CASCADE — After having only 18 points following the first full day of competition at the Class C state track and field meet, the Cascade Badgers had a remarkable Saturday on May 30 at the Laurel Sports Complex to win their first team title since 1994.
Cascade finished the meet with 82 points.
"It was a pretty special feeling," Trent Lane said at Cascade High School on Wednesday. "Just relieved and excited, especially for everybody else, too."
"A lot of mixed emotions," Brant Ligameri said. "Didn't really think it would be possible going into it just because Lustre (Christian) being that many points ahead."
"I've never been as excited as I was," Kegen Vanek said. "Been a dream since, honestly, as long as I can remember. I remember sixth grade year ... since I ever hit middle school, I was like I want to win a state championship."
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Lane led the way for the Badgers, winning each of the 800-, 1,600- and 3,200-meter runs.
"Pretty much everything," Lane said of what went right for him during the two days. "I came in feeling really good.
"Got that mile done and then the next day I really wasn't fatigued at all, which was perfect because the 800 and two mile, they're not the easiest events."
Lane wouldn't have wanted it any other way, he said.
"I feel like I put everything out there and at the end of the day, that's the best thing you can hope for," Lane said.
Another crucial win for Cascade came in the 4x100-meter relay, as the team of Peyton Hauk, Elijah Kennerson, Vanek and Ligameri got the job done.
"It was needed, for sure, because it was points we had to get that we weren't going in like ranked to get it," Ligameri said. "Knowing that we got four extra points than we were supposed to definitely helped."
"Winning the relay was one of the coolest ones because we talked about it from the beginning of the year," Vanek said. "If we could just all improve our times by a split second every day that we would have one of the best chances at not only breaking the school record, but winning the state title at the end."
Watching Ligameri cross the finish line first was a moment Vanek will never forget, he said.
"I was in shock," Vanek said. "As long as I could get it to Brant as quick as possible, we'd have a good shot. Me getting the lead in the 4x1 and getting it to Brant — and with Brant's speed — I knew we had a really good shot at winning it after that."
The Badgers also won the Class C cross country state championship this past fall, and Lane said there's now a lot of expectations.
"Hopefully some more in the future with cross country and track next year," Lane said. "I'm a senior now, so I'm going to try to go out with a bang and try to get both of those, as well, and just put some more banners on the wall."
