Patriot boys look to build depth

The Patriots finished in third place in the sectional a year ago while Muncie Central and Delta shared the championship. They did so by scoring nearly half of their points in just three events.
This season the Jay County High School boys track team brings back the four athletes who racked up those points, with plans to build around them in hopes of contending for the sectional title again.
“I think going into it right now we are one of the favorites, us and Delta,” said JCHS coach Greg Garringer. “I’m hoping we’re headed in the right direction. … I don’t want to say I think we’re going to win sectional, but I think we’ve got a legit chance. … If everybody stays healthy and they work hard, we should be right up there for a title this year.”
Senior Tyler Back returns to lead the group following his surprising run to the state finals last season.
Back dominated the sectional meet by winning both the shot put and discus titles, but was seeded eighth heading into a regional meet from which just the top three athletes would advance to the state meet. He rose to the occasion, launching the shot put more than a foot further than his previous career best to place third.
“It’s genetics to begin with, just height and strength,” said Garringer of Back, who finished 19th in the shot put at the state finals and hopes to continue his career in college next year. “He’s very intelligent. He picks up on technique drills quickly. He’s not afraid to work. … He’ll put the time and energy into it. … He’s got the whole package working for him.”
Jay County scored especially well in the sectional in the throwing events with Andrew Eley giving the Patriots a one-two punch. He qualified for the regional meet with a fourth-place effort in the discus, and also scored for the team by placing sixth in the shot put.
“Eley is probably our best discus thrower,” said Garringer. “(He and Back) complement each other pretty well.”
The Patriots were at their best in the sectional meet last season in a third field event, the high jump.
While athletes from the other teams finished their days at 5 feet, 10 inches, teammates Cade Price and Zane Shreve were left to battle it out for the title.
Both of them cleared the bar at 6 feet, 1 inch, before Price took the title with a leap of 6 feet, 2 inches.
Shreve was also the sectional runner-up in both the 110-meter and 300 hurdles, barely trailing then-senior Cory DeWitt of Delta in both events.
“Shreve is kind of developing a little bit like Dexter did,” said Garringer of the junior’s brother, who was a state-qualifier in the long jump and now competes for Kent State University. “He did one or two decathlons this summer. Right now we’ve got to decide where we want to put him. He’s our best hurdler by far in both the 110s and 300s.”
Dylan Cope also returns after qualifying for the regional last season in an individual event, as he placed second last season in the 1,600 run. He will focus more on the 800 run this season, and will also contribute in the 1,600 run, 3,200 run, 4x400 relay and 4x800 relay.
Those five athletes give the Patriots a strong core, but the team brings back just one other runner to score points in an individual event last season as sophomore Jalen Ryder returns after placing eighth in the 3,200 run a year ago. The team was also shut out in three sectional events — long jump, 100 dash and 800 run — last season and must find a way to build depth in order to have a chance to challenge Delta for the title.
Garringer will look to newcomer Seth Winget, a junior, to lead the team’s sprint group this season while Darren Bogenschutz and J.D Mangas handle the 400 dash. With Cope moving to the 800 run, Ryder will focus on the 1,600 run and Michael Denney is slated to fill the 3,200 run.
Nathan Heitkamp and Mangas will be the team’s top two competitors in the long jump.
With strong leadership coming from his experienced juniors and seniors, Garringer said he believes his team will be in a position to compete come tournament time in mid-May.
“We haven’t done this for a while, but we put some of our juniors and seniors in charge of workouts and they’ve responded well,” he said. “Those guys have taken charge. … They get after it. … I just hope that’s contagious with the other guys.”[[In-content Ad]]