By Jason Wesseldyk
Sports Editor
It came down to the final event.
And the Allegan boys track and field team delivered.
The Tigers capped a strong night by winning the 1,600-meter relay to secure a narrow victory over Bridgman, completing a sweep of their tri-meet Wednesday, April 22. Allegan also defeated Holland Black River in both the boys and girls competitions.
“It was a great night of racing, jumping and throwing for our Allegan Tiger track stars,” Allegan coach Mike Chalupa said.
The boys edged Bridgman 67-59 and cruised past Black River 88-31, with depth and relay strength playing a key role throughout the evening.
Kellen Chalupa led the way with wins in both the 800-meter run (2:06.48) and 1,600 (4:42.11), while Thomas Sigler posted a personal-best time of 11:05.15 in the 3,200.
Allegan’s relay teams proved decisive. The 800 relay team of Bradyn Kosiorowski, Brody McDade, Nathan Martinez and John DeLaet took first in 1:41.80, while the 1,600 relay team of Chalupa, Loghan Murphy, Kosiorowski and McDade sealed the meet with a winning time of 3:44.00.
McDade added a runner-up finish in the 100 (12.16) and placed third in the 200 (24.62), while Martinez turned in a strong 400, finishing second in a personal-best 56.39. Chase Clemons also recorded a personal-best 20.46 in the 110 hurdles and added a second-place finish in the 300 hurdles (51.47).
In the field events, Hauk Henrickson placed second in both the shot put (33-4) and discus with a personal-best throw of 100-3.
On the girls side, Allegan split its meet, defeating Black River 71.6-43.4 while falling to Bridgman 74-59.
Bailee Dilley put together a standout performance, winning the 100 (13.79), 200 (28.37) and 400 (1:02.09), while also claiming the long jump with a personal-best leap of 15-4.
Jayden VandenAkker added wins in the 100 hurdles (16.05), 300 hurdles (48.38) and high jump (4-8), while Anna Billman posted a personal-best 6:35.14 in the 1,600 and took second in the 3,200 (15:02.85).
The 400 relay team of Alyxandra Falor, Nevaeh Williams, VandenAkker and Aylah Copeland also earned a first-place finish in 57.71.
Additional strong performances included Williams, who placed second in the 100 (14.37) and third in the 200 (31.32), and Odessa Barnhart, who recorded a throw of 19-4 in the shot put.
Chalupa noted multiple personal-best efforts across both teams, highlighting the continued progress of the program early in the season.
