It was another exciting day for LaPorte Boys Track and Field at the Valparaiso Regional that resulted in the Slicers earning 5 top 3 or auto qualifying finishes in 4 events. Highlighting the meet was senior captain Malachi Washington, who used his 6th and final throw to jump into a 3rd place finish in the discus event, and followed that up with a 3rd place finish in the shot put as well. Washington is the first LaPorte thrower to qualify for state in both throws in the same season in over 30 years! Meanwhile in the High Jump competition, junior Preston Scheidt continued his ascension by equaling his personal best with a jump of 6-2, good for 2nd overall in the event based on attempts and fouls throughout the evening and earning a trip to the state meet! In the long jump competition, junior Destin Matzke brushed off a tough day in the high jump event, and used his 6th and final jump to set a personal best, and automatic state meet qualifying leap of 22-5, which was good enough for a 4th place finish! That jump also puts him #5 all-time in LPTF history! Finally, junior Casey Cochran continued his remarkable season in the shot put by earning a 2nd place overall finish with a personal best toss of 54-10. That throw was a mere 2 inches away from the winning throw of the night and ties him for #5 all-time in LPTF history in the event. Almost just as remarkable is the fact that all four of these athletes are making their first trips to the state finals in the same season, and will compete at the IHSAA State Finals at Indianapolis North Central High School next Saturday! These results were also good enough for a 6th place overall team finish among the more than 35 teams competing. Special shout out to the large contingent of LaPorte Slicer fans that turned out last night to watch our guys compete as well! We appreciate your support this season! Full results can be found at https://in.milesplit.com/meets/734916-ihsaa-regional-1-boys-2026/results