EUGENE, Ore. — Four members of the Chautauqua Striders Track Club competed at the USATF Junior Olympics Track & Field Championships last month.

Talon Rowland, Declan Kennedy, Gavin Stearns and Ethan Verbosky qualified for the event after placing in the top five of their respective events at the USATF Region 2 Championships at SUNY Cortland.

Competing in the Boys 17-18 age group, Rowland placed 29th out of 82 runners in the 400 meters with a time of 49.91; Kennedy (Boys 17-18) posted a time of 16.31 in the 110-meter hurdles; Stearns (Boys 17-18) finished 18th out of 41 high jumpers with a leap of 6 feet, 4 inches; and Verbosky (Boys 15-16) placed 29th out of 81 runners in the 800 meters with a time of 2:04.24. Verbosky also placed 21st out of 73 runners in the 3,000 meters with a time of 9:20.73.

The local quartet competed with more than 8,000 athletes from across the country.

“I’m proud of these kids and how determined they were to go out there and compete,” Striders Track Club coach Nick Abdo said. “Making a trip across the country and still maintaining the focus on performing isn’t easy to do. The athletes may not have performed as well as they wanted to, but now they have a taste of what it takes to be at the top. I can’t wait for next year’s championships.”