Nate Willems/FS Journalism

Free State’s Shana Teenor and Jonah Frye were not among the dozen gold-medal finishes for the Firebirds during the Coach Beardslee Invite on April 2 at Washburn Rural in Topeka, but they did contribute to the slew of other podium-worthy results for the team. Teenor and Frye are both pictured competing during the Early Bird Invitational on March 27 at Free State High School in Lawrence.

TOPEKA — Free State’s boys and girls track and field teams combined for a dozen first- and second-place finishes during Thursday’s Beardslee Invite at Washburn Rural High School.

“I think we’re showing a lot of improvement, and I’m definitely excited about what we’ve done so far,” Free State coach Jordan Rose said.

Several Free State girls continued their torrid starts to the season. Reigning state champion Sadie Reynolds placed first in discus with a throw that was just shy of 148 feet. Reynolds bested her mark from last week’s season-opener by 10.5 feet, as she zeroes in on her 151-foot state championship toss.

Also among the most promising performances, junior Jane Cast cleared 11 feet in the pole vault en route to a first-place finish. That mark improves upon Cast’s state championship meet performance by two feet, and would have been good for a top-four finish at the showcase event.

Senior Harper Graham zoomed to a first-place finish in the 300-meter hurdles. Her time of 48.30 shaved a second off last year’s state showing, where she placed 16th in the event.

Junior Parker Jones notched a first-place finish in the girls’ long jump for a second consecutive week. Her jump of 17.5 feet was a slight improvement from the season opener last week, and nearly identical to the jump that handed her a third-place podium finish at the state meet in 2025.

Junior Shana Teenor, who placed second in the 100-meter hurdles, has recorded personal-record times in consecutive weeks to open the campaign, clocking an 18.11 on Thursday and 18.19 in the opener. Teenor said she’s motivated to qualify for state after falling short in regionals last year. As a means of trying to achieve that, Teenor decided take on another sport in the winter to help enter the track campaign this spring ready to go.

“I decided to play basketball this year just to keep up with the conditioning, keep myself good for track season, and see how that would impact my running,” Teenor said of the marathon hoops season. “And I’d say that it’s done a pretty decent job.”

Also for the Free State girls, Beatrice Essman placed first in the 400-meter dash. Taylor Hulcher (1600m) and Chloe Voss (pole vault) earned runner-up finishes.

Nate Willems/FS Journalism

Free State’s Shana Teenor jumps into the air to clear a hurdle in one of her events during the Early Bird Invitational on March 27 at Free State High School in Lawrence.

The Free State boys excelled in field events on Thursday. Junior James Kahungunra notched a personal record in the shot put with a throw of more than 48 feet, securing a second-place finish.

“We’re a pretty young squad, but we also have a lot of returners in the field events,” Rose said, while also lauding Kahungunra for his strong showing.

Sophomore Nathan Huerter finished second in the high jump, while Hudson Andrew placed third in the javelin throw. Andrew’s throw surpassed 171 feet, besting his result from last year’s state championship meet by 10 feet.

Senior Jonah Frye notched Free State’s top finish among individual sprinters, placing third in the 3200-meter run. Harrison Leiszler darted to a fourth-place finish in the 200-meter dash, while Jasper Hansen-Terry netted fourth in the 1600-meter event.

Free State’s relay teams didn’t fare as well in its three events, placing fifth out of seven schools in all three.

But senior Julius Matthews is not terribly concerned with those results at this point in the season. According to Matthews, the relay teams are just rounding into form.

“We have a bunch of new guys and are dealing with some injuries, so the number one thing for us is to just get them on the track,” Matthews said, adding that the relay teams need to improve in the area of handoffs.

Matthews, a four-year track athlete who also plays linebacker for the Firebirds, said that he’s formed a tight-knit bond with his teammates who play both sports.

I’ve grown with a lot of these guys,” he said. “Not just physically, but emotionally.”

Nate Willems/FS Journalism

Free State’s Jonah Frye maintains a sizable lead over a Shawnee Heights runner in one of the long distance races during the Early Bird Invitational on March 27 at Free State High School in Lawrence.

Free State top finishers

Boys

200 meter
Harrison Leiszler, fourth place, 23.65

800 meter
Jasper Hansen-Terry, fifth place, 2:03.26
Nicholas Johnson, sixth place, 2:04.38

1600 meter
Jasper Hansen-Terry, fourth place, 4:29.63

3200 meter
Jonah Frye, third place, 10:00.63

Discus throw
James Kahungunra, fourth place, 122 feet, 4 inches

High jump
Nathan Huerter, second place, 6 feet, 2 inches

Javelin throw
Hudson Andrew, third place, 171 feet, 1 inch

Long jump
Toby Kwan, seventh place, 19 feet, 5 inches

Shot put
James Kahungunra, second place, 48 feet, three inches

Girls

100 meter
Parker Jones, third place, 12.89
Beatrice Essman, fifth place, 13.18

400 meter
Beatrice Essman, first place, 1:01.01
Aiyanna Moss, third place, 1:01.75

800 meter
Maddy Whitney, fifth place, 2:30.78
Amelia Brewer, sixth place, 2:35.07

1600 meter
Taylor Hulcher, second place, 5:23.24

100-meter hurdles
Shana Teenor, second place, 18.11
Kyla Jean Meikle, fourth place, 18.76

300-meter hurdles
Harper Graham, first place, 48.30
Peyton Moore, third place, 49.99
Shana Teenor, fourth place, 51.91

Discus throw
Sadie Reynolds, first place, 147 feet, 9 inches

Javelin throw
Harper Graham, sixth place, 100 feet, 7 inches

Long jump
Parker Jones, first place, 17 feet, 7.5 inches

Pole vault
Jane Cast, first place, 11 feet
Chloe Voss, second place, 10 feet
Vivenne Pro, third place, 9 feet

Triple jump
Chloe Voss, third place, 33 feet, 3 inches
Marygrace Bradford, fifth place, 31 feet, 3.5 inches

4×100-meter relay
Sydney Brozik, Aiyanna Moss, Beatrice Essman, Parker Jones, second place, 50.69

4×400-meter relay
Taylor Hulcher, Peyton Moore, Beatrice Essman, Aiyanna Moss, second place, 4:11.65

4×800-meter relay
Grace Christline, Aleia Kemp, Katherine Stancil, Mady Whitney, third place, 10:53.04