Huron - The Tiffin Columbian girls track and field team put together a gritty performance at Huron Memorial Stadium, fighting their way to a second-place team finish in the highly competitive SBC Lake Division championships. The Tornadoes racked up 109 points, trailing only division champion Bellevue, while successfully fending off strong challenges from Norwalk, Sandusky, Perkins, and Clyde.

The undisputed highlight of the meet for Columbian came in the 4x100 relay. The powerhouse quartet of Josie Kancler, Abby Lewis, Morgan Roach, and Ava Newman outpaced the field to capture an SBC championship, crossing the finish line in a blazing 52.05 seconds to secure first place.

Distance standout Carmen Lewis spearheaded the individual track events with a spectacular runner-up finish in the 3200 meters, clocking a time of 12:08.57, while also adding a fifth-place finish in the 1600 meters in 5:37.14. Teammate Maddie Kelley provided crucial depth in both grueling events, placing fourth in the 3200 meters and eighth in the 1600 meters. Meanwhile, the 4x800 relay team of Genna Cleveland, Lily Allen, Emma Musgrave, and Leah Weingart set a strong tone early by capturing third place in 10:22.85. Musgrave later returned to the track to secure fifth in the 800 meters, just ahead of Cleveland.

Caroline Newlove proved to be an absolute workhorse for the Tornadoes, scoring in four separate events. Newlove claimed third in the 400 meters in 1:01.03, fourth in both the 100 meters and 200 meters, and fifth in the 300 hurdles. She also anchored the 4x400 relay team, joining Musgrave, Sophia Miller, and Kennedy Wilhelm to finish fifth. Wilhelm added a seventh-place finish of her own in the 400 meters and helped the 4x200 relay team—alongside Kancler, Newman, and Madie Hardina—speed to a fourth-place finish. In the short hurdles, Izzy Thompson delivered key points by placing fifth in the 100 hurdles and sixth in the 300 hurdles.

Columbian’s field event athletes rose to the occasion to keep the Tornadoes high in the team standings. Tara Duffy led the charge in the throws, securing a third-place finish in the discus with a toss of 119-03 and adding a fifth-place finish in the shot put. Caroline Lewis also scored in the discus, placing eighth.

In the vertical jumps, Ava Newman soared to a third-place finish in the pole vault by clearing 9-6, while Hardina placed seventh. High jumpers Abby Lewis and Kancler cleared 4-8 and 4-4 to finish fourth and eighth, respectively. Erica Raubenolt rounded out the field scoring for Columbian, leaping 15-01.5 to take sixth place in the long jump and securing vital points to cement the Tornadoes' impressive runner-up team trophy.