By RAY BENTON
Leader sports editor
The Beebe boys track team became the 5A East Conference champions on Thursday, edging out meet host Greene County Tech by 9 ½ points 137.83 to 128.33. The Badgers qualified several events for state, with a few that Beebe coach Mark Pinkerton believes has a real shot at bringing home state titles.
“A.J. Christianson has the second best high jump in the state going into the state meet,” Pinkerton said.
Beebe’s 800-meter relay team is very strong, and three of those runners Pinkerton believes has a chance to win it all in the 800-meter race.
“Our 4x800 team really has a good chance,” Pinkerton said. “Hunter Plante, John Diaz and Jake Schlenker all have a chance to win the 800.”
Those three plus Connor Patrom make up the 4x800 team. Patrom is also on the state qualifying 4x400 team with Keishun Green, Alex Smith and Marcus Burns, though Patrom is the only one to qualify in the same individual event.
Jared Gowen will compete in the discus while William Peterson and Tripp Smith advance to state in the 300-meter hurdles.
Christianson went 6-0 in the high jump to win by two inches on Nettleton’s Justin Harris. Patrom won the 400-meter race by a tenth of a second over John Williams of Forrest City while Green finished eighth.
He finished in 51.29. Diaz won the 800 with a time of 2:06.39 while Plante and Schlenker took third and fourth.
Batesville’s Sam Scaggs was second. It was Diaz, Schlenker then Plante coming in second, third and fourth in the 1600-meter, just behind winner Danny Moss of GCT.
Allen Kirk took third and Schlenker fifth in the 3200. Tripp Smith earned the team four points in the 110-meter hurdles with a fifth-place finish while Peterson was seventh.
Brandon Lercher and Jackson Snelson took fifth and sixth in the pole vault with vaults of 11-6 and 10-6. Christianson went 40-5 for third place in the triple jump while Jesse Crisco joined Gowen in the points in the discus with a fifth-place throw. Gowen’s toss ot 134-11 was good for second place.
The qualifying Badgers will compete Thursday, May 2 at Hot Springs High School.
