Laramie Finishes First And Second At State Track

Thanks to two more event victories the Laramie Plainsmen stood atop the podium as a team champions Saturday at the state track championships in Casper.

Laramie rode the strength of their mid-distance and distance runners, plus depth in the jumping events to their first team state title since 1996. It’s just the third outdoor track championship in school history.

The Plainsmen scored 122 points over the three-day meet. They won five total events and scored points in 12 of the 18 events total.

Senior Albert Steiner defended his crown in the 1600-meters Saturday with a winning time of 4:23.41. His margin of victory was nearly four seconds. Steiner won three individual events and anchored a winning relay over the three days.

Senior Tyler Dahl finally captured his individual event title with a victory in the 400-meters Saturday. Dahl topped the field in 50.19 seconds. It’s his first state championship.

The LHS boys also added a third place from senior Philip Henry in the 1600-meters (4:27.33). There was a fourth place from junior Jason Upton in the 300-meter hurdles (41.02) and a fourth place from the 4x400 meter relay team (3:28.36). The final points came from junior Derk Lyford, who took seventh in the 1600-meters (4:32.47).

After they surged into contention Friday, the Laramie Lady Plainsmen nearly made it a sweep for Laramie track at state. The Lady Plainsmen came in second as a team with 101 points.

The LHS girls led quite a bit of Saturday until Cheyenne Central used top two finishes in the 400-meters and 1600-meters, plus some depth, and the Indians pulled out the team title with 210 points.

Sophomore Emmy Johnson was the star on Saturday with two individual wins. She won the 100-meter dash in 13.03 seconds. Johnson added a second crown in the 300-meter hurdles. Her time was 46.54 seconds. These are the first two individual state titles of her career.

Also Saturday, the Lady Plainsmen picked up points from junior Ketisa Akambasi and freshman Taylor Gardner, who finished third and fourth in the 100-meter hurdles. Akambasi was timed in 16.85 seconds, while Gardner came in at 16.90 seconds. Senior Kyra Wulff placed sixth in the 100-meters in 13.47 seconds. Sophomore Abigail Whitman took third in the 1600-meters in 5:13.70. It was her third top-four finish in an individual event at state track. The Lady Plainsmen placed second in the 4x400 meter relay in 4:05.29, less than two seconds behind Sheridan.

This marked the best finish by the Laramie girls since they were runner-up in 2012. The LHS ladies have never won an outdoor track state championship.