Bucs end Caroline's title string at five

And while South Bayside athletes made history Friday afternoon, the North half of the conference had plenty to talk about as well by the time the Bayside Conference track and field championships had come to a close at Cambridge-South Dorchester High.

Kent Island’s boys’ team won just one event — the 4x400-meter relay — yet totaled 99 points to win its fifth conference championship in its history while ending North Caroline’s record five-year hold on the team crown (2015-19). The conference championships were canceled in 2020 because of the COVID-19 pandemic, and were not held last year because of the state championships.

“As far as the guys are concerned, that was the focus,” Kent Island head coach Justin Holland said. “They were aware of North Caroline’s long string, and that was their goal when they started out the season. That’s what they wanted to do. They all focused on that and made the sacrifices they needed to make to get the points that we needed to.”

Evan Newcomer, Alex Ransone, Will Ransone and Isayah Stewart delivered the Bucs’ lone victory, winning the 4x400 relay in 3 minutes, 32.68 seconds. But as they did during the indoor season and at the North Bayside outdoor championships, Kent Island packaged second- and third-place finishes into victory.

Stewart was second in the 800, third in the 1,600, and joined Jullian Stewart, Trey Donnelly and Rajan Turner on the runner-up 4x800 relay. The Ranson twins teamed with Newcomer and Trevor Thomas for a second place in the 4x200 relay. And Will Ransone was second in the 400.

In his final meet on his home track, Cambridge-SD senior John Condon won the 1,600 meters (4:42.18) and 800 (2:03.75), was runner-up to Synowiec in the 3,200 (10:24.47), and took second in the pole vault (10-6).

Synowiec won the 3,200 in 9:43.26, smashing the Bayside meet record of 9:52.30 set by Crisfield’s Mike Sterling in 1980.

The North Bayside had two other champions in the boys’ competition, with Colonel Richardson’s Sam Souil winning the long jump (21 feet) and North Dorchester’s Jaime Fonseca taking first in the discus (122-5).

Snow Hill’s Bratten set a new meet record in the 200 at 21.73, and won the 400 (50.60).

Ballard, who set new meet records in the girls’ 100 hurdles (14.77), the 200 (25.08), and the long jump (18-6), led Parkside to the team championship, as the Rams totaled 133½, finishing well ahead of second-place Cambridge-SD (89) and third-place Kent Island (82).

The Vikings were led by freshman Jyrah Curry, who won the 400 (1:01.84), and senior Sa’Mara Spriggs, runner-up in the triple jump (33-9 ½), third in the 300 hurdles, fourth in the long jump, freshman Le’Asia Todd, second in the long jump (16-3¼) and freshman JaMyah Pickett, runner-up in the discus (92-9).

Kent Island junior Sarah Van Ornum, who set a personal-record split on the anchor leg of the 4x800 relay, won the 1,600 (5:44.97), the 3,200 (12:45.52) and the 800 (2:30.46).

“She wasn’t feeling well so I told her to just do her best,” Holland said. “We knew the 4 by 8 (relay) would be a challenge and the open 800 would be a challenge. And the other two she was just going to try and hang in there and do the best she could.”

Van Ornum almost rallied the Bucs to victory in the 4x800, but North Caroline’s team of Lily Thornton, Lily Rupp, Amanda Snyder and Morgan Knott held on to win in a first-place photo finish, clocking a 10:52.94 to Kent Island’s 10:52.95.

North Caroline’s second championship came from senior Makayla Scharf, who took first in the shot put at 37-4.

Queen Anne’s County sophomore Kirsten Curry won the triple jump with an effort of 34-2¼, and Kent Island’s Gabby Bernhard cleared 9-6 to win the pole vault by 2 feet.