Locals Gear Up For Girls Track State Finals
July 28, 2016 at 4:25 p.m.
By Anthony [email protected]
From Warsaw, all three of its relays will be at Indiana University’s Robert C. Haugh Track & Field Complex in Bloomington, including the 4x800 (sophomore Brooke Rhodes, freshman Allison Miller, sophomore Hannah Dawson, freshman Anna Craig), the 4x100 (junior Mariah Harter, sophomore Samantha Alexander, sophomore Audrey Rich, senior Ann Harvuot) and the 4x400 (junior Nicole Eckert, Dawson, senior Jackie Ferguson, junior Tennie Worrell).
Also from Warsaw, Eckert will compete in the 300 hurdles and senior Claire Hickerson will be in the pole vault competition.
Outside of Warsaw, Manchester freshman Rae Bedke is set to run in the 1600 and Whitko junior Elaine Warner is going to compete in long jump.
“I was not expecting this,” Whitko coach Gary Sims said about coaching a state finalist this year. “If anything, I thought we may be able to advance our high jumpers. With (senior Miranda Terrill and freshman Kaitlyn Reed), we thought there was a chance. And with Elaine, I had her in the 300 hurdles, and there, I thought she had a chance. It’s just funny how things work out.”
As it was, Warner and Terrill didn’t even get recorded times at last week’s Fort Wayne Northrop Regional and Reed was ninth at high jump, the same finish Warner had at long jump.
Even though the top three finishers in each event automatically qualify for state, those meeting state standards do as well. And at the Fort Wayne Northrop Regional, nine girls moved on to state, as Warner’s 17-6.5 just met the state standard.
“Every time she has gone out, she’s bettered her distance,” Sims said. “Every time.”
Warner snapped Whitko’s school record of 17-1.5, set by Alysia Mossburg Hammel in 1986, at the New Haven Sectional with a distance of 17-2.5.
A week later, she was once again setting a new bar and becoming the first Whitko girl since at least 1997 to qualify for the state meet, as the IHSAA archives only go back to the 1998 season.
For Warsaw, researching its recent state qualifiers is much easier, as it had six individuals and a relay at last year’s finals, but none finished in the top nine, therefore failing to score a point.
“Getting girls down to state is always a measure of success,” Warsaw girls coach Scott Erba said. “We want to bring the program to a point where we can score points, but it’s something that you look at and only nine relays or nine individuals in the state of Indiana are going to score points. That’s a special thing. We’re in a better position than we’ve ever been in, according to our seeds, to do that.”
By just looking at the seeds, Warsaw’s 4x100 relay has best shot at scoring high, as its school-record time of 48.52 seconds fares well, with the top-seeded Warren Central team posting a time of 47.75 this season.
The Warsaw foursome set the school record at last week’s regional at the Tigers Athletic Complex, and with none of the four competing in another event this week, they’ve been focused solely on it.
“Of course I would have loved to have seen Audrey make it out for the 200 or Samantha for the long jump,” Erba said of two other state hopefuls, as Rich was fifth at regionals in the 200 and Alexander was fourth at the long jump. “But for three girls being down there for the first time, it will be nice for them to be able to just focus on one thing, instead of splitting them up for individual races.”
The 4x100 may have some inexperience, but that definitely isn't the case for the 4x400, as Eckert, Ferguson and Worrell will be running the event at state for the third-straight year.
Megan Kratzsch had run with the trio the previous two seasons, but without her competing this year, the team has been trying out new girls.
Finishing second at the Northern Lakes Conference Championships, sophomore Brooke Rhodes was with the three, then Dawson jumped in for the sectional, as Ferguson had to sit it out after injuring herself during the 300 hurdles.
With Ferguson back for the regional, Rhodes stayed in the lineup, while Dawson was out. Now at state, Dawson will be back in, while Rhodes is an alternate.
Whoever has been in, there’s been a consistent time this year, and at state, the four have a seed time of 4:04.50, but hope to get down to 3:59.22, which would break the 1989 school record.
“We were scared because our 4x4 wasn’t going to look the same this year, because (Kratzsch) didn’t come out this year,” Erba said. “Instead, we’ve just had some girls fill in and be outstanding. Brooke Rhodes and Hannah Dawson or (senior) Aletheia Burritt or any girl. The chance to get a fast time on that second leg would be tremendous.”
And for Ferguson, who made it to state in last year’s 300 hurdles, but a fall in the event at sectionals cost her a repeat trip, a school record in her last prep race would be a proper send off.
