The Colony girls and boys track and field teams swept the Homer Invitational on Friday at Homer High School.

On the boys side, the Knights scored 185 points for the win, while Soldotna was runner-up at 148 and Homer was third at 108. Also from the peninsula, Seward was sixth, Kenai Central was seventh, Nikiski was eighth and Ninilchik tied for 10th.

Homer High School Head Coach Bob Ostrom said Monday that 466 athletes and 12 schools from across the state participated in the track meet, making it the biggest one-day meet in the state.

Ostrom said the steeple chase event on Friday was only the second time one has been run “since anyone can remember.” The steeple uses barriers made by Ostrom, but naturally there is no water pit in the Homer track.

He said community volunteers really “stepped up and showed that we can come together and run an efficient and exciting track meet,” and that local track meets are becoming a community event with cooperation from community members, the city, and businesses.

Johannes Bynagle led Homer to a third place overall finish with a pair of individual wins. Bynagle won the 800 in 2:04.03 and the 1,600 in 4:35.71, followed closely in second by his teammate Jai Badajos.

For the Homer boys, Tait Ostrom won the 300m hurdles and set a new personal record with a time of 45.86s.

Maxwell Herndon, Jackson Fraley, Johannes Bynagle and Jai Badajos placed second in the 400 relay and Tait Ostrom, Jude Rozeboom, Brennan Steen and Laif Rothenberger placed third in the 800 relay.

On the girls side, Homer’s Gracie Miotke had a big meet to lead the Mariners to third. Miotke won the 100 hurdles in 16.89 and the 300 hurdles in 48.41.

Miotke also anchored teammates Jaelynn Kennon, Molly Evans and Immi Im to victory in 52.03 in the 400 relay.

Coach Ostrom said Homer’s Vera Bates surprised even herself with a great time of 1:05.6 in the 400m, her first time competing at that distance.

According to Coach Ostrom, Homer throwers had a great day Friday too, with “significant new personal best throws,” and noted Brayden McClenning’s shot put of 38’7” as a big result for the day.

Homer Coach Amy Russell said Monday that Homer High School student Zoe Black competed as a Unified Track participant. Unified Sports joins people with and without intellectual disabilities on the same team. Russell said the idea was inspired by a simple principle: training together and playing together is a quick path to friendship and understanding.

Friday’s track meet was the first time Black competed. She participated in the shot put, long jump, 100 meter. All athletes ran the 4 x100 relay together. Russell said that Black is being supported this season by her team manager, Stella Dye, a former Unified athlete.

Ostrom said the Homer cheering squad that assembled for the final event, the 4x400m relay, has become an important team tradition.

“It was exciting to have our home team students join us this week.”

Homer Invitational

Friday at Homer

BOYS

Team scores: 1. Colony, 185; 2. Soldotna, 148; 3. Homer, 108; 4. Wasilla, 76; 5. Palmer, 50; 6. Seward, 49; 7. Kenai Central, 47; 8. Nikiski, 14; 9. Redington, 3; 10 (tie). Houston, Ninilchik, 2.

100 meters — 1. Tyce Escott, Sol, 11.57 seconds; 2. Ronan Bickling, Sew, 11.76; 3. Hayden Shafer, Col, 11.83; 4. Sawyer Wilhelm, Pal, 11.92; 5. Kabari Little, Col, 12.21; 6. Brendon Jones, Sol, 12.22.

100 unified — 1. Nick Bailey, Col, 13.19; 2. Garick Imperato, Col, 24.85.

200 — 1. Tyce Escott, Soll, 23.65; 2. Ronan Bickling, Sew, 24.21; 3. Sawyer Wilhelm, Pal, 24.56; 4. Hayden Shafer, Col, 24.60; 5. Triton Ellis, Col, 24.88; 6. Kaleb Boothby, Was, 25.03.

400 — 1. Ethan Anding, Sol, 53.11; 2. James Innes, Sol, 53.46; 3. Kenneth Hopkins, Col, 54.90; 4. Ronan Bickling, Sew, 55.11; 5. Kaleb Boothby, Was, 55.38; 6. Nick Bailey, Col, 55.43.

