Puppe scores at state despite injury, Bears, Lady Bears end track season

OMAHA - The Laurel-Concord-Coleridge track teams made the annual journey to Omaha May 19 and 20 to compete in the 2023 Nebraska High School Track and Field Championships here at Burke Stadium.

Dan Puppe came away with a medal despite suffering an injury during his last race.

He apparently suffered a hamstring injury as he went over the third hurdle in the finals of 110-meter high hurdles.

Puppe made it to the finish line but had to be assisted to the medical tent available on site at Burke Stadium.

After qualifying for the event finals with a time 14.55 seconds, he managed to cross the tape in 15.42 seconds in the finals before crashing to the track which put him in fourth place in the race.

“It was hard to watch,” LCC track coach, Shannon Benson said. “It was an awful way to end a very successful career.”

Prior to the injury, he had ran in the hurdles’ preliminary race, competed in the pole vault, the 300 hurdles and carried the baton for a leg in the Bears’ 4X100 relay team.

Puppe placed 15th in the vault with a best of 11-06 and placed 20th in the 300 hurdles in 43.80.

In the 4X100, Shane Benson, Gibson Roberts and Carter Kvols joined Puppe to circle the track in 45.85 to place 15th in the preliminaries and missed the finals.

Besides the relay, Puppe was the only Bear in the individual competition.

For the Lady Bears, they has two individuals competing in three events.

Sophomore, Tali Erwin ran in the 100-meter hurdles and jumped in the high jump.

Her best in the high jump was 5-feet-0-inches, which placed her 14th. She ran the hurdles in 19.6 seconds.

Senior Berniece McCorkindale ended her Lady Bear career in the shot put where her best throw of 34-08 placed her 20th.

Chase County won the boys’ title with 66 points with Battle Creek took second with 52. Bishop Neumann won the girls’ crown with 43 points ahead of Kearney Catholic with 40.33.

NEBRASKA CLASS C TRACK Girls Team Results:

1. Bishop Neumann 43; 2. Kearney Catholic 40.33; 2. Chase County 40.33; 4. Milford 39; 5. Superior 36; 6. Crofton30;6.NorthPlatteSt.Pat’s30;8.Shelby-Rising City 29; 9. Aquinas Catholic 28; 10. Centennial 20; 10. Battle Crk 20; 10. Cedar Catholic 20; 13. Clarkson/ Leigh 18.33; 14. Arcadia-Loup City 18; 15. Wakefield 17; 16. GACC 16; 16. Sutherland 16; 18. West Holt 15; 19. Norfolk Catholic 13; 19. Summerland 13; 19. Doniphan-Trumbull 13; 19. Hastings St. Cecilia 13; 23. Hershey 11; 24. South Loup 10; 24. Syracuse 10; 24. Thayer Central 10; 27. Elmwood-Murd 9; 28. Fillmore Central 8; 29. Louisville 7; 30. Archbishop Bergan 6; 30. Centura 6; 30. Cross County 6; 33. Malcolm 5; 33. Grand Island Central Catholic 5; 35. North Bend 4; 35. David City 4; 35. Bridgeport 4; 35. North Central 35; 39. Conestoga 3; 39.Ainsworth 3; 39. Lincoln Lutheran 3; 39. Cornerstone Christn 3; 39. Southern Vlly 3; 39. Palmyra 3; 45. Gordon-Rushville 2; 45. Oaklnd-Craig 2; 45. Baird 2; 48. Ponca 1; 48. Pender 1.

Area Individual Results: 200: 18. Faith Chistensen (CC) (p)27.18. 400: 9. Laney Kathol (CC) (p)1:00.04; 21. Lauren Bernecker (CC) (p)1:02.73.

800: 6. Kathol (CC) 2:17.83. 100H: 23. Tali Erwin (LCC) (p)19.60 4X100RELAY: 8.CedarCatholic(Christensen,Grace Reifenrath, Sophia Reifenrath, Bernecker) 51.50.

4X400 RELAY: 1. Cedar Catholic (Christensen, Bernecker, Grace Reifenrath, Kathol) 4:02.00.

4X800 RELAY: 6. Cedar Catholic (G. Reifenrath, Bernecker, Ava Noecker, Kathol) 10:06.06.

HIGH JUMP: 14. Erwin (LCC) 5-0 TRIPLE JUMP: 24. Jade Ford (H-N) 31-09.50. SHOT PUT: 11. Lexi Eickhoff 37-01. 20. Berniece McCorkindale (LCC) 34-08.

DISCUS: 21. Eickhoff 106-01. Boys Team Results:

1. Chase County 66: 2. Battle Crk 52; 3. North Platte St. Patrick’s 46; 4. Lincoln Luth 37; 5. Cedar Catholic 34; 6. Norfolk Catholic 33.5; 7. Elmwood-Murd 28; 7. Stanton 28;9.HastingsSt.Cecilia24;10.Hi-Line23;11.Perkins County 21; 12. Gordon-Rushville 16; 12. Pender 16; 14. Bishop Neumann 15; 15. Oakland-Craig 13; 15. Sutton 13; 17. Winnebago 12; 17. Tri County 12. 19. Wakefield 11; 19. Elkhorn Vlly 11; 21. Centura 10; 22. Ponca 9; 22. South Loup 9; 22. Wilber-Clatonia 9; 22. Cornerstone Christian 9; 26. Bancroft-Rosalie 8; 26. Mitchell 8; 28. West Holt 7; 28. Yutan 7; 30. David City 6; 30. Ord 6; 30. Milford 6; 30.Amherst 6; 30. Syracuse 6; 30. Kearney Catholic 6; 36. Aquinas Catholic 5; 36. Sutherland6;36.Laurel-Concord-Coleridge5;36.Ainsworth 5; 40.Alma 3; 40. Freeman 3; 40. Wisner-Pilger 3; 40. Doniphan-Trumbull 3; 44. Fillmore Central 2; 44. North Bend 2; 46. Hartington-Newcastle 1.

Area Individual Results: 400: 12. Carson Arens (CC) (p)52.47. 800: 5. Arens (CC) 1:57.99; 13. Carson Noecker 2:01.05.

1,600: 1. Noecker (CC) 4:19.35. 3,200: 1. Noecker (CC) 9:07.73. 110 HURDLES: 4. Dan Puppe (LCC) 15.42. 300 HURDLES: 20. Puppe (LCC) 43.80. 4X100RELAY: 15.Laurel-Concord-Coleridge(Puppe, Shane Benson, Gibson Roberts, Carter Kvols) 45.85.

4X400RELAY: 16.CedarCatholic(TyanBaller, Nolan Becker, Jaymison Cattau, Arens) 3:38.60.

4X800 RELAY: 1. Cedar Catholic (Matthew Loecker, Noecker, Becker, Arens) 8:16.74.