Triple Jump

Michael Ross, Danville, track. He finished fourth in the District 6 Junior Olympics to qualify for the national Junior Olympics. Diamond Pace, Danville, track. She won the triple jump at the District 6 Junior Olympics to qualify for the national Junior Olympics.

Editor's Note: The writer attended the District 6 AAU meet that qualified participants to compete in the Junior Olympics in Ypsilanti, Mich. Her daughter, Diamond, a Danville freshman, competed in the district meet against others from Kentucky, Indiana and Illinois and qualified to go back to the national meet later this month to defend the triple jump title she won in 2007. There will be no pomp and circumstance, no extravagant parade of the state flags, no media-crazed final journey of the Olympic torch.

State Track & Field Championships Friday-Saturday At Cardinal Park University of Louisville (Area results) CLASS A BOYS Team leaders - 1. Bardstown 119; 2. Ballard Memorial 59; 2. St. Henry 59; 4. Danville (D) 38. Saturday 200 - 4. Lamont Key (D) 23.0. 800 - 1. Ross Hempel (D) 1:58. 400 - 3. Nick Winkler (D) 51.6; 7. Derrick Henderson (D) 52.9. 400 relay - 4. Danville (A.J. Bates, Kruz Warner, Key, Antwoine Simon)

Manly Bryant needed a pole that was just a bit stronger, so he broke in a new pole this week in preparation for the state meet. It evidently worked, since the Boyle County vaulter set two personal marks and finished with a vault of 12 feet, 6 inches and finished second at the Class AA state track and field championships at the University of Louisville. "I just got a new pole this week and I was working on it and I did pretty good on it," he said. "It's stronger. I have another one over there that's really weak for me, and I would just blow through it. " Bryant had been consistently vaulting 11-6, so that's what he expected to get this week.

As Ben Carman crossed the finish line after winning the 200-meter dash Tuesday, he gave a big fist pump. The Boyle County sophomore knew he had it in him to put up a good time, but he had no idea he had just set a school record with his winning time of 22.9 seconds at the Class AA, Region 4 Championships at Boyle. "I knew they put me in there ranked third, and I knew I could beat my time. So I just went out there and did what I could," he said. "There was a lot of good competition.

Here are the results from the Class AA, Region 4 Championships at Boyle County Tuesday. GIRLS Team scores - 1. Rockcastle County (RC) 169; 2. Casey County (CC) 91; 3. Mercer County (MC) and Boyle County (BC) 81; 5. West Jessamine (WJ) 64.5; 6. Madison Southern (MS) 27.5; 7. Lexington Catholic (LC) 16; 8. East Jessamine (EJ) and Russell County (RuC) 13; 10. Corbin (C) 2. (Top two places qualify for state meet) 3,200 relay - 1. Boyle (Cheyenne Evans, Abby Kerbaugh, Kelsey Barbato, Emily Wesley)

He's not your typical Boyle County track and field athlete. Even senior Eddie Houekpon-Chincoun readily admits that. Still, if you didn't know his name or background, it would be hard to tell Houekpon-Chincoun had not been around his Boyle teammates all his life. Instead, he was born in west Africa and lived in numerous countries there before he came to Philadelphia to live when his mother's job was too dangerous for him to stay with her. He moved to Danville about three years ago, but his mother now lives and works in Haiti.

Danville runners won five of six relays in the first area all-comers meet of the season Tuesday at Harrodsburg. The Admirals won all three boys relays and two of three girls relays in the meet hosted by Mercer County at Alvis Johnson Field. Danville's girls defeated Mercer County and Casey County to win their team competition, while the Danville boys were second to Woodford County. Boyle County's boys were fourth. Kaitlin Snapp of Danville was the only athlete to win two individual events.

Monica Vonderbrink hit two home runs Saturday to help the Centre College softball team to two wins at the Millsaps Invitational in Jackson, Miss. In a 5-4 win over Colorado College in eight innings, Charlotte Jones got the win and Vonderbrink had a two-run home run. She added a solo shot in a 10-7 win over Trinity. Jones got the win in that game as well. On Friday, the Centre softball team went 1-1 during the first day of the Millsaps Invitational. In the first game, LaGrange College got a run in the bottom of the seventh inning to beat the Colonels 3-2. Jones suffered the loss for Centre.

Being the man to beat is nothing new for Chrys Jones. But now the Centre College freshman jumper gets what he and coach Lisa Owens called his first true collegiate test, the NCAA Division III Indoor Track & Field Championships this weekend at Ohio Northern. "This will be his first true competitive test at this level, he's going up against men," Owens said. "It's the first time everyone there is a solid, proven jumper and we get to see what Chrys Jones made of in his freshman season.