BURNET, TX – The Lamar Middle School 7th Grade Bearcat Track & Field team displayed grit and determination this past Wednesday, March 11, at the Burnet Bulldog Relays. Competing under the lights at Burnet Football Field, the Bearcats earned a respectable 3rd place in the overall team standings, finishing the night with 73 points.
While the host team, Burnet, claimed the top spot with 233 points and Llano followed in 2nd with 130, Lamar’s athletes made their presence felt with several standout individual and relay performances that kept them ahead of the rest of the field.
Top Performers
The Bearcats were led by a pair of gold-medal performances that highlighted the team's speed and athleticism.
Jafari Bennett was the man to beat in the 100-meter dash, sprinting to a 1st place finish with a time of 13.12. Bennett also showed his versatility in the pits, taking 3rd in the Triple Jump and 4th in the High Jump.
Shai’yir Bishop dominated the Triple Jump, leaping 33’0 to secure 1st place. Bishop also turned on the jets on the track, claiming 3rd place in the 200-meter dash (28.47).
Jimmy Caudillo put in a strong shift for the Bearcats, earning 3rd place in the 400 meters with a time of 1:09.30.
The relay teams were instrumental in the team's scoring. The 4x200 relay team—composed of Kayden Clark, Shai'yir Bishop, Jimmy Caudillo, and Jafari Bennett—battled their way to a 3rd place podium finish with a time of 1:55.50.
Meet Participants
The following Bearcats competed across a wide range of events to contribute to the team's 73-point total:
Sprints & Middle Distance
100 Meters: Jafari Bennett (1st), Dominic Tovar (18th), Blake Karl (19th)
200 Meters: Shai’yir Bishop (3rd), Dominic Tovar (18th), Blake Karl (19th)
400 Meters: Jimmy Caudillo (3rd), Kingston Davis (9th), Major Lee (10th)
800 Meters: Kingston Davis (8th), Michael Nino (11th), Christopher Torres (13th)
Distance & Hurdles
1600 Meters: Jordan Wells (9th), Alfonso Rodriguez (12th), Alexander Sotelo (13th)
2400 Meters: Jordan Wells (7th), Alexander Sotelo (10th)
110 Hurdles: Aadyn Linear (10th)
300 Hurdles: Aadyn Linear (13th)
Relay Events
4x100 Relay (4th): Kayden Clark, Shai'yir Bishop, Jimmy Caudillo, Jafari Bennett
4x200 Relay (3rd): Kayden Clark, Shai'yir Bishop, Jimmy Caudillo, Jafari Bennett
4x400 Relay (4th): Major Lee, Michael Nino, Kayden Clark, Kingston Davis
Field Events
Long Jump: Jimmy Caudillo (11th), Jordan Wells (12th), Major Lee (13th)
Triple Jump: Shai’yir Bishop (1st), Jafari Bennett (3rd), Kayden Clark (5th)
High Jump: Jafari Bennett (4th), Shai’yir Bishop (6th)
Looking Ahead
The Bearcats will look to build on this momentum as they head to their next competition. Lamar is scheduled to compete in the Waco ISD Meet on March 25th at Paul Tyson Field in Waco.
