The Hopkins girls’ varsity track team came up with a huge dual meet victory Thursday afternoon at Belding by taking a 74-62 victory.

The Lady Vikings bested a team they shared the O-K Silver Conference title with a year ago. It was only the second dual meet loss for Belding in the last seven years, the other last year, also at the hands of Hopkins.

The boys’ squad, meanwhile, absorbed an 89-48 defeat.

It was no fewer than six 1-2 finishes in different events that made the difference of the Hopkins girls. Usually dominant in relays and distance, the Vikings found their rivals proved to be equal to the challenge.

The first and second combos were:

• Brittney Houseman and Savannah Emaus in the 100-meter dash at 13.24 and 13.82 seconds, respectively.
• Houseman and junior Laura Velderman in the 200, at 27.37 and 28.94, respectively.
• Senior Meghan Schulz and junior Shannon Henshaw in the shot put, at 3601 and 26-06.
• Schulz and Henshaw in the discus, at 97-04 and 76-07.
• Schulz and sophomore Mackenzie Wiersma in the high jump at 4-4 and 4-2.
• Houseman and Emaus in the long jump at 15-1.5 and 14-1.5.

The Lady Vikings won two of the four relays with Houseman, Emmaus, Anna Washburn and Hannah Crouch in the 400 at 55 seconds and with Velderman, Cassidy Finney, Gracie DeZeeuw and Emma Helder in the 1600 at 4:31.05.

Junior Jasmine Fisher turned in a couple of important runner-up finishes in distance, in the open 1600 at 5:48.59 and the 3200 at 13:18.87. Velderman and Helder also went 2-3 in the open 400 and Emmaus came up with a second in the pole vault with her personal best of 8-0.

For the Viking boys, junior Dan Rausch won the open 400 meters with a time of 55.84 seconds. Sophomore Todd Henley took the 1600 in 4:51.82 and he and sophomore Zach Nutter went 1-2 in the 3200 at 11:17.36 and 11:31.85, respectively.

Senior Nathan Roberts captured first place in the shot put at 40-05.5 and in the discus at 111-01. Jake Cleypool and Nathan Tew went 2-3 to give the Vikings a sweep in that event.

Junior Elliot Fair turned in his best-ever high jump at 5-7 and sophomore Trey Collins was second. Collins also was runner-up in the pole vault at 9-6 and in the long jump at 18-7.5.