High school track and field season is off and running. Here’s a quick rundown with a portion of the area’s top talent and some things to know about the season:

Athletes to watch

1. Jonah Young, Cedarville: Senior represented the Indians at D-III state championships by advancing in the 300 hurdles.

2. Dalton Caudill, Greeeview: Senior qualified for D-II regional in both the 400 dash and discus.

3. Philip Cook, Mechanicsburg: Sophomore finished eighth at D-II regional in the vault and runner-up at district. Also ran on the 1,600-relay team that qualified for regional.

4. Will Holmes, Shawnee: Junior qualified for 1,600 run at D-II state championships.

5. Dusty Seelig, Shawnee: Junior sprinter placed fifth at regional in D-II meet.

6. Caleb Lloyd, Springfield: Senior hurdler grabbed podium finish in 300 hurdles at D-I district.

7. Justis Seitz, Tecumseh: Senior is a CBC front-runner in both the 110 and 300 hurdles after finishing 6th at D-I regional.

8. Seth Donohoe, Triad: Cardinals will look to senior to earn points in the long jump (season-best 19-foot last season) and high jump (6-0).

9. Taylor Cordell, West Liberty-Salem: Senior goes for a third trip to D-III state championships in 110 hurdles (eighth as a sophomore, interfered with as a junior) and played a key role on the Tigers’ stellar relays.

10. Connor Gravely-Norvello, Yellow Springs: Junior looks to build off podium finish at D-III district meet.

8 things to know

1. Watch for the West Liberty-Salem Tigers to make tracks in the relays. Seniors Taylor Cordell, Connor Karg and Kelvin Shank were members of the 1,600 relay that finished sixth at state in D-III. That trio, along with junior Kam Evans, attempts to break the school record of 3:24.13. The Tigers missed it by 0.1 seconds last year. Karg also missed the 400 meter record by .04 seconds. That record has stood for 22 years.

2. Numbers are up at Yellow Springs. Coach John Gudgel has 22 athletes, which is the most the Bulldogs have had in more than eight years.

3. Yellow Springs freshman Cameron Haught will compete in distance events, but not his best event. That’s because the OHSAA doesn’t offer it. Haught is an All-American in the race walk. He finished second in the 3,000 meters (15-16 age group) at the USA Junior Olympic Track & Field Nationals last August with a personal-best 15:18.36.

4. Senior Joe Ziegler and sophomore Philip Cook could put Mechanicsburg over the top … in the pole vault, that is. Cook won the Ohio Heritage Conference and Ziegler finished third, giving the Indians a solid 1-2 punch.

5. Bragging rights are up for grabs in late May at the conference championships. Here’s the rundown on the dates: OHC, May 15 at Greeneview; CBC, May 17 at Benjamin Logan; GWOC, May 16 at Centerville; MBC, May 17 at Yellow Springs.

6. Shawnee attempts to defend its CBC Kenton Division championship. Over in the Mad River Division, Ben Logan goes for a fifth straight title.

7. As long as we’re circling dates, add these. The district meet is held the week of May 19-24 and regional folows May 28-31. Visit www.swdab.org for sites and division placements.

8. The high school track and field season runs its course at the state championships in Columbus. The state meet will be held June 6-7 at Jesse Owens Memorial Stadium.