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2019 OHSAA Track & Field State Championships Coverage Page

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2019 State Tournament Information

State Tournament Recaps

Pickerington Central Wins First Boys Track & Field State Title; Gahanna Lincoln Wins Second Girls Track & Field State Title
 
COLUMBUS, Ohio – Pickerington Central won its first boys Division I track and field team state championship, and Gahanna Lincoln won its second girls state title at the 2018 Ohio High School Athletic Association track and field state tournament at Jesse Owens Memorial Stadium at The Ohio State University on Saturday.
 
Highlighting the Gahanna Lincoln Lady Lions’ championship was the record-breaking 4x800M relay team of Shynae Deas, Allison Groves, Claire Steigerwald, and Madison Martinez. The team ran a time of 8:53.49, breaking the OHSAA Division I state record by over three seconds. Martinez and Deas were also a part of the state-champion 4x400M relay team (3:47.99), joined by Alexis Thigpen and Joi Bradley. Martinez added a first-place finish in the 800M (2:08.89) following a second-place finish in 2017, with Deas finishing fourth (2:10.60). Steigerwald contributed an additional eight points, of the team’s total 51, by finishing second in the 3200M (10:29.85). Freshman Faith Hunter placed second in the high jump (5-09.00). It was Gahanna Lincoln’s second girls track and field team state championship as the Lady Lions’ tied Cincinnati Withrow for first in 2015.
 
The teams from Lancaster and Twinsburg tied for second with 31 points each. Senior Hope Purcell was the lone participant for Lancaster. Purcell placed first in the high jump (5-09) and long jump (19-05), third in the 100M hurdles (13.97), and fourth in the 300M hurdles (44.11). Purcell was also the high jump state champion in 2017.
 
Ten podium finishes good for 58 points helped Pickerington Central win its first boys track and field team state championship. The 4x400M relay team of Evan Matthews, Crockett Schooler, Terry Simuel and Zach Robinson topped the podium (3:17.70), with Matthews adding a first-place finish in the 300M hurdles (37.13) and Matt Scrape doing the same in the 3200M (9:02.01). Scrape finished second in the 3200M in 2017. Additionally, Matthews and Robinson were joined by Malcomb Briley and Denzell Feagin on the second-place 4x200M relay team (1:26.63). Feagin reached the podium twice more, finishing fourth in the 100M (10.78) and sixth in the 200M (21.79).
 
The Centerville boys team finished second, with junior Yariel Soto contributing 28 of the team’s 36.5 points. Soto finished first in the long jump (24-02.75) and pole vault (15-06.00) and was a part of the second-placed 4x400M relay team (3:19.58).
 
Dublin Coffman senior Abby Steiner capped off an impressive high school career with four record-breaking sprints. In Friday’s preliminaries, Steiner broke her own state records in the 100M (11.47) and 200M (23.17). In Saturday’s finals, she accomplished the feats again, running 11.38 in the 100M and 22.73 in the 200M. The first-place finish in the 200M is the fourth of her career, making her the fourth girl in OHSAA history to win the 200M state championship four times. After her third consecutive state championship in the 100M, Steiner now owns five of the six fastest 100M times in OHSAA state tournament history, and five of the top seven 200M times. According to the NFHS.org record book, prior to this season, Steiner’s 22.73 in the 200M is only surpassed by Olympians Marion Jones (1992 – 22.67) and Allyson Felix (2003 – 22.52). Steiner finished her career with nine individual state championships, which ties her for ninth in OHSAA history.
 
Beachwood Wins Back-to-Back Girls Track and Field State Championships; Cuyahoga Valley Christian Academy Boys Bring Home First
 
COLUMBUS, Ohio – For the second year in a row, the Beachwood Lady Bison are the OHSAA girls track and field team champions, while Cuyahoga Valley Christian Academy won its first boys title at the 2018 OHSAA track and field state tournament at Jesse Owens Memorial Stadium at The Ohio State University on Saturday.
 
Beachwood edged second-place Akron Buchtel 38-31. Senior Mia Knight led the Lady Bison, being a part of 30 of the team’s 38 points. Knight finished first and broke OHSAA Division II state records in the 100M (11.65) and 200M (23.96), while also being on the first-place 4x100M relay (48.19) team with Cayla Jeff, Ashley Perryman and Ashaunti Griffin. Griffin, Knight and Perryman were also on the 2017 4x100M state championship relay team. Perryman earned four more team points by finishing fifth in the long jump (17-05.75).
 
