The girls led the way — the long way — for South Whidbey track and field this weekend.

South Whidbey journeyed 131 miles to the Cashmere Invitational on April 13. During the drive, the South Whidbey school bus broke down, stranding the team for an hour until Lynden and La Conner buses picked them up. And the Falcon girls delivered with a fourth-place finish just behind Cascade Conference rival King’s.

Through snowy roads, the bus ran over a loose tire chain which damaged the bus’ radiator fan just across Stevens Pass. South Whidbey’s broken bus was towed to Whidbey Island and a new bus was sent to retrieve the students by the end of the meet.

Upperclassmen spearheaded the high finish in a field of 15 teams from mostly 1A and 2A schools. Only one Falcon won her event, senior Angelina Berger, and she won two. Berger claimed first places in the shot put and discus, setting her best marks of the season in each. In the shot put, Berger threw a season-high 38 feet, 9.25 inches, and also tossed the discus a season-high 111 feet, 7 inches. She out threw her competition in both events by several feet.

Nora Felt, a senior distance runner, finished in third place in the 1,500-meter race. In her only entry in that distance this season — she last ran a 1,500 in 2011 — Felt ran it in 5:15.58.

Jaime Rodden, a junior, posted a fourth-place finish in the 800-meter race, though not her fastest time at 2:37.33. Junior Sylvie Kaul-Anderson competed in only her second meet this season and finished fifth in the 100-meter hurdles. Her time of 17.44 seconds has her close to her personal-best time of 16.86 seconds. Kaul-Anderson also set her career-best time in the 300-meter hurdles at 52.80 seconds.

Anna Hood, a senior, set her career-best time in the 200-meter sprint. Crossing the finish line in 27.77 seconds put Hood in fourth place. 

She was also on the third-place 400-meter relay and fourth-place 1,600-meter relay teams. The 400-meter team of Hood, Madi Boyd, Paige Farmer and Maia Sparkman finished in 53.86 seconds. The 1,600 relay team of Hood, Felt, Sparkman and Boyd finished in 4:28.13.

On the boys team, only Chris Anderson finished in the top five in his events. The freshman distance runner placed third in the 3,000-meter run in 9:56.95 and fourth in the 1,500-meter in 4:41.10.

Nick French, usually the top finisher for the boys, had an off day in the javelin. He threw a season-low 137 feet, 7 inches and placed ninth from a standing position — as in he did not get a running start — because of a foot injury. His mark was well short of his season high of 161 feet, 8 inches and even farther off from his career-best 178 feet, 3 inches. Doug Fulton, an assistant coach, said French is expected to return to full health within three weeks.

“Several of our kids were still on spring break but highlights were the sprinters,” Fulton said, noting Hood’s career times in the 200 and 400, Kale Reichersamer in the long jump, Boyd’s personal records (PRs) in the 100 and 400 relay, and Jordan Parrick in only his second 110-meter and 300-meter hurdle races.