The Freeman amateur baseball team evened up its season record at 6-6 with a 6-2 win over Renner at Renner Sunday night, June 25 behind a complete-game effort from starting pitcher and team manager Jake Weier. Weier had good control all night long; of the 111 ptiches he threw, 84 went for strikes. The two earned runs he allowed came on eight hits and he struck out nine in the strong outing.

JEREMY WALTNER - PUBLISHER For generations in both Freeman and Menno, baseball has been one of the hottest summertime tickets in town, so why should 2023 be any different? It’s not. From youth ball clubs to teener teams to amateur squads that go by the names Blacksox and Mad Frogs, the season on the diamond has been underway since last month and, for some, will continue well into July. Here’s a closer look. Blacksox

CLICK HERE FOR A GALLERY OF IMAGES FEATURING FREEMAN ACADEMY/MARION, FREEMAN PUBLIC AND MENNO ATHLETES COMPETING AT THE 2023 STATE TRACK AND FIELD CHAMPIONSHIPS

Jada Koerner | 800 7th, 2:23.23 (Incoming best: 3rd, 2:22.77)   Koerner | 1600

Rocky Ammann | Long Jump 21st, 17-3 ¼ (Incoming best: 24th, 19-1 ¼)   Ammann | Pole Vault

Seth Ahalt | Discus 13th, 125-10 (Incoming best: 24th, 127-11)   Ashton Massey | 100 hurdles prelim

The homestretch of the 1600-meter run at Howard Wood Field Saturday afternoon featured Jada Koerner at her best — strong, determined and, in the end, successful. Competing at the 2023 State Track & Field Championships in Sioux Falls, the Freeman Academy graduate turned on the burners to pick up several places in the final lap of the race and come away with a 5th-place finish in the mile. Her clocking of 5:24.25 was well in front of her incoming best of 5:38.04, which had her 11th in the field, and was a PR to send her off into the high school prep sports sunset.

It was well known that the Menno High School boys had their eyes fixated on bringing home a team plaque from this week's State Track & Field Championships in Sioux Falls, and that they did. So did the girls. In what may be the strongest overall finish for the track and field program in Menno school history, the boys ended up sixth while the girls finished fifth in the team standings — both finding a coveted place when the team awards were announced following the three-day competition Saturday afternoon. CLASS B BOYS

Ashton Massey did it. Three hours after winning the 100 hurdles and just over an hour after winning the triple jump, the Menno junior emerged as a triple gold medalist by claiming her third individual title at the 2023 SDHSAA State Track & Field Championships — the 300 hurdles. Massey finished 47.19. She was third in the 100 hurdles and fourth in the 300 hurdles as a sophomore last year.

The Freeman High School girls had the lead as Zenovia Butler took the baton for the anchor carry in the 4x100, leaving only the fastest runner in the entire women's field — Colman-Egan senior Daniela Lee — to catch her. Which she did. But the Flyers' exhilarating runner-up finish reflects the surge the FHS girls have seen toward the end of the season, as the relay team of Butler, Makenzie Scharberg, Rylee Peters and Kate Miller set five consecutive PRs going into Saturday's final. They went into the state meet third in the Class B field.