Unlike last weekend, the Saint Ignatius varsity track and field team enjoyed decent weather this Saturday.
The Wildcats took part in the Second Sole Eagle Elite Meet at GlenOak High School in Canton, which missed much of the bad weather Mother Nature hurled at Cleveland on Saturday.
As a team, the men of Chuck Kyle '69 finished in fifth place. Considering the fact that Kyle's squad was missing several key contributors due to various factors, the Wildcats enjoyed a solid day.
As per usual, the Wildcats received a dynamic performance from the ever-consistent Phil Zuccaro. The senior racked up 22 points for the squad, tying for the MVP award in the track events.
Zuccaro notched 10 points with a fast time of 11.07 in the 100m dash. The senior's final time bested his prelim mark by .20 seconds. Then Zuccaro scored 10 more points with another first place finish in the 200m dash. The Yale-bound star clocked in at 22.11, beating his prelim time of 22.87.
Zuccaro then pitched in on the 4x100 relay, combining with Dominic Devengencie, Connor Kennedy, and Luke Griffiths for a second-place time of 43.14. That effort resulted in eight more points for the Cats.
The relay team of Griffiths, Devengencie, Kennedy, and Kyle Hall locked in a time of 1:32.42 in the 4x200 relay, good enough for third place and five more for the blue and gold.
The speed of the Wildcats also paid off in the 110m hurdles. John Wetula and Max Pike snatched third and fourth place, respectively, with times of 15.05 and 15.64 to grab 11 total points in the event.
Meanwhile, the Wildcats' distance runners did not have a great day in Canton, likely due in part to the difference in weather. Many runners across the board had slower final times than seed times. Even so, Nick Saul persevered for a time of 4:29.30 for eighth place and a point on the scoresheet.
In the field events, Dan Drellishak finished fifth for the Wildcats in the pole vault. The promising sophomore earned 3.50 points with a leap of 12-00.00. Ryan Sweeney also tallied half a point with a height of 11-06.00.
The Ring Cats performed solidly on Saturday, as Alex Misencik earned one point with a toss of 46-01.50 in the shot put. Tony Georges also competed but did not score. Both Misencik and Georges had solid throws in the discus, but could not tally any points.
At the end of the meet, the Wildcats had 55 points, finishing behind Strongsville (73), Medina (70), GlenOak (70), and Wadsworth (67).
Next weekend, the Wildcats will head west for the renowned Comet Relays at Amherst Steele High School. Fans of track and field will not want to miss this important mid-season meet.