Tanouye siblings lead Paw Paw Pirates at Class A Region II Track Championships
Small but mighty Pirates send four to State Meet
by Jamie Harris
The Berkeley Springs High School boys’ and girls’ track teams competed on Saturday, May 17 at the 2025 Class AA Region II Championships, held at Alumni Stadium in Keyser.
The Lady Indians delivered a strong showing, finishing fifth overall with 53 team points and earning multiple qualifications to the WVSSAC State Championships. The boys’ squad, while placing 10th with 8 points, had several personal bests and a top finish in distance and jumping events.
The standout performance of the meet came from senior Kaitlin Hagney, who soared to a regional championship and school record in the pole vault, clearing a height of 9 feet, 1 inch. Hagney’s clutch performance earned her a trip to Charleston for the state meet.
Freshman Abigail Close turned heads with a second- place finish in the 300-meter hurdles (52.08 PR), punching her ticket to states. Close also contributed to the state-qualifying 4×102.5 meter shuttle hurdle relay team, alongside teammates Delilah Rhoten, Aviona Ambrose and Maci Michael, who finished third overall with a time of 1:12.33.
Sophomore Katie Risinger also advanced to states in the shot put, taking second place with a throw of 31-10, and was not able to qualify in the discus with a fifth-place finish (92- 10). Risinger also qualified at large for the discus.
Other notable finishes included:
Aviona Ambrose, fourth in 100m hurdles (17.54 PR) and qualified at large for the 100 meter hurdles.
Delilah Rhoten, eighth in 100m hurdles (19.01)
Abigail Close, sixth in high jump (4-08)
Willow Rhoten, ninth in high jump and 7th in shot put (27-05 PR)
Maddie Close, seventh in pole vault (6-06 PR)
Maci Michael, ninth in long jump (12-11.50)
The girls 4×800 meter relay (Isabelle Bingaman, Kayleigh Coulter, Bella Shoemaker and Reese Souders) finished sixth in 11:12.85.
Though the Indians finished 10th overall on the boys’ side, several athletes turned in strong performances.
L.J. Sealey led the charge, placing fourth in the 800 meters with a time of 2:08.34, earning valuable points for the team.
Junior Josh Walls set a personal best in the 1600 meters (5:08.27) to finish 10th, and Jay Nazelrod placed ninth in the 3200 meters (11:55.09), followed by Haven Ailor in 12th (12:56.01).
Senior Shawn Bland placed sixth in the long jump with an impressive mark of 18-03.50, giving the team a spark in the field events.
Despite the team placement, the meet was filled with personal bests (PRs):
Austin Gentile – PRs in the 100m (13.24), 200m (26.77), and 400m (1:00.88)
Landon Tausen – PR in 200m (26.24)
Bladyn Younker – 110m hurdles (20.21)
Ian Holmes – PR in shot put (25-04) and discus
Robert Holmes – Senior record in shot put (24-08)
The Lady Indians will send several of their state qualifiers to the WVSSAC Class AA State Championships this Friday, May 23 and Saturday, May 24 in Charleston, where they’ll look to cap off their season with more standout performances and some state medals.
