LAKEWOOD – Brady Mollendor began competing in the high jump because a teammate encouraged him to give it a try.
On Thursday, Mollendor made that former teammate proud.
A senior at Sedgwick County, Mollendor won the Class 2A boys high jump at the state track and field championships at Jefferson County Stadium. He had winning jump of 6 feet, 4 inches.
“This one, it kind of came randomly last year,” Mollendor said. “I had a buddy (former teammate Jace Ehmke) that was in it, and he convinced me to do it, and said he’d work with me on it. He’s graduated now, but he was always happy to see me doing well, and we were kind of dynamic in the high jump a little bit.”
Ehmke finished seventh last year, while Mollendor tied for second. This year, he posted a personal-best jump to win state.
“I wish he was here, but this one means a little bit more in that case,” he said. “Just kind of because he’s the one that got me to where I am.”
By winning the high jump, Mollendor now has titles in all three jumps. He won the long jump in 2025 and the triple jump as a freshman in 2023. He will compete in both jumps this weekend.
“It feels good,” he said of kicking off the weekend with a win. “It’s relieving definitely, and it kind of takes a little bit of the pressure off.”
Sedgwick County is also aiming for a second-straight team title and Mollendor said that is fuel for him as an individual.
“Last year, winning it as a team, we’re all kind of holding ourselves to a higher standard, and I know we all feel the pressure,” he said. “So it just feels relieving.”
Alec Lundy of Heritage Christian was second in the high jump, at 6-2. He was the runner-up in 2024, as well, but his leap Thursday was a season-best.
In the only other event final of the day in 2A boys, Forge Christian won the state title in the 4x800 meter relay.
The Fury finished in 8 minutes, 12.88 seconds, topping second-place Thomas MacLaren, who posted a time of 8:18.
Owen Gonzales, Andrew Kammerlohr, Titus Kammerlohr and Jack Thompson teamed up for the victory for Forge Christian.
With only two events completed, Sedgwick County and Forge Christian are tied for the team lead with 10 points.