“That’d be crazy,” she said. “It’s usually dark out (during the final event of the meet), so you’re running under the lights and it’s just an awesome experience. That’d be a great way to end my senior year.”
Even though she didn’t make a return trip to the 300 hurdles state finals, she’ll still be engaged in the event, rooting for Eckert, whose 45.74 is the 10th seed, one place off scoring a point and receiving a medal.
“I’m really excited for Nicole, to watch her run that, because she’s really stepped it up this year,” Ferguson said. “I’m really excited to see how she does, and hopefully she makes it up to the podium.”
A year ago, Eckert was sixth at the regional in the 300 hurdles, finishing in 48.34, while Ferguson’s 47.30 was good for third place.
Working to cut off time, Eckert’s come back stronger this year and is now on the big stage.
“All my work has paid off,” Eckert said. “It’s year-round. Conditioning starts in November, then I’m here until June.”
In a race that is only 300 meters long, a clipped hurdle or misstep can make all the difference, as seeds 7-12 are all sitting in the 45-second range.
“It’s going to be tough,” Eckert said.
The 4x800 relay is also just on the cusp of getting on the podium, as its 9:34.41 is two seconds behind eighth place and two seconds ahead of 10th.
Hickerson is also looking to make a splash in pole vault, returning to the state meet after making it her sophomore year, but coming up short as a junior.
Her clearance of 11 feet has her seeded 16th, and she’d need another six inches to realistically reach the top nine.
With so many ‘what ifs’ going on at the meet, Erba is excited to see how they play out, but isn’t overly focused on any one of them.
“I think every event, every relay, every individual has its own story behind it,” he said. “I’m so proud of the girls to have gone through the season we have, with the weather and conditions and changes we’ve needed to make and still be able to compete at the state meet. Yeah, I’d be thrilled to watch the 4x1 team break another school record and get up on the podium. I’d be thrilled to see our 4x8 drop it down and go after a school record. I’d be thrilled to see our 4x4 team break a record. I’d love to see Claire Hickerson vault the best she’s vaulted in over two years. Seeing Nicole Eckert, once again, break her personal best in the 300 hurdles. We have a lot of great opportunities to set season bests, personal bests and even school bests. If we can do that, that’d be awesome.”
For Manchester, Bedke has been setting personal and school records throughout the season, and is surprising everyone.
“I didn’t expect the times to fall the way they have,” Manchester distance coach Jody Sarber said. “The way we trained, we were looking for her best times at about the fourth or fifth meet of the season, then they usually don’t drop again until the end of the season. So, when she went 5:18 at conference, that wasn’t a surprise. After the sectional, a little bit (of a surprise). Then to drop another 10 seconds and finish second only to (defending 3200 state champion) Anna Rohrer at regionals, that was big.”
At the May 15 Three Rivers Conference Championships, Bedke finished second in the 1600 with a school-record time of 5:18.41.
Five days later, she came back to defeat the TRC champion, Northfield’s Jenna Halderman, at the Rochester Sectional, cutting over six seconds off her previous time with a finish in 5:12.19.
Still not letting up, Bedke surprised even herself at the Warsaw Regional, placing second in 5:02.97, good for the No. 9 seed at the state meet as Rohrer scratched to focus on the 3200.
Bedke is a volleyball player in the fall and basketball player in the winter, and this is the first time Sarber, the Manchester cross country coach, has gotten to work extensively with her, and it’s been anything but dull.
“We expected her times to drop pretty consistently all year, as someone who comes from volleyball and basketball should,” he said. “However, not 5:02. That was a pleasant surprise.”
With Rohrer out, Bedke's 5:02.97 was actually the fastest time in the state, outside of the West Lafayette Regional, which qualified the top eight seeds at the state meet.
With Hamilton Southeastern junior Rachel Nichwitz sporting the top time of 4:55.81, Bedke is looking forward to seeing just how much more time she can cut when competing against more of the state’s best.
“It will definitely push me more,” she said. “I’m hoping I‘ll be able to stay with them and just run my hardest.”
And if she doesn’t, she’s just going to count anything that does happen as icing on the cake.
“Anything that happens, I’ll appreciate,” she said.
And as Erba states, just getting to this stage is an accomplishment, and the girls can only control how they perform.
