By Justin Sokeland
WBIW.com
BEDFORD – Throwing a weight great distance requires physical strength and proper technique. That’s obvious. But the real secret is not the circumference of the biceps. It’s the energy generated in the six inches between the ears.
Bedford North Lawrence strongman Tripp Stahl engaged his brawn and brain while winning two events with personal-best launches, powering the Stars to wins over Barr-Reeve, Mitchell and Orleans in the season-opening meet on Thursday night.
The Stars won nine events while totaling 93 points in the boys meet, conquering the Vikings (59), Bulldogs (50) and Bluejackets (36). In the girls meet, BNL won with 69 points, topping Orleans (62.5), Mitchell (55) and Barr-Reeve (46.5) during a successful debut.
Stahl exploded out of the gate, taking the blue ribbon in the discus (147-5) and shot put (53-0).
“All of it, 100 percent of it, is mental,” Stahl said. “If you come into the ring with the wrong mindset, it’s not going to go anywhere. You have to have a clear head space. It’s just technique. I’ve been doing stuff all year. I’m ready to win it all.”
Luke Morris was also a double winner in individual events for the Stars. He soared over the high hurdles to win that tough race in 16.00 seconds, then added the exhausting 300 low hurdles to his medal count in 43.00.
“I ran slower than I thought I would,” Morris said. “But it’s the first race. You have to keep on cooking.”
Other winners for BNL included Weston Holtz (2:12.63 in the 800), Eli McFarland (10:58.63 in the 3200) and Driven Axsom (10-0 in the pole vault). The Stars also won the 400 relay (46.10) and 3200 relay (9:09.10).
“I was impressed by our leaders, the ones we knew would step up,” BNL coach Brett Deckard said. “They are our top guys. For the young kids, this is a new experience for them. It’s a first meet, we will see where we are and make adjustments, change some kids around.
“I wasn’t disappointed in the performances. We need to teach them what a track meet is like, how to run it and be involved.”
Mitchell’s Gavin Robinson won the 100 meter dash in 11.88.
In the girls meet, BNL’s Paige Voigtschild rolled to victories in the 800 (2:25.68) and 1600 (5:21.75), while her sister Claire claimed the grueling 3200 (14:30.34). Avery Brown won the pole vault (8-0), and the Stars swept the top two spots in the 3200 relay (11:39.00).
“We liked the experience the newbies got,” BNL coach Jason Webb said. “They were all talking about being nervous. You don’t have to be nervous, just run. They did pretty well with that. Now they don’t have to be nervous any more.
”We’re trying to figure out where we can put the best pieces before the sectional and conference. We saw some of that.”
Orleans speedster Haylee Dille was a triple winner in the 100 (13.65), 300 hurdles (51.06) and long jump (17-5). Mitchell’s Kaylynn Kohlhaas won the shot put (32-3 3/4) and discus (86-9).
BNL will compete at Seymour on April 9.