Relays earned the majority of the 31 points for second-place Buchtel. The relay team of Nevaeh Lewis, London Green, Drew Oliver and Dyamond Myers earned state champ honors in the 4x200M (1:42.60) and placed second in the 4x100M (48.48). In the 4x400M relay, Lewis and Myers teamed up with Dana Beasley and Da’Veonna Nash to take second (4:00.07).
 
Cuyahoga Valley Christian Academy used six top-three finishes to win the 2018 OHSAA Division II boys track and field team state championship. CVCA outscored second-place Dayton Dunbar 51-44. CVCA junior Tre Tucker contributed a tournament-high 36 points. Tucker finished first in the 100M (10.78), first in the long jump (22-10.50), third in the 200M (22.00) and was joined by Jay Patsch, Justin Luiza and Jonathan Solomon on the state champion 4x200M (1:28.51) relay team. Jonathan Solomon finished third in the 300M hurdles (38.32) and Sam Bush did the same in the 800M (1:54.12).
 
After winning the state championship three of the four previous seasons, the Dunbar boys track and field team earned its seventh runner-up trophy. The Flyers were led by second-place finishes in the 100M hurdles, 4x200M relay and 4x100M relay, and a third-place finish in the 4x400M relay.
 
For the third year in a row, the 4x800M girls relay team from Chagrin Falls took first place. Junior Catherine Coffey and senior Annie Zimmer have been a part of the team all three years.
 
Perry junior Leah King topped the podium in the 100M hurdles and 300M hurdles in record-breaking fashion. King broke the OHSAA Division II girls record in the 100M hurdles (13.89) and tied the state meet record in the 300M hurdles (42.55).
 
East Canton Wins Back-to-Back OHSAA Boys Track & Field Team State Championships; Minster Girls Win 13th Track & Field Team Title
 
COLUMBUS, Ohio – Minster won its 13th girls state title and the East Canton boys won back-to-back titles at the 2018 OHSAA Track and Field State Tournament at Jesse Owens Memorial Stadium at The Ohio State University on Saturday.
 
Their first since 2004, the Minster Wildcats’ 13 titles places them second behind Cleveland Heights Beaumont’s 16. Sophomore Emma Watcke led the Wildcats with a first-place finish in the 1600M (5:00.15) and a second-place finish in the 3200M (11:13.45), while also running the third leg for the state champion 4x800M relay team. The team of Cassie Francis, Kaitlynn Albers, Watcke and Madeline Magoto finished the 4x800M relay in 9:18.41, nearly 12 seconds ahead of the second-place Gilmour Academy team. Magoto and Francis finished third (2:15.70) and fourth (2:16.07) respectively in the 800M, and were both on the fourth-place 4x400M (4:00.52) relay team.
 
For the first time in school history, Covington took home the OHSAA girls track and field team runner-up trophy. Senior Rayna Horner led the Lady Buccs by being a part of 24 of the team’s total 32 points. Horner was on the first-place 4x400M (3:56.71) relay team, the second-place 4x200M (1:44.51) relay team and took third in the 400M (57.56).
 
The East Canton Hornets repeated as the OHSAA Division III boys track and field team champions by racking up a tournament-high 64 points via 11 podium finishes. The Hornets’ 64 points are tied for the most in Division III since the OHSAA switched to the Divisional format in 1990. Eight of the 11 podium finishes for the Hornets were in the top four, including a first-place finish for senior Josh Conrad in the 800M (1:53.99), and a first-place relay finish in the 4x400M (3:20.90) from the team of Mitch Mitchell, Cody Vacco, Joel Berger and Conrad. Conrad also finished fourth in the high jump (6-06.00) and was on the second-place 4x800M (7:54.49) relay team. Berger added third-place finishes in the pole vault (14-08.00) and 110M hurdles (14.74) and a fourth-place finish in the 300M hurdles (38.92).
 
Just as it happened in 2017, Smithville was the OHSAA Division III boys track and field team runner-up. The Smithies were led by senior Cole Smith, who earned state champion honors in the 110M hurdles (14.18) and the 300M hurdles (38.04).
 
Manfield St. Peter’s senior Alysse Wade became the 100M hurdles state champion for the second consecutive year. Wade broke the Division III girls state record in both the prelims (14.31) and the finals (14.07).
 
