Father McGivney Hosts Inaugural Track Meet Featuring Five School Records

GLEN CARBON — Father McGivney Catholic’s girls and boys track and field teams opened their season on a new home track Monday night, April 21, 2025, hosting Metro East Lutheran, Maryville Christian and O’Fallon First Baptist. The event marked the first official meet on the school’s newly constructed facility and it was a record-setting night for many of the Griffins' competitors at the brand new track and field facility.

Griffins' head track and field coach Jim Helton expressed enthusiasm about the milestone. “Someone pinch me ... when I asked for track/field to be an official sport in 2019, it was unfathomable we would be running and jumping on a brand new track, and throwing from venues on-site - tremendous,” he said.

The Griffins’ athletes set five school records and achieved 39 personal bests during the meet, with each winning performance establishing a new stadium record. Helton also acknowledged the school community’s support amid the recent passing of Assistant Coach Brandon Ahring.

In field events, Father McGivney Catholic crowned seven champions: Mia Range in the high jump (1.56 meters), Elli Moody in the long jump (4.26 meters), Anne Handshy in the pole vault (1.82 meters), Kiley Morgan in the shot put (7.53 meters) and discus (20.9 meters), Lily Terrell in the triple jump (8.66 meters), and Caleb Payne in the pole vault (3.12 meters). Handshy and Payne’s pole vault performances set new school records. Joey Seefeldt also set a school record in the triple jump with a distance of 11.42 meters.

Track event champions included the girls’ 4x800-meter relay team of Jane Cummins, Arabella Sumnlers, Isabella Harris and McKenzie Jones, finishing in 11:15; the boys’ 4x800 relay team of Liam Boeving, Levi Huber, Eric Rybak and Connor Schmidt in 9:45; the girls’ 4x100 relay team of Range, Caroline Rakers, Kalea Gaither and Alli Beltramea in 53.38 seconds; and the boys’ 4x100 relay team of Chris Marchetti, Lincoln Duffy, Eddie Foppe and Lyle Biermann in 47.19 seconds.

Individual track champions included Miley Badgett in the girls’ 3,200 meters (14:17), Aiden Schmidt in the boys’ 3,200 meters (11:11), Lilly Gilberson in the girls’ 100 meters (12.54 seconds), Biermann in the boys’ 100 meters (11.83 seconds), Jane Cummins in the girls’ 800 meters (2:25.6), and Liam Schmidt in the boys’ 800 meters (2:01), which was a school record.

Additional relay champions were the girls’ 4x200 relay team of Range, Rakers, Terrell and Beltramea (1:53.9) and the boys’ 4x200 relay team of Andrew Leonelli, N. Duffy, Harrison Siegel and Seefeldt (1:46.93). Winners in the 400 meters were Gaither (1:06.13) for the girls and Will Rakers (53.88) for the boys. Elena Rybak won the girls’ 1,600-meter run (4:57.11), while Gilbertson won the girls’ 200 meters (25.40 seconds) and Seefeldt took the boys’ 200 meters (24.60 seconds).

The girls’ 4x400 relay team of Beltramea, Cummins, Gaither and Rybak finished in 4:13, and the boys’ 4x400 relay team of Biermann, Range, Schmidt and T. Ahring completed the race in 3:38.39.

Father McGivney Catholic’s track and field teams are scheduled to return to competition April 25 against Edwardsville High School’s girls team and April 28 at the Madison County Small School Championships held at Edwardsville.

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