800 — 1. Johannes Bynagle, Hom, 2:04.03; 2. Jai Badajos, Hom, 2:07.80; 3. Stephen Hafen, Was, 2:10.39; 4. Ryder Maguire, Nik, 2:11.07; 5. Gabriel Carey, Was, 2:11.86; 6. Theodore Stamoolis, Col, 2:12.70.

1,600 — 1. Johannes Bynagle, Hom, 4:35.71; 2. Jai Badajos, Hom, 4:45.25; 3. Ryder Maguire, Nik, 4:56.16; 4. Caleb Bunker, Hom, 4:57.60; 5. Theodore Stamoolis, Col, 4:58.78; 6. Gabriel Black, Col, 4:59.88.

3,200 — 1. Trygve Vang-Thompson, Col, 10:48.56; 2. Ollie Dahl, Sol, 10:50.36; 3. Caleb Bunker, Hom, 10:54.80; 4. Landon Tinsley, Hom, 11:09.36; 5. Charlie Rustand, Hom, 11:09.57; 6. Benjamin Alberti, Col, 11:14.97.

110 hurdles — 1. Matthew Krol, Ken, 18.55; 2. Jaylyn Williams, Col, 20.60; 3. Delen Byrd, Ken, 20.90; 4. Haakon Erickson, Col, 21.44; 5. Torin Erickson, Col, 22.43; 6. Sebastian Brooke, Col, 23.00.

300 hurdles — 1. Tait Ostrom, Hom, 45.86; 2. Jayden Yeager, Sol, 47.40; 3. Kemuel Rodriguez, Was, 47.89; 4. Matthew Krol, Ken, 47.90; 5. Torin Erickson, Col, 48.11; 6. Hunter Gauthier, Hom, 49.04.

2,000 steeplechase — 1. Chase Laker, Ken, 6:50.62; 2. Steven Wakefield, Was, 6:59.51; 3. William Edgerton, Was, 7:00.66; 4. Parker Richards, Sol, 7:04.46; 5. Connor Rush, Col, 7:08.36; 6. Charles Thiede, Pal, 7:11.41.

400 relay — 1. Palmer (Denoncour, Gerkin, Asay, Wilhelm), 46.20; 2. Wasilla, 46.63; 3. Soldotna, 46.82; 4. Homer, 49.10; 5. Kenai Central, 49.13; 6. Soldotna, 49.48.

800 relay — 1. Soldotna (Faircloth, Innes, Jones, Escott), 1:35.45; 2. Colony, 1:37.87; 3. Soldotna, 1:41.01; 4. Wasilla, 1:44.02; 5. Wasilla, 1:44.11; 6. Homer, 1:44.94.

1,600 relay — 1. Soldotna (Anding, Davidson, Innes, Roach), 3:39.13; 2. Homer, 3:43.54; 3. Wasilla, 3:44.55; 4. Colony, 3:44.93; 5. Palmer, 3:58.31; 6. Seward, 4:04.62.

3,200 relay — 1. Soldotna (Dahl, Davidson, Yeager, Anding), 8:47.00; 2. Wasilla, 9:21.08; 3. Homer, 9:33.22; 4. Palmer, 9:50.77; 5. Colony, 10:15.92.

Shot put — 1. Luke Miller, Sol, 50—10; 2. Kenai Lepule, Sol, 45—2; 3. Kenton Phelps, Col, 43—4.5; 4. Andrew Richardson, Col, 42—4; 5. Sam Thaler, Col, 41—4.5; 6. Koda Lepule, Sol, 39—9.5.

Discus — 1. Kenton Phelps, Col, 142—8; 2. Andrew Richardson, Col, 132—9; 3. Nolan Garner, Pal, 128—8; 4. Dalton Armstrong, Sol, 127—0; 5. Tyrus Fischer, Col, 123—1; 6. Zach Martel, Red, 117—6.

High jump — 1. Olin Liljemark, Sew, 5—10; 2. Barak Wagle, Was, 5—8; 3. Corbin Gerkin, Pal, 5—6; 4. Van Shank, Sew, 5—4; 5. Maverick Rodriguez, Col, 5—4; 6. Triton Ellis, Col, 5—4.

Long jump — 1. Wyatt Faircloth, Sol, 19—.75; 2. Triton Ellis, Col, 18—5.25; 3. Trayvon Lott, Col, 18—4.25; 4. Clark Beling, Col, 18—3.5; 5. Joe Gordon, Hom, 18—.25; 6. Nick Bailey, Col, 17—10.25.

