Cheney boy's track and field success is a matter of time

Patience.

It's the key word when it comes to the 2015 Cheney High School boys' track and field team. For second-year head coach Bobby Byrd, patience is what's needed for a team that is stronger than last year's squad, contains a mixture of experience and youth but is still overall pretty young with the potential for growth, particularly later on in the season.

Eleven seniors and four juniors lead the Blackhawks contingent of 43 athletes this spring, the rest a roughly equal mixture of sophomores and freshmen. Of those 15 upper classmen, senior Steaven Zachman is the lone returnee with state experience.

Zachman turned in a season-best time of 1 minute, 56.75 seconds to place fifth in the 800-meter dash last year in 2A competition at Tacoma's Mount Tahoma High School. Byrd said Zachman had a great fall on the cross country team, placing 10th at state, and should have a great senior season on the track in the 800, 1,600- and 3,200-meter runs.

Senior Carson Kerr joins Zachman in the distance events, which Byrd thinks should anchor the team's scoring. Brett Wyborney placed in the in the top five in District 7 competition in the shot put and discus last year, and Byrd thinks he's ready to have an even better senior campaign.

Senior Sam Schreiber was also a top-five competitor last year in the hurdles, while junior Gaige Felix has shown improvement in the sprints along with the long and triple jumps. Byrd thinks 2015 "should be his time."

When it comes to the newcomers, there's a lot to choose from for Byrd. Freshman Isaiah Rigo won a 2A state wheelchair cross country title last fall, and should be as equally competitive in those events this spring.

Freshman Payton Puyden has good speed, something Byrd said he exhibited during football season and will get a sort of baptism by fire in the sprints he'll be "going up against the big boys" in meets this spring. Sophomore Cameron Hardt possess raw, athletic abilities, and Byrd said they could likely use him just about anywhere needed.

Senior Jackson Spencer and sophomore Drake Johnson have shown abilities in the sprints and hurdles, while sophomore Houston Moezulski is showing steady improvement in the pole vault, and will likely see some sprint action as well. For Byrd, all of these components may see hit or miss success early in the season, but should grow as time goes on.

"The second half of the season is when we'll start to show what we can do," Byrd said.

Some of that is showing up in the first half as well. The Blackhawks' boys lost 86-50 to Lewis and Clark High School in a dual meet March 18, but turned in a number of first-place finishes in the process.

Zachman won both the 1,600 (4 minutes, 41 seconds) and 3,200 (10:04) while other first-place finishes on the track went to Putney in the 200-meter dash (23.25), Johnson in the 400 (54.70) along with the 4x400 meter relay team. Wyborney swept both the shot put (43 feet, 3 inches) and the discus (120-03) while Moezulski took first in the pole vault (10-00).

Last Saturday the Cheney boys tied Lakeside High School for ninth overall in the 20-team Howard Dolphin West Valley Invitational at West Valley High School. Top-five finishes went to Zachman, third in the 800 (2:01.02); Putney, fifth in the 200 and the 4x100 relay team, which also placed fifth.

John McCallum can be reached at jmac@cheneyfreepress.com.