The spring was kind to North Platte, which claimed another state title in girls’ track and field along with having one of the best baseball seasons in recent memory.
North Platte’s Kalli Schuster, Olivia Rogers and Bella Kitmitto pose with medals and the plaque after winning another state title at the Class 2 State Meet.
Being the reigning Class 2 Champions, the Lady Panthers girls’ track and field team didn’t let the pressure or situation faze them at state. On top of the mental mindset of repeating, North Platte was in a barnburner with Father Tolton Catholic High School, who won a cross-country state championship in Class 4 in the fall.
Father Tolton made the most of its opportunities in the long-distance events, but North Platte held its own in that department and made up for lack of points in sprinting events with the two schools going back-and-forth in the team standings. The end of the 2-day meet had as dramatic a finish it could be with the state champion being decided by the 4x400-meter relay, which was the last event of the weekend.
The Lady Panthers led by one point ahead of the last event, but the race wasn’t as close as the score was. North Platte finished 7.74 seconds ahead of Father Tolton.
Olivia Rogers earned two individual gold medals in the 100 and 200-meter dashes, along with success in a pair of relays. She was the anchor on the 4x400 and was a part of the second place 4x100-meter relay.
North Platte sophomore Lindsay Ramsey set the program record in the 400-meter dash, winning the event in 56.93 seconds. She also took fourth place in the 200-meter dash with a time of 35.96 seconds.
In the long distant events, Brianna DeBord took fourth place in the 3,200-meter run, which was one place behind freshman teammate Chloe Heckman who set the program record with a time of 11:36.13. DeBord took fifth place in the mile in 5:22.93.
Both of those girls were on the 4x800-meter relay with Shelby Lingle and Jessa Cassity and ended in second place. Lingle claimed seventh place in the 800-meter run.
North Platte won the state championship with 86 points, opposed to Father Tolton’s 83 points. The Lady Panthers have some talented athletes who will be back next spring.
The boys had some high moments throughout the spring, with only two athletes making it to state. Corbin Britting and Noah Heckman both made the trip, but were unable to reach the podium.
In the last two years, the North Platte baseball team reached new heights. Lacking a winning record or even double-digit victories in well over a decade, the Panthers wrapped up its second consecutive season of accomplishing both feats.
In 2019 and 2021 – not counting 2020 when the season was cancelled – North Platte combined for 12 wins before going 11-10 in 2022 and 16-7 in 2023. Each of the last two years, the Panthers averaged exactly 7.7 runs per game and this year’s senior class was a big part of the turnaround.
Wesley Meadows, Kaden Mullendore and Dylan Walker were the three seniors this past fall that implemented a winning culture on the program that has struggled for a while. Juniors Creek Johnson, John Winkler, Jaxson Carpenter and Colton Kirkham were the top pitchers.
In 2022, North Platte lost five of the first six games before picking up the pace and ending one game above .500. Similarly in 2023, the Panthers started off 2-4 and lost its first two KCI games before closing out the regular season without a loss in conference play.
North Platte clinched the top-seed in the Class 2 District 15 Tournament and had a first-round bye before eliminating Polo in the semifinals. The Panthers were on the verge of taking down Plattsburg in the district championship but let up a late run, thus losing 4-3 and ending its historical season.