Long jump unified — 1. Garick Imperato, Col, 5—10.

Triple jump — 1. Kenneth Motton, Col, 43—8.5; 2. Gage Ivy, Ken, 40—7; 3. Emelian Melkomukov, Hom, 39—1; 4. Olin Liljemark, Sew, 38—10.5; 5. Van Shank, 38—2.75; 6. Nick Bailey, Col, 38—1.

GIRLS

Team scores: 1. Colony, 171.5; 2. Soldotna, 164; 3. Homer, 118; 4. Wasilla, 57.5; 5. Seward, 57; 6. Palmer, 56; 7. Kenai Central, 37; 8. Redington, 15.

100 — 1. Sarah Brown, Sol, 13.75; 2. Denali Anderson-Berghoff, 13.75; 3. Sophie Tapley, Ken, 13.90; 4. Molly Evans, Hom, 13.94; 5. Lucy Uhlir, Sol, 14.05; 6. Mia Bukala, Red, 14.09.

100 unified — 1. Jaelynn Kennon, Hom, 15.07; 2. Mattelyn Elliott, Col, 17.22; 3. Isabella Christensen, Col, 17.34; 4. Averie Wolf, Col, 21.77; 5. Pepper Noel, Ken, 22.87; 6. Zoe Black, Hom, 25.63.

200 — 1. Leila Petersen, Pal, 27.46; 2. Annelise Larsen, Col, 27.90; 3. Shiloh Zichko, Sol, 28.02; 4. Lucy Uhlir, Sol, 28.82; 5. Mia Bukala, Red, 28.84; 6. Regan Siebert, Sew, 29.28.

400 — 1. Annelise Larsen, Col, 1:00.60; 2. Leila Petersen, Pal, 1:01.38; 3. Shiloh Zichko, Sol, 1:02.56; 4. Olive Jordan, Sew, 1:03.58; 5. Regan Siebert, Sew, 1:03.84; 6. Vera Bates, Hom, 1:05.58.

800 — 1. Ella Hopkins, Col, 2:25.00; 2. Sydney Simpich, Col, 2:27.75; 3. Annie Burns, Sol, 2:29.12; 4. Etta Bynagle, Hom, 2:39.36; 5. Alder Deal, Pal, 2:43.27; 6. Aubrey Hess, Pal, 2:48.22.

1,600 — 1. Hailee Giacobbe, Was, 5:29.64; 2. Sydney Simpich, Col, 5:41.61; 3. Etta Bynagle, Hom, 5:45.91; 4. Annie Burns, Sol, 5:46.40; 5. Indigo Leslie, Sew, 5:47.36; 6. Myra Kalafut, Hom, 5:49.19.

3,200 — 1. Aubrey Virgin, Col, 12:06.17; 2. Indigo Leslie, Sew, 12:17.74; 3. Myra Kalafut, Hom, 12:23.77; 4. Katie Van Buskirk, Sew, 12:26.68; 5. Claira Booz, Hom, 12:45.13; 6. Breeze Buchanan, Col, 13:26.51.

100 hurdles — 1. Gracie Miotke, Hom, 16.89; 2. Samantha Piscoya, Sol, 18.01; 3. Anaulie Sedivy, Sol, 18.05; 4. Hallie Fischer, Sol, 19.00; 5. Jewel Gardner, Was, 19.25; 6. Selah Coots, Ken, 19.32.

300 hurdles — 1. Gracie Miotke, Hom, 48.41; 2. Mia Bukala, Red, 52.71; 3. Maddie Haas, Sew, 53.32; 4. Jewel Gardner, Was, 54.22; 5. Cecily Shavelson, Hom, 55.27; 6. Samantha Piscoya, Sol, 55.89.

2000 steeplechase — 1. Aubrey Virgin, Col, 7:42.38; 2. Olive Jordan, Sew, 8:24.86; 3. Breeze Buchanan, Col, 8:35.96; 4. Ariana Cannava, Sol, 8:50.84; 5. Madeline Schrecengost, Was, 8:58.07; 6. Ava Smyth, Pal, 9:08.39.

