Oilers teams both take third at EAWR Relays
East Alton-Wood River turned in a strong showing on its home track Thursday night, with both Oilers teams finishing third overall at the annual EAWR Relays and narrowly missing second in a six-school field. Hosting Roxana, Metro East Lutheran, Mt. Olive, Marquette and Carlyle, the Oilers used relay depth, field-event points and several personal records to headline the meet.
The girls delivered some of the top performances of the night. Brooklyn Rexford posted another personal record in the long jump at 15 feet, 6 1/2 inches. The Oilers' 4x800 relay team of Eleanor Brame, Ami Parsons, Braelyn Hartkopf and Mackenzie Minner pulled away for a convincing win, cutting 40 seconds from its previous best. All four runners broke 3 minutes on their 800-meter splits, a notable milestone in the event and one of the clearest signs of the team's progress early this season.
East Alton-Wood River also picked up big field-event production from Kylah Wreath, who recorded personal records in both the shot put and discus. Wreath threw 32-3 in the shot put and 86-5 in the discus, then teamed with Averi Gilliam to earn awards in both events. The Oilers also found points in an unusual but effective sprint relay combination, as the throwing group of Murphy, Roethe, Raymer and Wreath ran the 4x100 freshman-sophomore relay, scored team points and came away with an award.
On the boys side, the Oilers stacked up runner-up finishes across the track events, taking second in the 4x100, 4x200, sprint medley, 4x800 and 1600 relay. That group included Bennett McCormick, Carson LeMond, Jasiah Brown, Lucas Heaton, LeBron Reed, Taven Wardein, Noah Willeford, Peyton Shaw and Deontre Breaziel, giving East Alton-Wood River production in nearly every relay on the schedule.
One of the meet's toughest stretches came late, when the 1600 relay group of LeBron, Noah and Noah finished second after all three ran personal-record mile times. They then came right back in the next race, the demanding 4x400 relay. Joined by Deontre Breaziel after teammates began dealing with cramps, the Oilers regrouped on the fly, battled through the final event and still placed third to secure more points and the last award of the night. It was a gritty close for a boys team that kept producing even as the meet wore on.
In the field, freshman Matthew Bush added another personal record for East Alton-Wood River, surpassing 8 meters in the shot put with a mark of 8.28 meters. Taken together, the Oilers' home meet offered a little of everything, a relay victory, multiple award finishes and a string of personal bests that helped both squads leave the EAWR Relays with third-place team finishes and plenty of momentum.
