Jesuit Track and Field Concludes a Spectacular Season

Jesuit Dallas’s Track and Field Varsity postseason recently came to a close, competing at the UIL District 7-6A Championships on April 3rd & 4th, the UIL Area Championships on April 11th, the UIL Regional Championships on April 22nd, and the UIL State Championships on May 4th. It was a strong end to a historic season in which 4 records were broken; the 4x400m record, the 4x800m record, the 800m record, and the 4x200m record.

UIL District 7-6A Championships

Jesuit finished in second place with 105 points, falling behind District Rival Highland Park’s 163 points. Taking place over two days, the UIL District 7-6A Championships was composed of Wednesday’s prelims and Thursday’s finals. Thursday started off strong with notable performances from both junior Cole Hatzmann and sophomore Travis Cantu, placing 22nd and 23rd respectively in men’s discus. This success continued into the men’s shot put, as junior Matthew Alcala-Frederick, junior Cole Hatzmann, and sophomore Travis Cantu all placed high. Senior Connor Raney, Junior Grayson Dupre and Senior Logan Thompson all had success in Men’s Long Jump, placing 3rd, 19th, and 20th. Aiden Hunt and Kevin Butler both competed in the men’s triple jump, placing 6th and 14th. Mason Adams and Thatch Balady continued their success in the men’s pole vault, taking home 1st and 2nd place.

Senior Rodrigo Navarro capped off the field events, placing 4th in the men’s high jump. Starting the running events, the relay group of sophomore Caeden Profitt, junior Jett Kipness, junior Henry Bourret, and senior Zach Musso competed in the 4x100m relay, placing 7th place with a time of 43.63. Seniors Henry Beckman and Charlie Thornton continued their success this season, taking home 1st and 4th place in the men’s varsity 800m run, Beckman running an impressive 1:57.08 and Thornton running a notable 1:58.09. Senior Garret Spears also found success in the men’s 110m hurtles, placing 5th place with a time of 16:60. The sprinting pair of Jett Kipness and Henry Bourret both competed in the men’s 100m race, placing 5th and 8th respectively with times of 11.33 and 11.72. With a record breaking performance, Jesuit’s 4x200m relay team consisting of senior Sammy McFarland, sophomore Harlan Beucler, junior John Parrish, and senior Sean Watson took home 1st place at the District Championships, with a time of 1:28.58.

Senior Garrett Spears continued his success with hurdles in the Varsity 300m hurdles, placing 5th in a competitive pool of athletes. Sophomore Harlan Beucler continued his impressive sophomore season with another 1st place victory in the men’s 200m dash, winning with a time of 21.65. In the men’s 1600m run, senior Henry Beckman continued his day of success with a 3rd place finish, running a time of 4:22.30. This was followed by a 13th place finish by Drew Lamberson and a 18th place finish by Charlie Thornton. Finally, just missing Jesuit’s 4x400m record, Jesuit’s 4x400m relay team consisting of senior Caden Cutchall, sophomore Harlan Beucler, senior Sean Watson, and senior Henry Beckman took 1st place with a time of 3:24.38.

UIL Area Championships

As a team, the blue and gold placed fourth in the UIL Area Championships, finishing behind Arlington Martin, Arlington Bowie, and Dallas Highland Park. In field events, senior Connor Raney placed 5th in the men’s long jump 6A varsity, jumping a mark of 21 – 0. Continuing this success, senior Thatch Balady placed 3rd with a mark of 15 – 0 and junior Mason Adams placed 5th with a mark of 14 – 6 in the men’s pole vault 6A varsity, collectively taking home 8 points for the rangers.

In the UIL Area Championships running events, Jesuit continued to find success among the best competition in the area. Beginning with the 6A varsity 800m dash, senior Henry Beckman placed 1st with a time of 1:57.78 and senior Charlie Thornton placed 3rd with a time of 1:58.79, 00.22 behind 2nd place. Senior Sammy McFarland, sophomore Harlan Beucler, junior John Parrish, and senior Sean Watson competed together in the 6A varsity 4x200m relay, placing 4th with a time of 1:28.72. While they would not advance to the Regional meet, the members of the 4x200m relay were in high spirits and glad with their success during their season.Taking home 8 points for the rangers, sophomore Harlan Beucler placed 2nd in the open 6A varsity 200m, finishing with a time of 21.89. Wrapping the meet up with a record breaking performance, the unparalleled success of Jesuit’s 4x400m relay team continued as they took home 1st place with a time of 3:21.16, almost 5 seconds faster than the previous school record set in 2009.

UIL Regional Championships

With only a handful of Jesuit Athletes advancing, Jesuit placed 14th in the UIL Regional Championships as a team. In the morning, senior Thatch Balady concluded his season with an impressive 5th place finish, jumping at a 15 – 0 mark. In the 6A varsity 800m, senior Henry Beckman placed 9th, running a 1:55.95, and concluded his remarkable season. Senior Charlie Thornton also competed in the 800m, running a 1:58.13 and placing 13th. Finally, the rangers found success in the 4x400m relay. Sophomore Harlan Beucler, senior Caden Cutchall, senior Sean Watson, and senior Henry Beckman all ran their hearts out to run a 3:15.94, an effort which helped them achieve 2nd place. 

UIL State Championships

Sophomore Harlan Beucler, senior Caden Cutchall, senior Sean Watson, and senior Henry Beckman were the only Jesuit athletes to advance to the UIL State Championships. Leaving on Friday May 3rd the 4x400m athletes were ready to compete at Mike Myers Stadium which is located at the University of Texas at Austin. Running late Saturday night at 8:30 P.M, these Jesuit athletes ran their hearts out and finished in 9th place, running a 3:18.00 amongst the top 9 4x400m teams in the state of Texas. While it may not have been the finish they were hoping for, Jesuit’s 4x400m relay team had a stellar season and created promising hope for the future of Jesuit’s track and field program.

Hope for Next Year

This past Track and Field season and postseason were ones for the record books. It was a year that consisted of 4 shattered school records and multiple college signings by senior athletes. Freshman Joaquin Lopez had this to say regarding next season:

“We had a record breaking track season with so many outstanding performances from all of our athletes. We have so many prospective athletes coming in to next season and I am hoping that we bring honor to the Jesuit name.”

While the team is losing key players, they have a strong foundation amongst their successful juniors, formidable sophomores, and impressive freshman going into the 2024-2025 Track and Field season.