“We talk to our girls about performing their best of the season,” he said. “If they go down to the state meet and perform their best, you can’t ask for anything more.”[[In-content Ad]]
From Warsaw, all three of its relays will be at Indiana University’s Robert C. Haugh Track & Field Complex in Bloomington, including the 4x800 (sophomore Brooke Rhodes, freshman Allison Miller, sophomore Hannah Dawson, freshman Anna Craig), the 4x100 (junior Mariah Harter, sophomore Samantha Alexander, sophomore Audrey Rich, senior Ann Harvuot) and the 4x400 (junior Nicole Eckert, Dawson, senior Jackie Ferguson, junior Tennie Worrell).
Also from Warsaw, Eckert will compete in the 300 hurdles and senior Claire Hickerson will be in the pole vault competition.
Outside of Warsaw, Manchester freshman Rae Bedke is set to run in the 1600 and Whitko junior Elaine Warner is going to compete in long jump.
“I was not expecting this,” Whitko coach Gary Sims said about coaching a state finalist this year. “If anything, I thought we may be able to advance our high jumpers. With (senior Miranda Terrill and freshman Kaitlyn Reed), we thought there was a chance. And with Elaine, I had her in the 300 hurdles, and there, I thought she had a chance. It’s just funny how things work out.”
As it was, Warner and Terrill didn’t even get recorded times at last week’s Fort Wayne Northrop Regional and Reed was ninth at high jump, the same finish Warner had at long jump.
Even though the top three finishers in each event automatically qualify for state, those meeting state standards do as well. And at the Fort Wayne Northrop Regional, nine girls moved on to state, as Warner’s 17-6.5 just met the state standard.
“Every time she has gone out, she’s bettered her distance,” Sims said. “Every time.”
Warner snapped Whitko’s school record of 17-1.5, set by Alysia Mossburg Hammel in 1986, at the New Haven Sectional with a distance of 17-2.5.
A week later, she was once again setting a new bar and becoming the first Whitko girl since at least 1997 to qualify for the state meet, as the IHSAA archives only go back to the 1998 season.
For Warsaw, researching its recent state qualifiers is much easier, as it had six individuals and a relay at last year’s finals, but none finished in the top nine, therefore failing to score a point.
“Getting girls down to state is always a measure of success,” Warsaw girls coach Scott Erba said. “We want to bring the program to a point where we can score points, but it’s something that you look at and only nine relays or nine individuals in the state of Indiana are going to score points. That’s a special thing. We’re in a better position than we’ve ever been in, according to our seeds, to do that.”
By just looking at the seeds, Warsaw’s 4x100 relay has best shot at scoring high, as its school-record time of 48.52 seconds fares well, with the top-seeded Warren Central team posting a time of 47.75 this season.
The Warsaw foursome set the school record at last week’s regional at the Tigers Athletic Complex, and with none of the four competing in another event this week, they’ve been focused solely on it.
“Of course I would have loved to have seen Audrey make it out for the 200 or Samantha for the long jump,” Erba said of two other state hopefuls, as Rich was fifth at regionals in the 200 and Alexander was fourth at the long jump. “But for three girls being down there for the first time, it will be nice for them to be able to just focus on one thing, instead of splitting them up for individual races.”
The 4x100 may have some inexperience, but that definitely isn't the case for the 4x400, as Eckert, Ferguson and Worrell will be running the event at state for the third-straight year.
Megan Kratzsch had run with the trio the previous two seasons, but without her competing this year, the team has been trying out new girls.
Finishing second at the Northern Lakes Conference Championships, sophomore Brooke Rhodes was with the three, then Dawson jumped in for the sectional, as Ferguson had to sit it out after injuring herself during the 300 hurdles.
With Ferguson back for the regional, Rhodes stayed in the lineup, while Dawson was out. Now at state, Dawson will be back in, while Rhodes is an alternate.
Whoever has been in, there’s been a consistent time this year, and at state, the four have a seed time of 4:04.50, but hope to get down to 3:59.22, which would break the 1989 school record.
“We were scared because our 4x4 wasn’t going to look the same this year, because (Kratzsch) didn’t come out this year,” Erba said. “Instead, we’ve just had some girls fill in and be outstanding. Brooke Rhodes and Hannah Dawson or (senior) Aletheia Burritt or any girl. The chance to get a fast time on that second leg would be tremendous.”
And for Ferguson, who made it to state in last year’s 300 hurdles, but a fall in the event at sectionals cost her a repeat trip, a school record in her last prep race would be a proper send off.
