Ryan Kobliska to lead 2018 boys track team

Published by admin on Tue, 05/12/2020 - 7:36am

The OHS boys track team tested the waters at the ISU indoor meet March 13 in Ames where Coach Ryan Kobliska says he saw a lot of positive things compared to where they were in the past. Bulldog participation at the meet was rather low (10 participants) as several were gone for spring break.

“The distance medley ran well that day. Jacob (Hinman) was within two seconds of his best 800 times last year. It’s encouraging to see him get a good start,” commented the Bulldog coach. Charlie Lake, Jonah Tews, Blake Gregory and Hinman made up the 1600 medley that finished in 4:00.60 at Ames.

Lucas Elsner joined Hinman, Tews and Gregory on the 4x400 relay, running a time of 3:54.44. In the 60 yard dash, Cole Gunderson finished in 7.78 and Ethan Snedden, 7.91. Cade Barnett and Cole Bennett ran times of 6:07.88 and 6:24.38 respectively in the 1600. In the shot put, Bryant Dutcher threw 36’ 8”.

When the Bulldogs open at Boone Tuesday (after presstime), Kobliska says they should be at full force albeit with a roster weighted toward the younger group. Of the 35-member roster, 8 are sophomores and 13 freshmen. The four seniors, Gregory, Gunderson Hinman and Tews have been chosen as team captains. “We feel they will set a good example and they are willing to hold their teammates accountable,” says Kobliska. “They want to put things in motion to elevate the program.”

Kobliska expects this “early bird” meet to be run like a scrimmage. Just three boys teams will be competing: Ogden, Carroll and Carroll Kuemper. “This is a chance for us to get the whole team on the track and get a better feel as to where our strengths will be. It gives us a chance to experiment, mix it up, without having to worry about the team score.”

Both the boys and girls teams will travel to Greene County (Jefferson) next Tuesday.

Looking at this year’s roster, the Bulldogs have one returning state qualifier in Gregory who competed in the 400 last year. According to the coach they have several boys successful in the middle distances and are hoping to build on the 4x400 and distance medley relay. Sophomore Garrett Buxton qualified for state in cross country last fall so the coach expects him to be very competitive in the two-mile and distance races.

Read more in the March 21 issue of The Ogden Reporter.