New Albany’s Michael Fenster and Lodi Cloverleaf’s Brooklynn Crist Sweep Seated Races
 
COLUMBUS, Ohio – For the second consecutive year, New Albany senior Michael Fenster won all three boys seated track events that he entered (100M – 17.68, 400M – 1:02.68, 800M – 2:08.84). Fenster finished his high school career with seven individual state championships. Lodi Cloverleaf freshman Brooklynn Crist won all three girls seated races (100M – 20.55, 400M – 1:15.91, 800M – 2:44.11).

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State Tournament Announcements

2019 OHSAA State Track and Field Championships
 
State Meet Traffic & Parking Information
Guests coming to Jesse Owens Memorial Stadium for the state track and field meet should use State Route 315 and exit at Ackerman Road. For reference, Jesse Owens Memorial Stadium is located at 2450 Fred Taylor Drive, Columbus, Ohio.  Please follow the direction of the traffic & parking attendants for the nearest available parking. 
  • Parking Maps
  • RV Parking – FEES APPLY.  RVs are permitted to park in the Buckeye Lot #2, which is located north of the shot put and discus areas (west of Fred Taylor Drive).  Please view parking map above for specific lot.
RVs that arrive on Thursday must use the pay-to-park and purchase three parking spaces () Parking is free beginning Friday morning in designated lots.
  • Participant Drop Off and School Vehicle Parking.  For state qualifying participant drop-off, buses and school transportation vehicles will be allowed to drop-off athletes along Irving Schottenstein Drive.  Please access this road from Olentangy River Road.
    • Buses – will be permitted to remain parked along Irving Schottenstein Drive.  Overflow parking will be along Jack Nicklaus Drive.  Please follow the directions provided by the traffic & parking attendants.
    • School Transportation Vehicles – will be permitted to drop off along Irving Schottenstein Drive and directed to park in the gray lots, south of Jesse Owens Memorial Stadium (see on parking map).
 
Facility Diagram
 
New Building Construction in Area
There have been multiple construction projects taking place in the surrounding area of Jesse Owens Memorial Stadium.  Team camp sites, access roads and parking lots may have changed since your last visit.  Please familiarize yourself with the parking map & facility diagram and follow the instruction of the traffic officers, parking attendants and event staff.
 
Stadium Open May 30 from 4:00 to 6:00
Only the track at Jesse Owens Memorial Stadium (not the shot put or discus areas) will be open from 4 p.m. until 6 p.m. on Thursday, May 30, for state qualifiers to visit. No implements (including batons, hurdles, starter blocks, shot puts, discus, etc.) are permitted. The facility will not open until exactly 4 p.m. and will close promptly at 6 p.m. On Thursday, ALL VEHICLES must pay the automatic teller machines for the hourly rate. Parking is free on Friday and Saturday.
 
Spike Regulation
Only pyramid spikes no longer than 1/4" are permitted. Needle spikes and Christmas tree spikes are not permitted. The clerks will be checking spike length just before the races and at check-in. If a competitor is in violation of this rule, he/she will not be allowed to participate.
 
Temporary Tents Not Permitted in Pole Vault Area
Temporary tents are not permitted in the pole vault area at Jesse Owens Memorial Stadium.
 
Coach Infield Passes for Pole Vault and High Jump
Schools that have a state qualifier in pole vault and high jump will receive one infield pass for a coach. Only one pass is given per school. The passes are specific for event, division and gender and are valid only when those competitions are being held.
 
 

Tournament Recaps

DIVISION I
COLUMBUS, Ohio - Pickerington Central won its second-consecutive boys Division I track and field team state championship, and Liberty Township Lakota East won its first girls track and field team state title at the 2019 Ohio High School Athletic Association state tournament at Jesse Owens Memorial Stadium Saturday.
 
Pickerington Central won back-to-back titles in record-breaking fashion, finishing with an OHSAA boys all-division record 87 team points. Central’s 87 points broke Cleveland Glenville’s mark of 80 points set in 2004. The Tigers also made history by sweeping all four relay events for the first time in state tournament history. The 4x800M relay team of sophomore Garner Wallace, freshman Jailen Willis and seniors Terry Simuel and Brady Johnson took first with a time of 7:42.68. Sophomore Lorenzo Styles, senior Evan Matthews, Simuel and senior Denzell Feagin broke the state record in the 4x200M relay with a time of 1:24.42, the 14th-fastest time ever in high school according to the NFHS record book, and the fastest time ever by a school outside of Texas. Junior Darnell Bonner and sophomore Keith Moton joined Styles and Feagin to win the 4x100M relay (41.49). In the 4x400M relay, Simuel, Matthews, Wallace and senior Brady Johnson finished in 3:16.34, over two seconds faster than second place. Feagin added first-place finishes in the 100M (10.67) and 200M (21.44) dashes after finishing fourth and sixth a year ago, Matthews repeated as state champion in the 300M hurdles (37.07), Johnson finished third in the 800M run (1:52.80), Wallace placed fourth in the 1600M run (4:16.01) and Styles rounded out the Tigers’ podium finishes with a third-place finish in the 100M dash (10.85).
 
