor.

“We just put our kids in a lot of different places,” Lady Ram track coach Ruth Chavez said. “It’s our first meet, we just wanted to see where we were and what kind of shape we were in.”

Senior Tyler Anderson charged the Rams, winning three events (100 meter dash, 110 meter hurdles and the 300 meter hurdles) and leading the Rams first place finish in the 4 x 100 meter relay.

Steven Heckert won the 400 meters, while fellow junior Devon Stinson placed first in the javelin throw and senior Jacob Brady won the discus throw. The Rams also won the 800 meter relay and the medley relay.

Anderson qualified for state in the 100 meter dash, the 110 meter hurdles, the 300 meter hurdles and joined teammates Brandon McAfee, Joey Moore, and Lucas Pickart in qualifying for state in the 4 x 100 meter relay.

Brady turned in a state-qualifying discus throw and Stinson came an inch short of qualifying in the javelin throw.

“(He) should have had that extra spoonful (of cereal),” Johnson said.

The Portales girls finished just 23 points behind the first place Vixens. Bergsieker won the 100 meter dash, the 400 meter run, the long jump and led the Lady Rams to a first place finish in the 800 meter relay with junior Dallas Russell and freshmen Sarah Christensen and Megan Chambers.

“We had a lot of kids place and do well,” Chavez said. “It gave us a good start to see where we need to be.”

The Rams and Lady Rams host the Portales track meet April 3.