Athletes test themselves at huge meet in Wiesbaden

WIESBADEN, Germany — Despite the prevalence of Division I powerhouses in the 15-team field at the Wiesbaden Invitational on Saturday, one small school stayed high on the leaderboard throughout: Hohenfels.

The Tigers sat in second place with just a handful of events left before finishing fourth on 81 points.

That total was better than Ramstein, a school whose senior class (284) dwarves Hohenfels’ entire high school population (183) and was 49 points ahead of its nearest Division III opponent, Ansbach.

It took two Top-4 placers in the girls 3,200-meter race for Stuttgart to overtake the Tigers for third with 82 points. Hohenfels didn’t have a single competitor in the last two races.

“I think it’s pretty cool that not only are we competitive just in our division but in others, too,” Hohenfels senior Isabella Porto said. “It’s just really fun to run with everybody, but it shows to how hard we work.”

Porto is part of Hohenfels’ potent three-girl punch with fellow seniors Kenya Tucker and Mazie Lorcher.

Tucker took gold in the 100 hurdles (15.46 seconds) and triple jump (36 feet, 6 inches), Porto came out on top in the 300 hurdles (51.1) and Lorcher sprinted to first in the 400 (1:02.75).

Generally, one of their teammates finished not too far behind them in those same events. In the 100 hurdles, Porto placed fourth in 18.32. In the triple jump, Porto once again made the podium at 32-4.

Even in races not won by one of the three, they managed to get two on the podium. Tucker and Lorcher placed second and fourth in the 100, and the duo followed that with third- and fourth-place finishes in the 200.

Tucker and Porto have been running together for three years, and Tucker said that intra-squad competition brings out the best in each other.

“I love running with Bella,” Tucker said. “I love seeing us both progress because every day, we’re becoming better and better.”

Lorcher is new to the team but not an unknown quantity. The senior competed for Vilseck prior to transferring within Bavaria.

And like her hurdling teammates, she has more to her repertoire than sprinting. Lorcher placed fifth in the girls long jump at 14-11.

Lorcher mentioned how she’s enjoying life with the Tigers.

“Last year, I was really intense,” she said. “I still want to be intense, but I also want to have fun.”

Saturday’s performance has the Tigers believing they can take the next step up the podium. They finished second in Division III the past two European meets.

“What we’ve been doing not only this year but in past years, I think it’s definitely plausible,” Porto said. “That would be really cool to bring home.”

While Hohenfels punched above its weight, the Top 3 squads on the girls side went to the usual suspects – although in a different order.

Wiesbaden cruised to victory on Saturday, producing a total of 127 points. Two-time defending champion Kaiserslautern came in second with 99 points.

The result has made the Warriors excited about their chances to end the Raiders’ reign in Division I and to bring home Wiesbaden’s first track title since 2022.

“We’re pretty stacked with athletes on the team,” Wiesbaden junior Lana Winters said. “So, I think we’re able to (end) that winning streak from K-Town.”

A major reason for the optimism stems from the depth in this year’s squad.

Sure, Winters, a runner-up in the 100 and 200 last spring, and fellow junior Alanna Donahue, the 2025 long and triple jump champion, continued right where they left off. Winters claimed the 100 on Saturday in 12.45, and Donahue won the long jump (17-1) and took second in the triple jump (35-10) in her return to action from an ankle injury.

But a pair of freshmen in Johanna Sawser and Aubrey Dent made their marks with a win in the 800 and a silver finish in the 200, respectively. And DODEA-Europe cross country champion Linden Pickler placed second in the 1,600.

Also, three relay teams, the 4x100, 4x400 and 4x800, took gold. The 4x100 team of Carmen Lima, Dent, Donahue and Winters was particularly impressive as the Warriors trailed the Raiders when Donahue handed off the baton to Winters.

Winters chased down Kaiserslautern’s Trinity Seaberry and caught her at the line.

“It’s amazing that we were able to show everybody that we’re not here to play – we’re here to take business and stand on it,” Donahue said.

Not that the Warriors are going to rest on their laurels.

Donahue said they realize that Saturday’s meet wasn’t the European championships, which is when they want to peak.

“Just because we’re doing good right now doesn’t mean that we’re going to do great later,” she said. “We really need to pin it down and lock in and show people we are consistent with our ability to win and do big things.”

The Stuttgart boys team also made a statement Saturday, amassing 167 points to win.

The closest competitor, last year’s Euros champion Kaiserslautern, sat 36 points back.

Despite winning as a team, the Panthers had few individual winners in Wiesbaden. Senior Tymir Johnson took first in the 200 with a time of 23.24 seconds, Linus Soto won the shot put and the 4x100 team of Amari Smith-El, Leif Moore, Jeremyah Reyes and Johnson crossed the line first.

But most points came from other podium positions. The Panthers had multiple placers in seven events, including strong finishes in the 200 and 3,200.

Johnson said Stuttgart losing its hold on the Division I European crown last year has driven the team, and it showed Saturday.

“A lot,” Johnson said of the motivation from losing out on the title in 2025. “Me personally, I ran really bad. I cried afterwards, but it made me want to do better and it made me put a lot of work in during the offseason.”

The highlight of the day came in Soto’s shot put victory. With his second throw of 50-7.75, the sophomore shattered the previous school record of 46-11 set by 2024 graduate Jack Gruver.

“I could tell as soon as I got to my base power position and I let it fly, that it was going to be one of the best shots that I threw,” Soto said. “I was overjoyed, that feeling of finally beating that record is unbelievable.”