400 relay — 1. Homer (Kennon, Evans, Im, G. Miotke), 52.03; 2. Soldotna, 53.09; 3. Palmer, 54.18; 4. Soldotna, 55.16; 5. Homer, 55.41; 6. Colony, 56.10.

800 relay — 1. Soldotna (Zichko, Brott, Uhlir, Brown), 1:50.67; 2. Homer, 1:57.12; 3. Colony, 1:58.82; 4. Wasilla, 2:04.74; 5. Colony, 2:05.45.

1,600 relay — 1. Soldotna (Brott, Burns, DeBardelaben, Zichko), 4:16.78; 2. Homer, 4:16.88; 3. Colony, 4:19.76; 4. Palmer, 4:33.57; 5. Wasilla, 4:37.56; 6. Seward, 5:03.02.

3,200 relay — 1. Colony (Hopkins, VanTassel, Simpich, Wright), 10:37.40; 2. Seward, 10:49.93; 3. Soldotna, 10:51.58; 4. Homer, 11:19.15.

Shot put — 1. Tonya Karpow, Col, 32—2; 2. Hope Hillyer, Sol, 30—9.75; 3. Juliet Innes, Sol, 30—4.5; 4. Mia Christensen, Was, 29—5.5; 5 (tie). Audrie Fischer, Col, Claire Bredberg, Was, 28—10.

Shot put unified — 1. Pepper Noel, Ken, 11—9.5; 2. Zoe Black, Hom, 11—5.5.

Discus — 1. Willow Graham, Ken, 106—11; 2. Mia Christensen, Was, 104—0; 3. Audrie Fischer, Col, 100—7; 4. Juliet Innes, Sol, 99—6; 5. Tonya Karpow, Col, 90—9; 6. Maya Sandefur, Col, 90—2.

High jump — 1. Avery Johnson, Pal, 4—10; 2. Halie Sandstrom, Col, 4—10; 3. Hallie Fischer, Sol, 4—6; 4 (tie). Brightly Thoning, Hom, Jaelynn Kennon, Hom, 4—6; 6. Reilly Sue Baker, Hom, 4—4.

Long jump — 1. Hallie Fischer, Sol, 15—4.5; 2. Sarah Brown, Sol, 15—3.75; 3. Sophie Tapley, Ken, 15—1.5; 4. Greyson Henry, Sol, 14—8.5; 5. Hallie Clark, Col, 14—2.75; 6. Molly Evans, Hom, 14—1.

Long jump unified — 1. Pepper Noel, Ken, 5—.5; 2. Zoe Black, Hom, 3—9.

Triple jump — 1. Halie Sandstrom, Col, 31—11.5; 2. Kathryn DeBardelaben, Sol, 31—7; 3. Abigail Ostrom, Hom, 31—5.5; 4. Brooke Hronkin, Pal, 30—7; 5. Selah Coots, Ken, 29—10; 6. Xaida Zellmer, Col, 28—3.

Homer News reporter Chloe Pleznac contributed to this report.

Girls line up for their first running event of the day on Friday, April 18 at the Homer High School Invitational Track Meet. (Chloe Pleznac/Homer News)

Boys line up for their first running event of the day on Friday, April 18 at the Homer High School Invitational Track Meet. (Chloe Pleznac/Homer News)

Girls compete in the steeplechase, the first running event of the day on Friday, April 18 at the Homer High School Invitational Track Meet. (Chloe Pleznac/Homer News)

A Kenai Kardinal leads the pack during the steeplechase on Friday, April 18 at the Homer High School Invitational Track Meet. (Chloe Pleznac/Homer News)

A Homer boy runs the track on Friday, April 18 at the Homer High School Invitational Track Meet. (Chloe Pleznac/Homer News)

A Soldotna athlete pulls back for her discus throw on Friday, April 18 at the Homer High School Invitational Track Meet. (Chloe Pleznac/Homer News)

A steeplechaser takes a leap on Friday, April 18 at the Homer High School Invitational Track Meet. (Chloe Pleznac/Homer News)

Homer’s Unified Track team members pose with their medals on Friday, April 18. From left to right is Dayten Van Ostrand, Zoe Black, Jaelynn Kennon and Molly Evans. (Photo courtesy of Winter Marshall-Allen)