Castle boys win SIAC track meet over Jasper, North: 'It was a great night'

EVANSVILLE, Ind. — Castle, Jasper and North waited for a spell at Central Stadium as the Southern Indiana Athletic Conference meet results were about to be announced.

Castle finally rejoiced as it won the conference title and broke into celebration as soon as Jasper was announced as the runner-up while North took third place.

There were many good things, as well as things to improve on, that happened for the Knights in their team win. For instance, prior to the team results announcement, Will Bracher participated in a very tightly contested shot put competition.

He led going into the final round with a 50-foot-1 throw, but Harrison's Zaven Sebree followed with a 51-foot shot put on his last attempt. Bracher launched a 48-footer on his last try, and the event title went to Sebree.

"It just didn't get the job done," Bracher said. "Sometimes that's just the way how sports works. (But) you can come back next week and do it again."

SIAC girls track takeaways: Jasper wins all, Bosse's Smith shines, Reitz surging

While Bracher fell short, he was a conference champion in discus throw, finishing with a distance of 136 feet.

Andrew Mangum and Trevor Monroe also swept the long distance runs for the Knights, as Mangum won for the 800- and 1,600-meter runs and Monroe won for the 3,200.

The Knights' 4x100 relay team also got third place in their event. The finish was a bit of a surprise for the team as they were projected to have a lower seeding.

For Mangum, the Knights also started off slow in the 800, 1600 and 4x800, but the slow starts in all three events helped out a lot in getting the wins.

"We've been performing pretty well as a team," Mangum said. "The distance guys are coming through. Our high jumpers both did very well. Our team tonight has been stepping up and I hope we continue this streak."

There was perhaps no bigger moment for Castle at the meet than Parker Speth breaking his own conference record in pole vault.

Speth finished with a 15-foot-8 vault, which was seven inches longer than his previous record set over a year ago.

Loud cheers broke out for the senior as he cleared the bar. Bracher called his teammate one of the best in the state. Mangum had similar words for Speth and hopes he continues putting out great performances.

"He's killing it this year," Mangum said. "He's a great teammate and always helps out a lot. Even though he's not running he's always getting us that first place from the pole vault."

For Speth, it was a night to break his own conference record.

"The weather was great and we had good conditions," he said. "I decided to just go out and do my best, have fun and we made it happen."

Castle coach Jake Bennett was glad to see two of top performers, Speth and Mangum come through in their events. Bracher and Monroe also got shout outs from their coach, as well as Declan Krogman and Trey Ward for their high jump performances.

"Overall it was a great night," Bennett said. "We put all of that together and I feel like we're in a pretty good position."

In addition to seeing Speth and Mangum come out on top in their events, Bennett called the seniors the "rocks" of the program. They both want to place as high as they can in their events at the state level.

"It's no surprise," Bennett said. "They work hard and they have the ability. They put it all together and the results show."

Courier & Press sports reporter Treasure Washington can be reached via her email, treasure.washington@courierpress.com, and on Twitter @Twashington490.

SIAC BOYS TRACK MEET

At Central Stadium

Team: Castle 119, Jasper 104, North 98, Harrison 75.5, Memorial 54, Reitz 48, Mater Dei 46, Vincennes Lincoln 35.5, Central 25, Bosse 17

Individual winners

100: Xavier Thomas (Reitz) 10.74

200: Xavier Thomas (Reitz) 21.55

400: Eli McDurmon (Mater Dei) 49.74

800: Andrew Mangum (Castle) 2:00.69

1,600: Andrew Mangum (Castle) 4:28.68

3,200: Trevor Monroe (Castle) 9:33.16

110 high hurdles: Angelo St. Louis (North) 16.28

300 hurdles: Matthew Fouts (Castle) 41.97

4x100 relay: Memorial 43.72

4x400 relay: Mater Dei 3:28.81

4x800 relay: Castle 8:30.91

High jump: Isaac Maynard (Reitz) 6-04

Pole vault: Parker Speth (Castle) 15-08*

Long jump: Bralen Bair (Jasper) 20-09

Shot put: Zaven Sebree (Harrison) 51-0

Discus: Will Bracher (Castle) 136-0

*-new meet record

This article originally appeared on Evansville Courier & Press: Castle boys win SIAC track and field meet over Jasper, North