The Don Howard Invitational delivered a thrilling day of track and field action on Saturday, May 2, with Cobleskill-Richmondville dominating both the boys' and girls' competitions. The Bulldogs swept the team titles, amassing 144 points on the girls' side and 168 points for the boys, while Cooperstown's Hawkeyes earned impressive runner-up finishes with 96 points for the girls and 111 points for the boys.
The local scene was buzzing with standout performances. On the girls' side, Laurens/Milford secured third place with 55 points, followed by South Kortright in sixth (40 points), Margaretville in eighth (16 points), Cherry Valley-Springfield in ninth (12 points), and Richfield Springs/ODY rounding out the field with nine points. For the boys, Cherry Valley-Springfield claimed third with 66 points, Laurens/Milford took fifth with 41 points, and South Kortright placed seventh with 26 points.
Individual excellence shone bright as Cooperstown senior Jameson Gable was named the Male Track Athlete of the Meet, blazing to first-place finishes in the 100-meter dash, 200-meter dash, and anchoring the 400-meter relay. On the girls' side, Milford sophomore Evelyn Rhodes earned the Female Track Athlete of the Meet title after dominating the distance events, winning both the 1,500-meter and 3,200-meter runs.
Cobleskill-Richmondville's Joanna McCann and Micah Hantho also captured Track Athlete of the Meet honors. McCann soared to victory in the girls' high jump and tied for first in the long jump, while Hantho showcased his strength by winning both the discus and shot put events.
Other notable results included Julia Callahan of Holland Patent sweeping the 400-meter dash (1:04.82), 100-meter hurdles (16.95), and 400-meter hurdles (1:08.12). Rebecca Hauser of Little Falls took the 800-meter run in 2:42.79, while Evelyn Rhodes continued her stellar day with a 5:21.55 in the 1,500 and 11:20.28 in the 3,000. The Laurens/Milford girls' 1,600-meter relay team of Sierra Beecher, Katie Bellen, Courtney McCarth, and Evelyn Rhodes clocked a 4:35.21 for the win.
In field events, Joanna McCann shared the long jump title with Addison Connelly of Little Falls at 14-10.25, while Connelly also claimed the triple jump at 32-4.25. For the boys, Nathaniel Lawrence of Little Falls won the 110-meter hurdles (16.79), and Cooperstown's 400-meter relay team of Dylan Craig, Jameson Gable, Marco Spinosa, and Theo Spinosa took first in 45.12. The high jump saw a tie between Clayton VanPatten of Cherry Valley-Springfield and Brody Murdock of Cooperstown at 5-2.