“That’d be crazy,” she said. “It’s usually dark out (during the final event of the meet), so you’re running under the lights and it’s just an awesome experience. That’d be a great way to end my senior year.”
Even though she didn’t make a return trip to the 300 hurdles state finals, she’ll still be engaged in the event, rooting for Eckert, whose 45.74 is the 10th seed, one place off scoring a point and receiving a medal.
“I’m really excited for Nicole, to watch her run that, because she’s really stepped it up this year,” Ferguson said. “I’m really excited to see how she does, and hopefully she makes it up to the podium.”
A year ago, Eckert was sixth at the regional in the 300 hurdles, finishing in 48.34, while Ferguson’s 47.30 was good for third place.
Working to cut off time, Eckert’s come back stronger this year and is now on the big stage.
“All my work has paid off,” Eckert said. “It’s year-round. Conditioning starts in November, then I’m here until June.”
In a race that is only 300 meters long, a clipped hurdle or misstep can make all the difference, as seeds 7-12 are all sitting in the 45-second range.
“It’s going to be tough,” Eckert said.
The 4x800 relay is also just on the cusp of getting on the podium, as its 9:34.41 is two seconds behind eighth place and two seconds ahead of 10th.
Hickerson is also looking to make a splash in pole vault, returning to the state meet after making it her sophomore year, but coming up short as a junior.
Her clearance of 11 feet has her seeded 16th, and she’d need another six inches to realistically reach the top nine.
With so many ‘what ifs’ going on at the meet, Erba is excited to see how they play out, but isn’t overly focused on any one of them.
“I think every event, every relay, every individual has its own story behind it,” he said. “I’m so proud of the girls to have gone through the season we have, with the weather and conditions and changes we’ve needed to make and still be able to compete at the state meet. Yeah, I’d be thrilled to watch the 4x1 team break another school record and get up on the podium. I’d be thrilled to see our 4x8 drop it down and go after a school record. I’d be thrilled to see our 4x4 team break a record. I’d love to see Claire Hickerson vault the best she’s vaulted in over two years. Seeing Nicole Eckert, once again, break her personal best in the 300 hurdles. We have a lot of great opportunities to set season bests, personal bests and even school bests. If we can do that, that’d be awesome.”
For Manchester, Bedke has been setting personal and school records throughout the season, and is surprising everyone.
“I didn’t expect the times to fall the way they have,” Manchester distance coach Jody Sarber said. “The way we trained, we were looking for her best times at about the fourth or fifth meet of the season, then they usually don’t drop again until the end of the season. So, when she went 5:18 at conference, that wasn’t a surprise. After the sectional, a little bit (of a surprise). Then to drop another 10 seconds and finish second only to (defending 3200 state champion) Anna Rohrer at regionals, that was big.”
At the May 15 Three Rivers Conference Championships, Bedke finished second in the 1600 with a school-record time of 5:18.41.
Five days later, she came back to defeat the TRC champion, Northfield’s Jenna Halderman, at the Rochester Sectional, cutting over six seconds off her previous time with a finish in 5:12.19.
Still not letting up, Bedke surprised even herself at the Warsaw Regional, placing second in 5:02.97, good for the No. 9 seed at the state meet as Rohrer scratched to focus on the 3200.
Bedke is a volleyball player in the fall and basketball player in the winter, and this is the first time Sarber, the Manchester cross country coach, has gotten to work extensively with her, and it’s been anything but dull.
“We expected her times to drop pretty consistently all year, as someone who comes from volleyball and basketball should,” he said. “However, not 5:02. That was a pleasant surprise.”
With Rohrer out, Bedke's 5:02.97 was actually the fastest time in the state, outside of the West Lafayette Regional, which qualified the top eight seeds at the state meet.
With Hamilton Southeastern junior Rachel Nichwitz sporting the top time of 4:55.81, Bedke is looking forward to seeing just how much more time she can cut when competing against more of the state’s best.
“It will definitely push me more,” she said. “I’m hoping I‘ll be able to stay with them and just run my hardest.”
And if she doesn’t, she’s just going to count anything that does happen as icing on the cake.
“Anything that happens, I’ll appreciate,” she said.
And as Erba states, just getting to this stage is an accomplishment, and the girls can only control how they perform.
“We talk to our girls about performing their best of the season,” he said. “If they go down to the state meet and perform their best, you can’t ask for anything more.”[[In-content Ad]]
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