Toledo Whitmer earned its second OHSAA boys track and field team runner-up finish, scoring 24 points. Two second-place finishes highlighted the tournament for Whitmer. Senior Jacob Harris in the 3200M run (9:14.34) and junior Tre Young in the pole vault (16-02.00).
 
The Thunderhawks of Liberty Township Lakota East took first in the girls Division I state tournament with a team score of 65 via nine top-five podium finishes. The team’s 65 points is tied for the third-most in OHSAA girls Division I history and the most since 2009. Senior Kaylyn Heath and junior Serena Clark racked up 32 points in the 100M and 200M dashes with Heath finishing first (11.93) and fifth (24.77), and Clark finishing second (12.12) and first (24.08), respectively. Heath and Clark, joined by junior Dawn Hilton and freshman Azariyah Bryant, reached the top of the podium again in the 4x100M relay with an OHSAA girls Division I record time of 45.82. Hilton and Bryant were a part of the second-place 4x200M relay (1:39.32), joined by senior Danni Stoughton and sophomore Camiyah James. Stoughton added a fifth-place finish in the 400M run (56.69), while Bryant (18-05.25) and James (17-11.75) took third and fourth in the long jump.
 
Mentor edged the returning state champion Gahanna Lincoln 41-40 to earn girls team runner-up honors. Sophomore Paige Floriea helped contribute 32 of the 41 points with a first-place finish and Jesse Owens Stadium record in the long jump (19-09.75), a third-place finish in the 100M dash (12.13) and second-place finish in the 200M dash (24.29) and by being on the second-place 4x400M relay team (3:49.48).
 
Riley Hunt, a sophomore from Greenville, broke the OHSAA girls record in the pole vault with a vault of 13-07.00, breaking her previous record from earlier this season by half an inch.
 
DIVISION II
COLUMBUS, Ohio - Cincinnati Indian Hill won its first girls team state championship and Shelby won its third boys state title at the 2019 OHSAA Division II track and field state tournament on Saturday at Jesse Owens Memorial Stadium.
 
Senior Anna Podojil of Cincinnati Indian Hill led the Braves with a podium finish in all four of her events. Podojil finished first in the 400M dash (53.67), third in the 200M dash (24.73), sixth in the 100M dash (12.48) and was on the Division II record-breaking 4x400M relay (3:49.30) team with sophomore Meghan Obrien, junior Ellie Podojil and freshman Elizabeth Whaley. Whaley and Obrien teamed up with juniors Claudia Hollander and Amy Prugh to finish sixth in the 4x800M relay (9:29.59), while Ellie Podojil finished third in the 300M hurdles (43.55) and Whaley added a fourth-place finish in the 1600M (5:03.31). Indian Hill finished the tournament with 43 team points.
 
The Lumberjills of Dayton Oakwood finished as runners-up in the Division II girls tournament with a total of 28 team points. Freshman Grace Hartman led the team with a second-place finish in the 1600M (4:53.43), a first-place finish in the 3200M (10:56.35) and was on the fifth-place 4x800M relay team. Junior Elizabeth Vaughn joined Hartman on the 4x800M relay team and added a third-place finish in the 3200M run (11:00.24).
 
Shelby won its third OHSAA boys track and field team state championship by way of seven top-four finishes. Junior Caleb Brown led the Whippets with three first-place finishes. Brown won the 1600M run with a time of 4:16.56, the 3200M run in 9:29.58 and was on the state-champion 4x800M relay team with seniors Blake Lucious, Samuel Logan and Sam Swanger. Lucious also took first in the 800M run (1:53.58) and Logan added a third-place finish in the 1600M (4:19.17) and a fourth-place finish in the 3200M run (9:38.60). Senior Uriah Schwemley rounded out Shelby’s 57 team points by taking third in the high jump with a jump of 6-06.00.
 
