Lansing outdoor track & field finds early-season success

The outdoor track and field season is only a few meets in, and the Tompkins County teams have all gotten off on the right foot. The likes of Ithaca and Newfield have gotten off to particularly great starts, and so has Lansing.

The Bobcats got things underway at home on April 10 in dominant fashion, where both the boys and girls teams eased by Thomas A. Edison and Elmira-Notre Dame. Their second meet of the season on April 15 at Trumansburg provided more challenges, but they still came away with great results. The boys team went 3-1, while the girls team finished 2-1-1.

The girls team has a new look this season. Zach Bovee is the Bobcats’ new head coach after Becca Lovenheim left to take over both outdoor track teams at Ithaca High School. Bovee did track all throughout high school, so it only made sense for him to pursue coaching the sport.

“I went to school for physical education,” Bovee said. “I’ve always wanted to coach track and field—especially at a varsity level—because that was my main sport and favorite sport. I’ve taken classes on track and field while going to college. Then the position opened up and so I did everything I could to make sure that I could get into it.”

Bovee joins an experienced coaching staff with Matt Scheffler once again manning the boys team alongside assistant coach Doug Smith. The two have been a big help in helping Bovee get adjusted to a program with such a proud history.

“[They’ve] given me some pointers about what they do at practice and when they do it, so I’ve been able to learn the new routine,” Bovee said. “I also teach the distance runners, so I’ve asked them what they’re used to from their previous coach and what they like to see from it.”

While the girls team is smaller than the boys team—25 athletes compared to an astonishing 46—there is talent aplenty throughout the roster. Kristen Johnston is arguably the top returner for the Bobcats just based off her incredible indoor season where she broke multiple school records. The junior excels in the jumping events, as has sophomore Kendyll Hathorn, who actually bested Johnston in the high jump at the meet in Trumansburg. Both athletes have certainly caught the eyes of Bovee and many others.

“[Kristen]’s getting pretty close to the school record for her jumping events,” Bovee said. “Watching her be able to go through her jumping events is great because she has such great phases going through her jumps… Kendyll just started with the high jump during [this past] indoor [season]. She is about to break five feet, so she’s also getting pretty close to the high jump record at five feet, five inches.”

One of the more versatile athletes on the girls team is Evelyn Jackson. The freshman has taken part in four events that span almost all aspects of track and field: the pole vault, the 100-meter hurdles, the 400-meter hurdles, and the triple jump.

Jackson is one of eleven freshmen on the team, and the Bobcats have struck a great balance with 12 upperclassmen. Many of their veterans have displayed strong leadership in helping the younger athletes develop their craft.

“You can tell who the seniors are because they will help run our dynamic stretches or static stretches,” Bovee said. “They help with pacing the other. The freshmen are trying to keep up with seniors and wanting to be able to do what they can do.”

As for the boys team, there are a lot of key contributors from the indoor squad that won the Section IV Class C/D title this past winter. Trent Thibault continues to dominate the competition in the long-distance events. The star sophomore won both the 1,600-meter and 3,200-meter runs at sectionals last season. Junior Rowan Fox had already impressed in the 110-meter hurdles, winning the event at the Trumansburg meet. Xavier Smith also has a win under his belt in the triple jump, as does reigning sectional pole vaulting champion Owen Emmick.

Both teams are looking to build off successful 2023 campaigns where they fell just short of postseason glory. The Bobcats first lost out on both IAC championships to Dryden. Then at sectionals, the boys team finished runner-up and behind winners Dryden by just five points, while the girls team placed third. Bovee is hopeful that the Bobcats can maintain their encouraging start throughout the rest of the season.

“They’ve worked very hard at practice and being able to do the workouts and also taking our rest days,” Bovee said. “ I had them set their goals at the beginning of the season. It’s more individualized for each athlete, but I think a lot of them want to be able to win IACs.”