Area track teams competed at the MHSAA D4 track state championships in Hudsonville Saturday.
Glen Lake senior Jacob Plamondon finished his career with an exclamation point after a six feet one inch jump to capture a state championship. It wasn't easy, as the senior got down to his third jump multiple times before winning the championship.
“I know if I didn't get over it. It was my last time,” Plamondon said. “If you told me that I would be a state champ, I don't know if I'd believe it too much ... Being a state champ is really cool, not a lot of people can say that."
Plamondon almost didn't even compete with knee discomfort.
The Glen Lake boys 4x100-relay team of Max Galla, Samuel Dykstra, Breckin Nerg and Liam Palmer took second with a time of 43.99. Glen Lake runners Hunter Kemp, Hunter Cox, Nerg and Palmer finished fifth in the 4x200-relay (1:32).
Palmer also had a day in the 200-meter sprint with a sixth-place finish (22.76).
“I came in, and my hip was hurting really bad, and I didn’t think I was going to place well, and I just focused on coming into the race and finishing strong,” Palmer said. “During the straight I felt a kick that pushed me … We were really excited to come second in 4x100 and fifth in the 4x200-relay. Something was different today because it was states.”
Glen Lake’s 4x800-relay team of Abraham Feeney, Eli Maule, Christian Feeney and Lincoln Bailey was one place from all-state honors, with a ninth-place finishing time of 8:35.
Laker junior Dominic Stein finished eighth in shot put to claim all-state honors with a throw of 46’ 0.75. Glen Lake’s Max Lammerson and Stein finished 15th and 16th in discus, respectively.
Glen Lake’s Max Galla finished seventh overall out of the prelims in the 100-meter dash, but was left out due to seeding rules. Laker junior Abraham Feeney finished 11th in the mile with a time of 4:37.
Lake Leelanau St. Mary junior Daniel Chaney left it all out on the track with a 10th place two-mile with a time of 10:18.
Leland’s 4x800-relay team of Christopher Knudsen, Holden Preneta, Hannes Graebel and Campbell Fedderman finished 13th overall to cap off an impressive season (8:38).
Grinage finishes fourth in two-mile; ninth in mile
Leland sophomore runner Sophia Grinage had herself a day in the mile and two-mile, earning all-state honors.
The sophomore ran her fastest when it mattered the most in the two-mile.
"I'm very happy with my performance because it's really hot. I earned a PR by a lot in the two-mile against really good competition and I'm grateful," Grinage said.
Grinage finished ninth in the mile with a time of 5:34 and fourth in the two-mile to claim all-state honors (11:48). Leland junior Natalie Burpee finished 22nd with a time of 13:30 to finish the season for the Comets.
Lake Leelanau St. Mary sophomore Elizabeth Grant finished 12th in shot put at the state championships with a throw of 101 feet 10 inches.
The Glen Lake girls' track team was well represented at the state championships, with the 4x100 and 4x200 relay teams finishing 12th and 13th overall. The 4x100-relay team of Hailey Braden, Lilyan Shimunek, Janai Misner and Lydia Fosmore finished in 52.39.
In the 4x200, Braden, Avery Flores, Shimunek and Misner ran a time of 1:52. The 4x400-relay team of Carmella Julian, Braden, Shimunek and Fosmore finished 20th in the last event of the state championship
