Saugatuck girls place fourth at Division 3 State Finals

By Jason Wesseldyk
Sports Editor
KENT CITY—Novella DeGraaf spent much of Saturday, May 30, racing from one event to another.
By the end of the day, the Saugatuck junior had collected three All-State finishes, broken three school records and helped lead the Trailblazers to a fourth-place finish at the Division 3 state finals.
The Trailblazers scored 30 points to place fourth, marking just the sixth top-10 finish in program history.
Olivet won the girls title with 82 points, followed by Lansing Catholic (76) and Pewamo-Westphalia (61.5).
DeGraaf’s performance represented one of the finest individual efforts in Saugatuck track and field history.
Competing in three events throughout the day, DeGraaf earned All-State honors in each while establishing new school records across the board.
She finished runner-up in the pole vault by clearing 10 feet, 9 inches, placed third in the long jump at 17-2 and added another third-place finish in the 100-meter hurdles with a school-record time of 14.83 seconds.
Senior Alina Martinson also delivered a strong performance for the Trailblazers.
Competing out of the slower heat of the 400-meter dash, Martinson ran a personal-best time of 59.44 seconds to place fifth overall and earn All-State honors.
Martinson later helped the Trailblazers add to their point total as a member of the All-State 4×800 relay team.
The quartet of Kamryn Sixberry, Ellyse Heyser, Lyvia Curtis and Martinson placed third in 9:51.40 to earn All-State recognition and contribute six points to Saugatuck’s fourth-place team finish.
The Saugatuck boys were led by freshman Charles Robison, who earned All-State honors with a third-place finish in the 300-meter hurdles.
Robison crossed the finish line in a personal-best 39.57 seconds, establishing a new freshman school record. According to coach Rick Bauer, the mark also ranks as the third-fastest time in program history behind only former standouts Benny Diaz and current Major League Baseball player Blake Dunn.
Robison’s performance accounted for all six of Saugatuck’s team points as the Trailblazers tied for 37th place in the boys standings.
Fennville also was represented at the Division 3 state finals.
Junior Isabelle Sliter placed 21st in the 1,600-meter run with a time of 5:54.01 and finished 22nd in the 3,200-meter run in 13:20.66.
On the boys side, freshman Julian Weimer placed 15th in the long jump with a leap of 19 feet, 11.75 inches.