OMAHA — The 2024 State Track meet was held at Burke Stadium in Omaha for Class C and D on Friday and Saturday, May 17, and 18. Osmond had three senior boys in the competition. By the end of the meet, the Tigers had a state champion.
Xander Brown came into the meet with the best distance in the discus from all district meets. As the competi- tion moved to the third flight, Xander was the first thrower in the flight. His first attempt measured 152 ft., 2 in. and put him in first place. His second attempt was longer at 156 ft., 6 in., followed by a foul.
In the finals, Alex Morner of Mc Cool Junction moved closer to Xander’s mark on his second throw, with a distance of 156 ft., 4 in. During the third and final throws, no one was able to outdistance Xander’s mark, though there was a delay of 20 minutes as one competitor needed to run a leg of the 400-relay.
On Xander's final throw he hit his best ever toss of 163 ft., 3 in. That winning distance was also 10th in the All-Class Gold Medal chart.
Earlier in the day, Hunter Buchanan competed in the long jump. Hunter got off to a good start with a 19-ft., 4-in.
mark on his first attempt, followed by a leap of 20 ft., 2 in. His third jump measured 20 ft., 2.5 in., which put him in second place moving into the second flight. He was looking good for the finals until halfway through the last flight. His distance finished in 13th place.
The winner was William Kulhanek of Overton with a mark of 22 ft., 3.5 in.; Spencer Hille of Plainview was second with a mark of 22 ft., 1.5 in.
On Friday afternoon, Dominic True competed in the 3,200 meters. It was a very warm afternoon, but Dominic ran tough with the lead pack for the first 1,600 meters.
As the race went on, runners were passing and changing positions and on the final strait, Dominic put on a furious kick, catching Marcus Hernandez of Bertrand who just held on to 10th place.
Dominic’s 11th place time, his best ever, was 10:50.90 and Hernandez ran 10:50.83. Carson Trompke of Cambridge won the race in 9:57.21.
On Saturday afternoon, Dominic ran the 1,600 meters, and again on a warm and windy day. He got out well and positioned himself in the middle and ran a quick first lap.
The group thinned out and Dominic slipped back, finishing in 19th place.
His time was 4:58.67, his second fastest time ever. Carson Trompke of Cambridge also won the 1,600 meters in a time of 4:29.77.
In the Class D team race, Osmond finished tied for 23rd place with 10 points. Axtel and McCool Junction tied for first place with 56 points each.
“We had a very good state meet with all three boys maxing out on their opportunities,” complimented Coach Joe Ortmeier. “Special congratulations to Xander on a great accomplishment. Reaching that most special goal of a state champion is a dream come true!”
