Northside boys, Columbus girls pick up wins at Columbus Relays

The Northside boys track and field team had a fourth-place finish at state in 2013, but since then has been trying to build itself back into a contender at both the region and state levels.

On Saturday in the Columbus Relays at Kinnett Stadium, the Patriots showed why they should be considered a dangerous team over the course of the final weeks of the season.

Northside won its first ever boys Columbus Relays title, outpacing Smiths Station, which won the event a year ago, by five and a half points. The Patriots were joined by the Columbus girls, who came in first over Shaw by five points.

After the victory, Patriots coach Joe Sanders said the win was big to show just how far his squad has come over the past few years.

“It’s a pretty big deal,” Sanders said. “Our guys had a final four finish at state a couple of years ago and then we had to rebuild a little bit. They’ve struggled, but this right here is a big deal for us. It should help us a lot going forward.”

Northside placed first in five events, finding the bulk of its success in the distance events. Austin Kidd won the 1600-meter run, and teams for the 4x800 relay, 4 x1600 relay and distance medley all won, as well. Alec Tanksley won the fifth event for the Patriots, the 110 hurdles.

The 4x800 team included Noah Churchwell, Tyler Askew, Kidd and Jonathan Myrthil. The 4x1600 was comprised of Christopher Schintgen, Darius Williams, Jacob Abeyta and Devil Walters. The distance medley had Churchwell, Myrthil, Jovanni Santiago and Kidd.

“We just have a great group of guys this year,” Kidd said. “Everyone is very strong. We’ve gotten some new runners, and everyone has really picked it up.”

On the girls side, Columbus, too, won five events as a team. Harper Fine took home the 1600 title, and the group that consisted of Fine, Hannah Hutchens, Hope Skypek and Brittney Sims took first in the 4x1600. Much of the rest of the success came in the field events.

Santela Sparks won the high jump for the Lady Blue Devils, Brittany Floyd won the triple jump and Tiondra Grant won the discus throw.

“We’re just happy with the way our girls have been working together,” coach Bobby Peters said. “We’ve been looking to peak at the right time. In the past, it’s felt like we have early, but right now, we feel like we’ve designed our program where our girls are starting to peak now.”

Sanders said the same about his Patriots, who are aiming for their first region title in school history, as well.

“It’s a big meet, but just another meet,” he said of Saturday’s relays. “We’re just trying to get ready for the region meet. Right now, things are looking pretty good. We’ve still got to work on some things, and we’re looking forward to trying to get our first region championship.”

This story was originally published March 19, 2016 at 7:13 PM with the headline "Northside boys, Columbus girls pick up wins at Columbus Relays."