On Friday, April 12, the South Loup Bobcats took their track skills to Burwell to compete in the Burwell Invitational, which featured some very strong competition. Though the Burwell Track meet tends to be a cold miserable one, it would shape up for the better with this year's weather being a nice 65-degree day with a light breeze. The invite also placed eight people per event rather than six.

During the morning competition, the Bobcats snagged some points from field events - including from Dawson Mason who picked up a 5th place medal in the pole vault, and Trey Connell who finished 7th in the long jump.

The afternoon wouldn't be quite so quiet for the Bobcats as they found themselves getting many more placers. Trey Connell and Ethan Furne started off the afternoon for the Bobcats by both qualifying for finals and placing in the 100m dash. Connor Paulson would also get a well-earned 5th place in the 200m.

The next athlete to pick up a medal was Dylan Pandorf who grabbed 4th place in the 400m to give the Bobcats their fourth athlete to place in the sprints.

Long and mid-distance runners also showcased their skills in the afternoon. In the 800m, Elijah Cool placed 5th, and Josiah Coleman finished 4th in the mile. Coleman would also place high in the 2-mile, getting 2nd place.

In the relays, South Loup also fared well. The 4x100 team of Pandorf, Paulson, Connell, and Furne placed 4th, while the 4x800 team of Cool, Coleman, Uotong Haidle, and Mason would snag 5th. The relay that many came to watch, however, would be the throwers 4x100 relay. The South Loup throwers would give it their best go and earn 7th place in the event.

The Bobcats finished in 7th place overall in the 12-team field.

On the women’s side, the Lady Bobcats came in 6th place in overall team scores on the day. Ella Cool earned the gold medal in the 3200m run and anchored the gold med-

The Lady Bobcats also had a good day in the field, where Bierman cleared the bar at 4-10 for her best jump of the season in high jump to earn the silver medal. Asa Starr finished 6th in that event.

Bryn Schwarz soared over the pole vault bar at an even 8 feet to pick up the silver medal, and Fitzgerald’s long jump of 14-05.25 was good for the bronze.

Charli Vickers finished 5th in both the 100 and 300m hurdles and Bierman turned in her best time of the season in the 800m to claim 4th place.