COLUMBUS — Centerburg senior Tyler Boales, who has been to state the last two years but had yet to make it out of preliminaries in an individual race, did just that on Friday.
Boales finished fourth in his heat in the 100-meter dash with a time of 11.046 seconds. The time turned out to be .003 seconds faster than Ready’s Shelrick McElroy, giving Boales the right to eighth place in the field and a chance to run in the finals on Saturday.
Boales then turned around and placed second in his 200-meter prelim heat with a time of 22.22 seconds. He finished sixth-tenths of a second behind first place, and said that he probably could’ve been closer had he not slipped on his starting block. But in advancing to two individual finals on Saturday after never doing so before, Boales was content.
“It feels great,” he said, breathing heavily after completing the 200-meter. “You know, last year I didn’t make it in any individual races. So I’m just pleased that I was able to make it, and my main goal was just making it today, too. Everybody here is just way faster than anything I’ve ran against all season, so it feels good to come here and perform pretty well.
“I’m really happy about my 100 and I’m really happy about my 200, so I’m just happy with how it went and I’m excited for tomorrow.”
A promise kept
At last spring’s OHSAA Track & Field State Championships, Galion senior high jumper Marisa Gwinner finished fourth, and her coaching staff made a pact with that of the girl who placed third, Eastwood’s Katelyn Meyer.
“We said that we hope it’s down to our two girls next year,” Galion field coach Michael Moore said.
Sure enough, one year later, it happened.
The two spent the final three rounds of Friday’s Division II high jump final going back and forth, literally raising the bar with each leap. When Gwinner twisted her way over the 5-foot-6 bar, Meyer found a way to do the same after missing her first jump. Gwinner then topped the bar at 5-foot-7, and Meyer answered once more.
When Meyers struck first on the 5-foot-8 bar, however, Gwinner couldn’t respond. For the first time in nearly two hours of competition, she missed a jump. She missed three jumps. She would have to settle for second.
As she failed her final jump, though, clipping the pole as she desperately tried to arch her back around it, she sprung up off the mat with pride. She ran over and immediately hugged Moore, who said in return, “This is the most fun I’ve ever had.”
“This is probably the best meet I’ve ever had, just because I didn’t miss any jumps or anything. I felt great and even since I woke up I’ve just been jacked, I’ve been ready to go,” Gwinner said. “I just felt so calm today and after everything started clicking, the only thought that could go through my head was, you know, ‘Why not me?’”
Moore also believes that Gwinner defied expectations in her fourth and final trip to state.
“She came out here and performed. I mean if you’d asked me before today that she’s going to go 5’7’’ clean, I would have said, ‘There’s no way,’” Moore said. “She did awesome. This is probably the best jumping day she’s had.”
Galion brought two girls to the state high jump final this year, a feat that their fourth-year coach said was likely a first in school history. Sophomore Kerrigan Myers finished 12th.
Gwinner, who came up inches short of a state title, had no regrets as she stepped down from the podium and made her way back across the infield on Friday.
“You know, everything happens for a reason and just today, for me, it happened to be second place,” she said. “I’m not trying to fight it, that’s God’s plan.”
Qualifying
Wynford junior Alizah Watson finished with the third-fastest time in the Div. III boys 400-meter prelims (50.11 seconds). He will race in the finals on Saturday at 10:35 a.m.
Crestview finished third, Fredericktown fourth overall in the Div. III boys 4×400-meter relay prelims. They will race in the final on Saturday at 12 p.m.
Shelby placed third in the Div. II boys 4×800-meter relay finals with a time of 7:51.82.
Alaya Grose (Mansfield Senior) placed second in the Div. II girls 100-meter hurdles prelims while Kerrigan Myers (Galion) placed fifth. They will race in the finals on Saturday at 1 p.m.
Lexington finished fourth in the Div. I boys 4×800-meter relay final while Ashland placed eighth.
Ashland senior Hudson McDaniels placed fifth in the 300-meter hurdles prelims, advancing to finals on Saturday at 5:50 p.m.
Also competing on Saturday
Division I
Angela Grose (Mansfield Senior) in boys long jump finals – 12 p.m.
Kamrin Knowlton-Goings (Ashland) and Sam Bethea (Mount Vernon) in boys high jump finals – 3 p.m.
Joanna Halfhill (Lexington) in girls 1,600-meter finals – 5:15 p.m.
Ryan Johnston (Lexington) in boys 1,600-meter finals – 5:15 p.m.
Division II
Uriah Schwemley (Shelby) and Cameron Stine (Shelby) in boys high jump finals – 9:30 a.m.
Sam Logan (Shelby) in boys 1,600-meter finals – 1:35 p.m.
Makenna Heimlich (Shelby) in girls 800-meter finals – 2:30 p.m.
Blake Lucius (Shelby) in boys 800-meter finals – 2:30 p.m.
Becca Gregg (Ontario) in girls 3,200-meter finals – 2:45 p.m.
Caleb Brown (Shelby) in boys 3,200-meter finals – 2:45 p.m.
Division III
Drew Roberts (Ashland Mapleton), Gavin Shindeldecker (Lucas) and Chad Johnson (North Robinson Col. Crawford) in boys 1,600-meter finals – 10:05 a.m.
James Barber (Crestview), Braxton Jones (North Robinson Col. Crawford) and Paden Spencer (Fredericktown) in boys 800-meter finals – 10:55 a.m.
Sarah Thatcher (Centerburg) in girls 3,200-meter finals – 11:30 a.m.
Drew Roberts (Ashland Mapleton) and Chad Johnson (North Robinson Col. Crawford) in boys 3,200-meter finals – 11:30 a.m.