After winning its first boys track and field state championship in 2018, Cuyahoga Falls CVCA finished as the team runner-up in 2019. Senior Tre Tucker led the team by contributing 38 of the teams total 43 points, upping his 36-point contribution in 2018. Tucker repeated as the state champion in the 100M dash (10.90) and the long jump (23-03.50), took first in 200M dash (21.66) after finishing in third last year, and was on the second-place 4x100M relay team with juniors Shane Douglas and Justin Luiza and senior Jay Patsch. It was CVCA’s third track and field team runner-up finish.
 
DIVISION III
COLUMBUS, Ohio - West Liberty-Salem won its first girls track and field team state championship, while the East Canton boys completed the three-peat at the 2019 OHSAA Division III state tournament at Jesse Owens Memorial Stadium on Saturday.
 
West Liberty-Salem compiled 50 points on the way to its first girls track and field team state championship without a single senior qualifier. Following the first event of the weekend, freshman Megan Adams, junior Grace Adams and sophomores Madison Bahan and Katelyn Stapleton stood atop the podium for the 4x800M relay with a winning time of 9:19.08. The Tigers also took first in the 4x200M relay (1:44.24) with a team of sophomores Kaylee LeVan and Grace Estes, junior Alex Burton and freshman Emily Hollar. Bahan, Stapleton, Estes and Hollar teamed up for a second-place finish in the 4x400M relay (3:58.95), and Adams added another second-place finish in the 1600M run (5:01.12). The Tigers final three podium finishes came in the 4x100M relay, the 400M dash and the pole vault.
 
For the first time in program history, the Archbold girls track and field team is heading home with the state runner-up trophy. Senior Dakota Stamm scored 32 of the team’s total 39 points. Stamm earned state champion honors in the 400M run (55.82), was on the first-place 4x400M relay team with seniors Iris Pena and Gwynne Riley and sophomore Kylie Sauder, and was part of the third-place finishing 4x800M and 4x200M relay teams.
 
For the third-consecutive year, East Canton is the 2019 OHSAA Division III boys track and field team state champion. The Hornets got off to a good start with a first-place finish in the 4x800M relay (7:56.34) with a team of seniors Colt Hemphill and Kyeem Newell-Owens, junior Demetrius Snellenberger and freshman Nick Martino. Snellenberger took second in the 1600M run (4:24.20), Hemphill did the same in the 800M run (1:54.71) and junior Gavin Shoeneman added a second-place finish of his own in the high jump (6-06.00). A seventh-place finish in the 4x100M relay and a third-place finish in the 4x400M relay concluded the team’s 42 points.
 
Columbiana Crestview earned its first boys track and field team runner-up trophy with just five state tournament qualifiers. The relay team of sophomores Brandon Yanssens and Ethan Powell, and seniors Dylan Huff and Jayce Meredith won both the 4x100M and the 4x200M relays, with a Division III state meet record time of 1:27.71 in the 4x200M relay. Senior Dominic Perry earned the team’s third first-place finish in the shot put (62-11.00) and Dylan Huff added the final six team points by finishing third in the 200M dash (22.10).
 
Kalida senior Josh Verhoff broke the Division III state record in the boys 200M dash with a time of 21.39, breaking the previous record of 21.50 set in 1995. Verhoff also finished second in the 100M dash.
 
In 2017 and 2018, Castalia Margaretta’s Kassidie Stimmel earned Division III girls pole vault state champion honors in her junior and senior seasons. This year, her sister Kenna Stimmel, a freshman at Margaretta, broke the Division III girls pole vault state record with a vault of 13-00.25 and was presented the with the first-place medal by her sister Kassidie.
 
The 2019 state tournament’s total attendance was 28,852.
 
SEATED DIVISION
COLUMBUS, Ohio - Lodi Cloverleaf sophomore Brooklynn Crist upped her number of individual state championships to five after winning the girls 100M dash (23.85) and shot put (16-05.75) at the 2019 OHSAA Track and Field State Championships at Jesse Owens Memorial Stadium. Westerville Central senior Lyssa Zepfel won the 400M dash (1:20.15) and 800M run (2:54.23).
 
Bloomdale Elmwood freshman Jaydon Jenkins won the boys 400M dash (1:00.17) and 800M run (2:05.10). Jenkins added a second-place finish in the 100M dash (17.86), finishing 0.17 seconds behind Whitehouse Anthony Wayne sophomore Aiden Green. Mount Gilead senior Bradley London won the boys shot put with a state-meet record throw of 25-03.00.

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