FORTVILLE — With three individual double-winners and victories in 10 of 16 events, Mt. Vernon continued its domination of the Hancock County Boys Track and Field Championships.
On Wednesday at Mt. Vernon High School, the Marauders scored 112 points and broke four meet records in winning the county title for the third straight time.
Greenfield-Central finished second with 88 points. The Cougars had five first-place finishes and one meet record.
New Palestine had one champion and finished third with 33 points. Eastern Hancock scored 11 points.
Mt. Vernon seniors Derrick Marble, George Burhenn and Tristan Trevino each won twice, individually, and added another victory as part of a relay team.
“This county is always competitive,” Mt. Vernon head coach Nick Clarkson said. “There’s really good coaching in this county and the coaches care about the kids. The athletes are similar in their demeanor, training. It’s hard, I’m impressed that we’ve pulled the three wins off just because how good the competition has been.
“We’ve been really blessed with a lot of depth this year and our studs, those three, they’re really good.”
Burhenn was named Athlete of the Meet. For the third straight year, he won both hurdles races, including a new meet record in the intermediates.
The 6-feet, 5-inch football recruit for Purdue University won the 110 high hurdles in 14.81 seconds. He was first in the 300 hurdles with a meet record time of 39.15 seconds.
“(My teammate Andres Langston) pushes me the most,” Burhenn said of Langston, who was second to Burhenn in both events. “If it wasn’t for him, I wouldn’t be getting all of these times.
“(The county meet) means a lot to me because I run against all these guys in football, basketball and track all year long. It means a lot running against our neighbors.”
Burhenn and Trevino, along with Langston and Wil Jones were part of the victorious 4×400-meter relay team (3:27.16). It’s the same quartet that finished third in last year’s state meet.
Marble set meet records in all three of his wins, individually in a sweep of the 100-meter (10.74 seconds) and 200-meter (22.38) sprints, as well as the 4×100-meter relay.
He broke the 200 record by .01, which was set a year ago by New Palestine’s Isaiah Thacker.
Marble teamed with Ren Davis, Jaden Gibson and Cameron Parsley to win the relay in a record time of 43.37 seconds.
“I felt like we had a job to do (Wednesday) and I didn’t want to let the team down,” Marble said. “I work hard every day at practice to get this done.”
Trevino, who was edged at the tape in last year’s 800-meter run, won that race along with the 1600. He clocked in at 2:00.35 in the 800 and 4:23.85 in the 1600.
Mt. Vernon added wins from Sebastian Sprague in the 400 (52.23 seconds) and Colin Strachman in the 3200 (9:42.15).
The Marauders won 10 of 11 running events, while the Cougars and Dragons won the five field events.
Greenfield-Central won four of five field events and had a fifth victory in the meet’s opening race, the 4×800 relay.
Reese Hill was the meet’s only other individual double-winner. He took home blue ribbons in both the shot put (43-feet, 11-inches) and discus (129-11).
Elliot Ryba was the other record-breaker, winning the high jump by clearing 6-feet, 8-inches.
Kirk Knecht won the long jump with a leap of 20-feet, 3 3/4 inches.
Carter Crouch, Chris Ross, Liam Brinkruff and Griffen Wheeler got the meet started with a relay win in 8:22.98.
New Palestine’s lone win came from pole vaulter Sage Halter, who cleared 14-feet.
Eastern Hancock’s top finish was a runner-up spot in the shot put. Logan Hoskins was second to Hill with a distance of 43-feet, 8-inches.
Three of the four teams, excluding Eastern Hancock, will meet again next week at the Hoosier Heritage Conference Championships, also hosted at Mt. Vernon High School. The three county schools will be joined by Pendleton Heights, Delta, New Castle, Shelbyville and Yorktown.
Marble added that the county meet was just the start of a busy month of May that, along with the conference meet, includes a competitive postseason with sectional and regional competitions, leading up to June’s state finals.
“You can’t stop now,” Marble said. “We’ve got a long way to go. We’re just getting started.”
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2023 Hancock County Boys Track and Field Championships
Team scores: Mt. Vernon 112 (10), Greenfield-Central 88 (5), New Palestine 33 (1), Eastern Hancock 11
Individual results
100-meter dash: Derrick Marble, Mt. Vernon (10.74 seconds)*
200-meter dash: Derrick Marble, Mt. Vernon (22.38 seconds)*
400-meter dash: Sebastian Sprague, Mt. Vernon (52.23 seconds)
800-meter run: Tristan Trevino, Mt. Vernon (2:00.35)
1600-meter run: Tristan Trevino, Mt. Vernon (4:23.85)
3200-meter run: Colin Strachman, Mt. Vernon (9:42.15)
110-meter hurdles: George Burhenn, Mt. Vernon (14.81 seconds)
300-meter hurdles: George Burhenn, Mt. Vernon (39.15 seconds)*
400-meter relay: Mt. Vernon — Ren Davis, Derrick Marble, Jaden Gibson, Cam Parsley (43.37)*
1600-meter relay: Mt. Vernon — George Burhenn, Wil Jones, Tristan Trevino, Andres Langston (3:27.16)
3200-meter relay: Greenfield-Central — Carter Crouch, Chris Ross, Liam Brinkruff, Griffen Wheeler (8:22.98)
Shot put: Reese Hill, Greenfield-Central (43-feet, 11-inches)
Discus: Reese Hill, Greenfield-Central (129-feet, 11-inches)
High jump: Elliot Ryba, Greenfield-Central (6-feet, 8-inches)*
Long jump: Kirk Knecht, Greenfield-Central (20-feet, 10 3/4 inches)
Pole vault: Sage Halter, New Palestine (14-feet)
* meet record
