By:  J. Daniel Pearson

St. Cloud collected a pair of OBC team titles on Wednesday afternoon; while Gateway’s Jose Calderon and Poinciana’s Levi Lee put on spectacular performances at the 2025 Orange Belt Conference Track and Field Championships at Harmony.

For St. Cloud, it was a great day for the team as the Bulldogs boys broke the four-year championship reign of the Longhorns and the Lady Bulldogs defended their team title to give St. Cloud a sweep.

It was incredibly close on the girls’ side, when the team championship came down to the final event – the 4 x 400 relay.  While not a great event for either team, only 2.5 points separated the two teams, so Harmony needed to finish three places in front of St. Cloud to regain the OBC team championship.  The Longhorns did finish in front of St. Cloud, but by only one place (4th to 5th) and the Lady Bulldogs held on to the team title (156-154.5).

On the boys’ side, St. Cloud pulled away at the end to beat second place Gateway (165.5-138.5) and break Harmony’s four-year championship streak in boys’ track.  It was St. Cloud’s first boys’ championship since 2019.

“We’re pleased to win both titles, but things did not go as we thought they might,” St. Cloud head coach Kevin Harkema said.  “If any championship was going to come down to the wire, I thought it would be on the boys’ side.  Give Harmony’s girls team credit, they had a great meet and fought us to the end.”

The Bulldogs had only three individual and two relay team champions in 18 events on the boys’ side, it was their overall team depth – especially in the distance events – that really set them apart from the rest of the field.

Although they did not win either event, the Bulldogs dominated both the 1600-meter and 3200-meter runs, finishing 2nd (Brody Ansbaugh), 3rd (Silas Corchado), 4th (Isaiah Casiano) and 5th (Luis Rivera) to score 23 team points and the 3200-meters, while placing second (Casiano), third (Jonathan Araya) and sixth (Rivera) in the 1600.  All told, the Bulldogs picked up 40 of their 165.5 team points (24%) in those two events alone.

“We had some great performances in several events, including the high jump and a school record from Mason Shafer in the pole vault, but we scored a lot of team points in the distance events,” Harkema said.  “They have been a strength of our team all season.”

Individually, Gateway’s Jose Calderon and Poinciana’s Levi Lee had sensational meets – each winning three races.  Lee won the OBC 1600-meters for a third straight year (4:29.31) and also took the 800-meters (1:59.09) and 3200-meters (10:17.89).  Calderon had perhaps the top performance of the championship.  He pulled an incredible triple, winning the 100 and 200-meter runs in school record times; while also winning his signature event, the 400-meters.  An all-state performer in the 400, Calderon now owns school records in all three races.

Other double winners in the boys’ meet, included Celebration’s Gavin Konopka (shot and discus) and Poinciana’s Tyler Johnson (long and triple jump).

Kyla Perez had a big meet for St. Cloud in the girls’ side, winning the 1600, 400 and 800 meters.  Priscilla Rodriguez won both the 100 and 400 hurdles; while Tohopekaliga’s Sofia Delgado took both the shot and discus.  Celebration’s Evelyn Juden and Sophia Meadows were a part of two winning relay teams (4 x 800 and 4 x 400); while the Storm’s Anna Balba won the 200 meters and ran a leg on the winning 4 x 400 team.

Next up for track is district meets.  St. Cloud, Harmony, Osceola, Poinciana and Tohopekaliga will competed in the Class 4A, District 7 meet April 18 at Viera; Celebration will be at the 4A, District 6 meet at George Jenkins (April 17) and Gateway and Liberty will competed in the 3A, District 7 meet April 19 at Lake Region.

2025 Orange Belt Conference

Team Scores

Boys:  St. Cloud 165.5; Gateway 138.5; Celebration 82, Poinciana 80, Harmony 69.5, Tohopekaliga 67.5, Osceola 57, Liberty 41.

Girls: St. Cloud 156, Harmony 154.5, Osceola 107, Celebration 96, Gateway 72.5, Tohopekaliga 62, Poinciana 51, Liberty 0

Individual Champions

Girls

  • 800-Meter Relay:  Celebration (Claire Reburn Sophia Meadows Carly Robbins Evelyn Juden), 10:23.96
  • 100-Hurdles:  Priscilla Rodriguez (SC) 15.42
  • 100-Meter:  Christ Guerrier (H)  12.47
  • 1600-Meters:  Kyla Perez (SC) 5:44.25
  • 4 x 100 Relay:  Harmony  (D’Vinity Cook Jamya Louverture Brianna Collins Nicole Oliveira) :51.15
  • 400-Meters:  Kyla Perez (SC)  1:00.01
  • 400-Meter Hurdles:  Priscilla Rodriguez (1:08.34)
  • 800-Meters:  Kyla Perez (SC) 2:26.21
  • 200-Meters:  Anna Balba ( C) 25.62
  • 3200-Meters:  Lailana Decker (SC)  12:01.24
  • 4 x 400 Relay:   Celebration  (Anna Balba, Carly Robbins, Sophia Meadows. Evelyn Juden) 4:05.58
  • High Jump:  Joy Duncan (Poinciana)  5’-5 ¾”
  • Pole Vault:  Brooke Bonesteel (SC)  9’-6 ¼”
  • Long Jump:  Aaliyah Strachen (O) 18’-8 ½”
  • Triple Jump: Cheyenne Pryce (O) 36’=5 ¾”
  • Discus:  Sofia Delgado (T) 107’-11”
  • Shot Put:  Sofia Delgado (T) 33’-10 ¾”
  • Javelin:  Sophia Meadows (C ) 97’-10”

Boys

  • 800-Meter Relay:  St. Cloud (Brody Ansbaugh, Adon Elienist, Jayden Chofooklun, Silas Corchado), 8:31.34
  • 110-Hurdles:  Christ Guerrier (Tohopekaliga) 15.22
  • 100-Meters:  Jose Calderon (G) 10.51
  • 1600-Meters:  Levi Lee (P)  4:29.31
  • 4 x 100 Relay:  Liberty (Luke Herron, Jenarr Cobb, Kelly Milein, Alverez Toussaint) :42.74
  • 400-Meters:  Jose Calderon (G) 49.03
  • 400-Meter Hurdles:  Denzel Hawkins (SC) 58.03
  • 800-Meters:  Levi Lee (P) 1:59.09
  • 200-Meters:  Jose Calderon (G) 21.78
  • 3200-Meters:  Levi Lee (P) 10:17.89
  • 4 x 400 Relay:  St. Cloud  (Adon Elienist, Denzel Hawkins, Yossiel Rodriguez, Jayden Chofooklun)  3:29.74
  • High Jump:  Jonathan Rodriguez (SC) 6’-1 1/2”
  • Pole Vault:  Mason Shafer (SC) 14’-6”
  • Long Jump:  Tyler Johnson (P) 21’-7”
  • Triple Jump: Tyler Johnson (P) 49’-9 ¾”
  • Discus:  Gavin Konopka ( C) 136’-10”
  • Shot Put:  Gavin Konopka (C ) 50’-2”
  • Javelin:  Ivaniel Ramos (H) 144’-3”