Fatima’s track and field teams battled through 20 mph winds and delivered a series of strong performances, highlighted by multiple first-place finishes and a record-breaking night from Drew Riegel at the Owensville Relays on Friday.

Coach Marc Bridges noted the significance of the moment and the work behind it. “Drew has worked really hard, and it’s great to see him succeed,” said Bridges.

Riegel cleared 15’0.25” to break his own school record in the pole vault, and won the javelin with a throw of 43.40 meters.

Fatima boys’ team placed fourth with 108 points, powered by a strong showing in distance events and relays. Zach Kloeppel won the 800m run in 2:04.77, while Michael Gabelsberger led a one-two finish in the 1600m with a winning time of 4:55.45, followed closely by Brady Horton (4:56.87).

The 3200 relay squad of Gabelsberger, Wyatt Dake, Horton, and Kloeppel combined for a first-place finish in 8:41.92. The Comets also captured gold in the 4x400 relay behind Zack Eisterhold, Grant Wilbers, Kloeppel, and Trace Walters (3:36.59).

In the field events, Wilbers placed second in the javelin (41.92m), and in the pole vault, Caden Rosentreter was second (3.50m), and Henry Storm took fourth (3.50m).

Additional scoring performances included Trenton Orscheln’s second-place finish in the 3200m (11:35.96), as Wilbers earned second place in the javelin (41.92m), fifth in the 110m hurdles (18.76), and sixth in the 300m hurdles (44.82), while Beau Haven claimed fifth in the high jump (1.70m).

On the girls’ side, Fatima placed fifth with 81.5 points, fueled by a dominant effort in the relays.

Alex Berhorst, Avery Berhorst, Addy Bower, and Brie Massman claimed first place in the 4x800 relay in a time of 10:41.65. The 4x100 team of Karly Bock, Alex Berhorst, Sadi Lehmen, and Maggie Peters took second (53.91), while the 4x200 group of Bock, Alex Berhorst, Lehmen, and Avery Berhorst finished second (1:57.42), and the 4x400 relay team of Alex Berhorst, Avery Berhorst, Bower, and Massman also placed second (4:21.20).

Individually, Massman led the distance runners with a second-place finish in the 800m (2:28.93), while Melissa Verslues added a fourth-place finish in the same event (2:41.78). In the 400m, Avery Berhorst placed fourth (1:06.87), and Bower followed in fifth place (1:06.91).

In the field events, Bower placed second in the high jump (1.40m), Peters was second in the pole vault (2.85m), and Melanie Troesser took fifth (1.35m).

Bridges pointed to the teams’ resilience despite the conditions and highlighted the overall effort across both squads. “Despite a steady wind, we had several strong performances, and a couple personal bests,” he said.