Indian invasion (06/01/06)

FORT RECOVERY — Those who follow athletics in the Midwest Athletic Conference are used to seeing certain teams at the state track meet.

Minster won the 2004 Division III girls state title and earned state championships in three events. Versailles was sixth in Division III last season, and Delphos St. John’s placed eighth. And New Bremen’s Troy Lammers won back-to-back boys hurdles state titles in 2004 and 2005.

Fort Recovery is now adding itself to the list.

Holly Stein and Mindy Vogel give the Indians a pair of athletes in the state meet in a total of three events. And this is the third time in four years Fort Recovery has at least one athlete competing at the highest level following Tyler Niekamp in 2002 and Stein a year ago.

This season Stein will compete in both the discus and shot put at the OHSAA Division III State Track and Field Tournament beginning Friday at 1 p.m. Vogel will follow in the 800-meter run Saturday morning at the tournament held at Ohio State University’s Jesse Owens Memorial Stadium in Columbus.

“I think we’ve got something started,” said FRHS coach Jason Grieshop, who was an assistant coach last season. “We’ve got some pretty good athletes right now and they’re working hard and making a difference. That’s a great season to get anybody to state, let alone two kids in three events.”

Stein returns this year as a veteran of state competition. She advanced to the state meet in the shot put last season, finishing 14th as a sophomore and continured to improve in 2006.

Already the school record holder in the discus, she took the shot put mark this season with her Midwest Athletic Conference championship-winning throw of 38 feet, 11/2 inches. She has extended her discus record from 108 feet entering the season all the way to 119 feet, 2 inches, a toss which came at the Piqua regional and qualified her for state competition.

Stein says she’s ready for the return trip to Columbus she promised at the conclusion of the 2005 season.

“I won’t be as scared,” said Stein, noting the intimidation she felt as one of the low seeds last season. “Last year I was so nervous. I was scared to warm up and do anything because it was so different. It was a different atmosphere ... last year everyone could beat me.

“Putting in the extra time this year will pay off. I think I’m better prepared this year than I was last year.”

Vogel had a solid freshman season, but was not a regional qualifier. She started to blossom in leading the Fort Recovery girls cross country team to the regional meet this fall, and exploded onto the scene in the second half of the current track season.

She finished third in the MAC, district and regional meets, posting her best time of her career to earn the state berth at 2-minutes, 22.24 seconds.

Vogel said it has helped her to have someone like Stein on the team.

“She really pushes me because I see her achievements,” said Vogel. “I kind of want to be like her. The standard is high.”

And Stein is thrilled to have some company this time around.

“Having Mindy go along with me is awesome,” she said. “She’s such a great athlete and she has so much talent, and just to see her work hard this year and get to state (is great).

“Going to state as a sophomore is pretty cool,” she added, speaking from experience.

While track is an individual sport and the two Tribe athletes compete in very different events, Grieshop is hoping they can have a similar experience this weekend. The goal has been made clear: “Get on that podium.”

“Neither of them are seeded spectacularly, but they’ve both got a chance to get a place,” Grieshop said. “That would be a great feeling for them if they could stand out there in front of the crowd and say they were in the top eight in the state.”

The best chance comes from Stein in the shot put, where she is seeded eighth after a toss of 37 feet, 1 inch at Piqua. The top eight competitors in each event earn a state medal.

The junior said she is looking to make the finals — top nine — in both of her events. She is seeded 12th in the discus at 119 feet, 2 inches while the No. 9 seed is 124 feet, and the No. 8 is 126 feet, 7 inches. Stein was throwing in the low 120s at practice Wednesday.

Grieshop has said Vogel doesn’t make mistakes on the track. He called her regional race “perfect”, and he said if she is able to execute her game plan again Saturday she has a good chance at a state medal.

She should also benefit from a familiar field as all four 800-meter runners from the Minster district advanced to the state level. Two of those — Ashley Kanney of Coldwater and Minster’s Katie Dahlinghaus — are extra familiar as members of the MAC.

Vogel enters as the 10th seed with her time of 2:22.24, but the No. 8 seed is only about six tenths of a second faster. She said she’s hoping to set a personal record and beat fellow sophomore Kanney for the first time.

“Just knowing that I’m at state, I’m not as worried,” said Vogel. “I finally made it where I wanted to go. I’m just hoping for the best.”

The competition atmosphere for the two is a little bit different.

While Vogel will run inside Jesse Owens Memorial Stadium, the throwing areas are outside of the venue in an open area across the parking lot road.

“It loses the effect,” said Stein. “I would like to be in it, standing in the middle of it, standing on the podium.”[[In-content Ad]]