Oak Harbor girls, Eastwood boys win district track titles
Rossford’s Clay, Genoa’s Bryer capture 2 events
5/24/2014Oak Harbor is used to hosting district track meets.
Figuring out how to win a district team championship hadn't been part of the experience during Oak Harbor girls track coach John McKitrick's 16-year tenure.
That finally changed Friday evening when the Rockets prevailed by the slimmest of margins to become a district champ.
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Oak Harbor pulled out the title with 109 points, while defending champion Eastwood placed a close second with 108.
"We only had two winners, so we kind of nickeled and dimed our way with some third and fourth place finishes and came out with a win," McKitrick said. “And it’s always nice when it comes down to the last event of the meet to decide the outcome.”
Oak Harbor went into that last event — the 1600 relay — trailing Eastwood by a point. Karis DeWalt, Cydney St. Clair, Allie Jett, and Alexa Weis finished third with a time of 4:09.66 to give the Rockets the team title after Eastwood's Maddie Jackson, Leah Tressel, Alyssa Decker, and Meagan Kaminski placed fifth in 4:12.66.
Eastwood claimed the boys championship with 102 points, followed by Clyde with 67 points.
"It was a complete team effort," Eastwood coach Brian Sabo said.
Oak Harbor's 400 relay team (Jett, Rebekah Rayburn, St. Clair, and DeWalt) recorded one of the Rockets' victories by winning with a time of 51.02, holding off Port Clinton (Miranda Herevia, Abbey Weldon, Kayleigh Householder, Ashtyn Baney), which turned in a time of 51.94.
Weis, a freshman, delivered the Rockets' lone individual title when she won the 300 hurdles with a personal-best time of 47.56.
Rossford freshman Regan Clay earned two individual titles by finishing first in the 200 (25.08 meet record) and 400 (58.18), while also running a leg on the Bulldogs' winning 800 relay (1:45.35) and 1600 relay (4:07.08).
Port Clinton's Ashtyn Baney took the 100 title with a time of 12.66 and ran second to Clay in the 200 (26.58). Oak Harbor's Jett was third (26.63).
Eastwood's Hannah Sponaugle delivered a victory for the Eagles when she crossed the finish line first to win the 1600 with a time of 5:26.24. Teammate Sarah Bettinger made a strong push at the end to place third with a time of 5:35.93 to advance to the regional competition that takes place next week in Lexington.
Sponaugle also advanced to regionals in the 3200 by placing fourth with a time of 12:04.89.
The top four finishers in each event qualify for regional competition.
Eastwood's Brittany Brittian topped the discus competition with a throw traveling 120 feet, 11 inches. Elmwood's Katie Dewey was second (119-04), Port Clinton's Morissa Mallory third (114-6), and Oak Harbor's Jordyn Dunn fourth (113-8).
Elise Wolff delivered an effort of 10-6 in the pole vault to help Eastwood's cause, while teammate Kaleigh Obrock took fourth (9 feet). Elmwood's Courtney Emmitt cleared 9-6 and Genoa's Madison Sheahan scaled 9-3 to finish second and third, respectively.
Elmwood's Madison Sears placed second behind Clay in the 400 (1:00.13), followed by Rossford's Jessica Pietrasz and Oak Harbor's Athena Eli (1:00.58) for third and fourth, respectively.
Eastwood's Jolynn Nissen ran third in the 300 hurdles with a time of 49.06, trailed by Oak Harbor's St. Clair for fourth with a time of 49.31.
Lake's Sara Dabney cleared 4-10 to win the high jump. Elmwood's Maddy Instone and Oak Harbor's Ally Bloomer also cleared 4-10, but tied for third after needing more attempts.
Genoa's Carly Gose placed second in the 800 (2:23.89), with Bellevue's Lauren Turner beating her to the line with a time of 2:23.70. Eastwood's Maddie Jackson was third (2:24.98).
Oak Harbor's Trinity Gephart placed second in the 3200 (11:57.62).
Oak Harbor's Rebekah Rayburn and Elmwood's Liz Garner placed second and third, respectively, in the long jump. Rayburn went 16-2 and Garner registered a jump of 15-9.75.
Port Clinton's Morissa Mallory was runner-up in the shot put (37-00.75) and Lake's Lauren Ozuk was fourth (35-4.75).
Genoa's Logan Bryer swept the throwing events. He threw 179-11 in the discus, nearly 30 feet better than the next competitor. He won the shot put with a season-best effort of 61-7.
"All year I've been looking for those kind of throws," Bryer said. "It happened at the right time today. I'm looking forward to bigger and better things throughout the year and at state."
Rossford's Nate Childress placed third in the discus (147-7).
Devin Snowden and Joe Salinas ran first and third, respectively, in the 300 hurdles to help the Eagles' cause. Snowden won with a time of 38.76 and Salinas crossed the finish line with a time of 39.67. Snowden also placed second in the long jump (22-8.50).
Eastwood's Tim Hoodlebrink and Noah Smith delivered a first and third, respectively, in the 800. Hoodlebrink led from start to finish and covered the two-lap run with a time of 1:56.99. Smith was third with a time of 1:59.68, while Oak Harbor's Tyler Sievert placed second with a time of 1:58.78.
Sievert won the 1600 with a time of 4:32.83, while Lake's Scott Brittenham took third (4:34.69).
Eastwood's Brennan Seifert and Scott's Marvin Gardner qualified for regionals after finishing third and fourth, respectively, in the 200. Seifert's time was 22.96 and Gardner's was 23.01.
Lake's Brandyn Neal posted a third-place finish in the 400 (51.08).
Genoa's Kyle Bihn cleared 6-2 to place fourth in the high jump while Oak Harbor's Austin Apple finished fourth in the pole vault with an effort of 13 feet.
Contact Donald Emmons at: demmons@theblade.com, 419-724-6302 or on Twitter @DemmonsBlade.