by Jamie Harris
On a beautiful day and big-meet atmosphere of Morgantown’s Mylan Park, the track and field athletes of Berkeley Springs High School and Paw Paw High School represented Morgan County Schools at the Mountaineer Showcase, one of the largest and most competitive meets in West Virginia this season.
Facing elite programs from across the state and region, Morgan County athletes delivered personal bests, season bests, top‑10 finishes, and moments of grit that reflected the growing strength and unity of both programs.
Senior Shayla Tanouye of Paw Paw High School turned in one of the most impressive overall performances of the entire meet, cementing herself as one of the premier multi‑event athletes in the state.
Tanouye earned multiple top‑five finishes, including:
- Third place – 100m hurdles (16.49);
- Second place – 300m hurdles (47.74);
- Fourth place – High Jump (4’8”) and
- Fourth place – Long Jump (15’10.5”).
Her consistency across sprints, hurdles and field events powered Paw Paw to a ninth‑place team finish in the girls varsity standings and showcased the depth of talent in Morgan County.
Paw Paw also saw strong performances from:
- Joselyn Smith, who placed fifth in discus (99’5”) and ninth in shot put;
- Alexis Kidwell, competing in both shot put and discus and
- Justus Smith, representing Paw Paw on the boys side in shot put and discus.
The Berkeley Springs boys team took on deep fields in sprinting, distance, hurdles and throws, highlighted by a top‑10 finish from sophomore Landon Tausen, who placed seventh in the long jump with a mark of 18’9.5”.
Sprinters Landon Tausen, Leland Smoot and Austin Gentile competed in the 100m and 200m, each recording personal or season bests, while Smoot doubled successfully across both events.
In the middle distances:
- Cayden Swink ran personal bests in the 200m and 400m;
- Rylan Henry competed in the 400m finals;
- Joshua Lucas and Zander Clark showed endurance strength in the 800m and
- Josh Walls, Jay Nazelrod and Haven Ailor carried the Cardinal banner in the 1600m and 3200m, with Nazelrod placing 13th in the 3200m against a strong field.
In the hurdles, Bladyn Younker posted personal bests in both the 110m and 300m hurdles, while the throws crew of Chris Welker, Jaxen Landers, Ian Holmes, Landon Somers and Paw Paw’s Justus Smith competed against some of the state’s top throwers.
The Berkeley Springs girls team showcased balance across sprints, distance, relays, and field events.
On the track:
- Taylor Henry, Lilli Stevens and Ally Norcross competed in the 100m dash, all setting personal or season bests;
- Ava Michael, Lilli Stevens and Ally Norcross doubled in the 200m;
- Isabelle Bingaman delivered a personal best in the 400m;
- Reese Souders earned seventh in the 800m and ninth in the 1600m, one of the meet’s top distance efforts; and
- Bella Shoemaker placed 8th in the 3200m, battling a deep endurance field.
Berkeley Springs also impressed in relays, with top‑10 finishes in both the 4×100 (Ambrose, Willcox, Henry, Maci Michael) and 4×200 (Willcox, Bingaman, Souders, Ava Michael).
In the field events:
- Katie Risinger placed sixth in shot put;
- Maddie Close earned sixth in pole vault;
- Mykenzie Stotler, Aviona Ambrose and Paw Paw competitors added valuable experience in the throws; and
- Maci Michael contributed in hurdles and long jump.
While team scores placed Berkeley Springs 17th in boys’ varsity and 14th in girls’ varsity, the results tell only part of the story. Against powerhouse programs such as University, Washington, Greenbrier East and Bridgeport; Morgan County athletes showed poise, toughness and steady improvement.
From Shayla Tanouye’s medal‑winning day to breakthrough performances and personal bests across both schools, the Mountaineer Showcase proved that Morgan County Schools belong on the state’s biggest track and field stage.
As the postseason approaches, the experience gained at Mylan Park will serve both Berkeley Springs and Paw Paw well and the pride worn on their uniforms was evident from the first gun to the final field mark.
