Chris Reynolds returns as the head coach of the Wilmington High School boys and girls track and field teams this spring.
Several athletes earned first team All-SBAAC honors but graduated last spring and won’t return for WHS — Zeth Cowin, Henry Hildebrandt, Adrien Cody on the boys side and Chloe Sutton, Ava Hester and Taylor Noszka on the girls side.
Reynolds will be assisted by Eileen Grosse, Karen Heslop and JT Lykins at the high school and Ashley Howard at the junior high level.
For the girls, 61-8 last season and fourth in the SBAAC, there are 10 returning letterwinners, including Talia Billingsley, Madilyn Brausch, Kennedy Moore, Madison Schuster, Hannah Scott, Makenna Tolliver, Taija Walker, Aidynne Tippett, Bryn Tippett and Alexa Rich.
Schuster was voted by last year’s seniors to lead the team. “She has the trust of her teammates and has a proven work ethic to lead by example,” Reynolds said.
Newcomers of note are Angelica Pais Becher (foreign exchange student from Italy), Alexa Benitez, Kennedy Goings and Mia Skinner.
Reynolds said untimely injuries and illness troubled Wilmington late last season. While several top notch athletes graduated, Reynolds is confident in the ability of those returning.
Reynolds said depth must be created for the relays and interest and participation at the junior high level must increase to help the program in the future.
For the WHS boys, 68-8 in 2023 and second in the SBAAC, Reynolds said there are 11 returning athletes, including Eli Stewart, Levi Cochran, Preston Ziegler, Conner Walters, William Hildebrandt, Zane Smith, Oliver McDermott, Landon Scott, Julius Jackson, Darius Stewart and Logan Johnson.
The newcomers who are expected to contribute are Holden Wulff, Max McCoy, Phayden Mawyer, Jase Bryant, Campagnolo Tommaso (foreign exchange student from Italy) and Josiah Puller.
Reynolds said Ziegler is “a quiet leader who leads by example, garnering the respect of his teammates.”
While the WHS coach said his team is extremely hard working, “the character of the team stands out the most.”
Like the girls, Reynolds said numbers are down among seventh and eighth graders and that is a cause for concern at the high school in years to come.
March 23^Field Event Relay^H^10 am
March 26^Massie, Trace^MT^430 pm
March 28^Little Miami Quad^LM^430 pm
April 2^Bellbrook^Bk^425 pm
April 8^East Clinton^EC^430 pm
April 13^Waynesville Inv^Way^9 am
April 15^W Brown Inv^WB^4 pm
April 19^Hillsboro Inv^Hills^430 pm
April 23^Wightman Memorial^EC^415 pm
April 25^Little Miami^LM^430 pm
April 29^Hillsboro Quad^Hills^430 pm
May 6^SBAAC Championship^Bat^430 pm
May 8^SBAAC Championship^Bat^430 pm
