Glen Lake showed that smaller schools can more than hold their own when going against larger track programs.

Laker track athletes posted several first-place finishes for the boys’ and girls’ teams at the Benzie Central Invitational last Thursday. The girls took third place out of nine teams, with Pine River the overall winner. The boys finished ninth.

Coaches Paul Christiansen (girls) and Pete Edwards (boys) said they were happy with the performances, especially since the Lakers were the only Division IV team at the meet. Other teams were Division III schools.

“It was an exciting meet and it’s exciting to see that in each meet we get a little better. The girls are working hard and starting to see the results,” Glen Lake girls’ coach Pete Edwards said.

Glen Lake senior Marissa Treece won three different events, the 800 (2:22.4), the 1600 (5:04.09), and the 3200 (11:29).

Abbie Christiansen took second in long jump (14' 2.5”), while teammates Treece, Victoria Pecak, Nadine Gilmer and Amber Therrien took second place in the 1600-meter relay.

Other Lakers who had strong performances included the 400-meter relay team of Christiansen, Pecak, Ashley Leach, and Anna Brown (56.4), the 800 meter relay of Christiansen, Pecak, Brown and Therrien (2:00), Brown in the pole vault (7’), Pecak in the 100 meter (14.54), and Dani Frost in the shot put (30’11”).

The Laker boys posted third-place finishes in both the 400 meter relay (47.61) and 800 meter relay (1:39.85). Teddy Butrick, James Kozacek, Wyatt Deering and Will Urquhart made up both relay teams. Urquhart, normally a field event competitor, agreed to run in place of regular relay runner Weston Buchan, a dual-sport athlete who was playing baseball for Glen Lake.

“Will came into the homestretch for the relay team with a lot of power, and he’s a big guy,” said Edwards. “We’re proud of him.”

Urquhart, a junior, finished fourth in the discus with a distance (119’ 10”).

The Laker girls also went to the Frankfort Icebreaker Invitational on Saturday, where they took fourth out of eight teams.

Treece took first in the 800, breaking her own school record of 2:21 set in 2005 with a time of 2:18.20. She also took first in the 1600 (5:02.5), and first in the 3200 (11:53.12).

Also placing in the Frankfort event were: Brown, first in the pole vault (6’6”); the 1600 meter relay team of Treece, Gilmer, Pecak, Therrien (first in 4:27.4); Christiansen, Pecak, Brown and Leach, who were third in both the 400 meter relay (55.65) and 800 meter relay (1:58.5); Pecak, third in the 100 meter (13.96); Therrien, fourth in the 400-meter (2:34); and Frost, second in the shot put (31’ 3.5”).

The Lakers were scheduled to compete at Kingsley yesterday, April 25, and at the Mesick Invitational on Saturday.