By Ray Sarvis
FPS Correspondent
The Minerva boys’ track and field season got underway on Saturday, April 5, as the Lions made an appearance at the Fairless Falcon Invitational 2025, held at Fairless High School.
Going up against teams such as Canal Fulton Northwest, Fairless, Canton South and Tuslaw, it was a chance for Minerva to show other schools that a Lion can be the top dog.
After a disqualification was called against Northwest during a relay late in the meet, Minerva was awarded the invitational win on Saturday. However, following an appeal by Northwest’s coach, the disqualification was reversed, and the win was subsequently awarded to Northwest—meaning Minerva must return their first-place trophy.
After finishing less than 10 points out of first, the boys’ track team is close to being there.
Minerva finished second with 124 total points. Finishing third was host Fairless with 85 points.
It’s a shame the Lions could not be awarded double first-place points since Nate Green and Owen Shick tied for first in the 100-meter dash. Each sprinter clocked in at 11.36, meaning they split the first- and second-place points.
It would have been a sight to see had Green and Shick also tied in the 200-meter dash, but alas, it was not to be. Still, they finished one-two, as Shick took the gold with a time of 22.98, while Green was second in 23.50. Shick had a busy day for the Lions, as he also won gold in the high jump with a height of 5-10, while teammate Wyatt Gonzalez placed fourth at 5-8. Shick then wrapped up his individual events with a runner-up finish in the long jump, uncorking a leap of 18-9.75.
In the 1,600-meter run, Rowen Hoffee placed second with a time of 4:34.94, while Tyson Fetty claimed fourth place, clocking in at 4:47.81. In the 3,200-meter run, Owen Yoder (9:59.61) and Fox Johnson (10:42.06) finished in fourth and sixth place, respectively.
In the discus throw, Roger and Ben Herstine also placed fourth and sixth, as Roger threw for a distance of 121-9 while Ben’s toss traveled 118-5.
In the 800-meter run, Ryan Cassidy placed fifth in 2:09.35. Meanwhile, Kadin Ossler finished sixth in the 400-meter dash with a time of 57.01.
Last but certainly not least are the four relays. Minerva placed in three out of the four and won two of them. First was the 4×400-meter relay, which the Lions won in 3:39.14. Next up was the 4×800-meter relay, which was another first-place finish in 8:26.19. Lastly was the 4×200-meter relay, and the Lions placed third in 1:36.54.