July 23, 2014 at 2:10 p.m.
Jay trio set for state (05/29/08)
JCHS track
Jay trio set for state (05/29/08)
By By RAY COONEY-
The perspectives for the Patriots at the state finals will be significantly different.
Brandon Reynard and Dexter Shreve enter Saturday's competition knowing they'll pick up valuable experience for their senior seasons. When Amanda Johnson takes the track Friday night, it'll be her final opportunity to show where she stands among the best in the state.
Johnson will make her third straight appearance in the 800-meter run for the Jay County High School girls track team at the IHSAA Track and Field State Finals at Indiana University in Bloomington Friday night at approximately 7:45 p.m. Reynard and Shreve venture to state for the first time to compete in the boys 300 hurdles and long jump respectively Saturday at 3 p.m.
While Johnson brings the experience of being a three-time state finalist, Reynard owns the highest seed of the three Patriots. He enters at No. 9 out of 27 competitors.
The top nine athletes in each event earn state medals. All three JCHS athletes will be striving for those state medals as well as school records.
"At the beginning of the year my goal was to make it to state," said Reynard, who won the sectional title easily and was third at the North Central regional, at Wednesday's practice. "And now that I'm here it's to have fun and enjoy it while I'm there."
Along with the goal of reaching the state medal podium, Reynard also hope's to break Nick Hoffman's school record of 38.21 seconds. Hoffman set the mark during his senior season in 2002, when he finished sixth in the state. He is the last JCHS boy to earn a state medal in track.
Reynard's time of 39.37 seconds at the regional meet earned him the final slot in the fastest of Saturday's three heats. He will be up against the best of the best, including top-seeded D'Juan Richardson of Warren Central (37.23).
"It will push me to do as good as I can do," said Reynard. "What I do this year hopefully I can improve on next year."
For Johnson, this is next year.
The JCHS senior has been to this point twice before. As a sophomore she came from out of nowhere to break the school record in the 800 run and finish third in the regional and 25th in the state.
Johnson was the regional runner-up last year, and went on to break her own record en route to an 11th-place finish at the state finals.
"(Experience is) a big factor, for me at least," said Johnson, who is seeded 13th. "I know my sophomore year I did not run my race at all. My first year there I mentally just psyched myself out. Last year ... I was able to run a good 800 race ... And so, I'm really hoping that this year ... I can just get out there and use the good competition to excel and perform to my potential."
Last season's experience was interesting to say the least as lightning postponed the competition several times. Johnson's race was delayed by several hours before she finally got on the track and finished less than a half-second short of earning a state medal.
She said she was happy with her effort, but there was still a shade of doubt as she wondered whether she could have passed two more runners.
"I didn't realize during the race that I was in 11th," Johnson said, who will try to become the first Patriot to medal in girls track since Kerri McClung won back-to-back state shot put titles in 1999 and 2000. "So, it kind of makes me wonder if I knew that I was that close if I would have stepped it up. I guess this time I don't want to have that doubt. This time I want to know where I stand.
"I want to be on the podium. But if that doesn't happen, mainly I just want to be able to finish my race just knowing that I put it all out there. I don't want to leave there with any regret. ... I just want to do the best that I can do."
Coach Brian McEvoy said Johnson has been working to be ready for the grueling first lap of her race. At the regional meet she ran from box alley one (lanes one and two), led for the first 500 meters and finished third.
It was a stark contrast from her previous regional and state races, in which she paced herself on the first lap and made up ground on the second. She will run from box alley one again Friday night, and will seek to repeat her regional strategy.
"That race I think will probably sort itself out by the 300- to 400-meter mark," said McEvoy. "It's going to be pretty hard after that point to make a lot of passes ... Her position there in that second turn is really going to be crucial.
"Our goal for her is to be a medalist, to get on the podium. That would make her an all-state athlete. So that's a big goal. I personally ... would like to see her re-break the (school) record. Hopefully put it at the 2:16 mark and kind of put it out of reach to let that record stand for a while."
In her career, Johnson has already smashed the previous school record by nearly five seconds. Sharon Donnally's mark of 2:22.4 stood for 24 years before Johnson snapped it in 2006 and dropped it again to 2:17.43 at last season's state finals.
Shreve had chances to reach the state finals in three different events - the 400 dash, the high jump and the long jump. Entering the regional competition the long jump seemed to be the longest shot for a state berth - he was the 11th seed in the long jump, fourth in the 400 dash and tied for third in the high jump - but Shreve delivered on his sixth and final leap into the sand.
Having already been eliminated from contention in the high jump and still hoping for a top-three finish in the 400 dash - he ended up fifth - he uncorked a career-best leap of 21 feet, 10 ΒΌ inches at the North Central regional. That distance was good for only sixth place in a meet where just the top three advance, but cleared the automatic state qualifying distance by nearly two inches.
His regional mark, which was just one-quarter inch short of the school record set by Jason Hammond in 1996, has him in a tie for the No. 17 seed with Jerry Smith of Hammond.
"My goal is to place, because when I went down to Bloomington for indoor state I got eighth," said Shreve. "I want to do that in the outdoor competition."
Shreve would likely need to add another six inches to his regional leap to have a chance to bring home a medal. Seventeen athletes cleared 22 feet in regional competition, and the No. 9 seed in the state finals sits at 22 feet, 4 inches.
"I've really just got to hit my mark and hopefully get some good carry," said Shreve. "It's good to be consistent, but it only takes one. And hopefully I have that in me."
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Brandon Reynard and Dexter Shreve enter Saturday's competition knowing they'll pick up valuable experience for their senior seasons. When Amanda Johnson takes the track Friday night, it'll be her final opportunity to show where she stands among the best in the state.
Johnson will make her third straight appearance in the 800-meter run for the Jay County High School girls track team at the IHSAA Track and Field State Finals at Indiana University in Bloomington Friday night at approximately 7:45 p.m. Reynard and Shreve venture to state for the first time to compete in the boys 300 hurdles and long jump respectively Saturday at 3 p.m.
While Johnson brings the experience of being a three-time state finalist, Reynard owns the highest seed of the three Patriots. He enters at No. 9 out of 27 competitors.
The top nine athletes in each event earn state medals. All three JCHS athletes will be striving for those state medals as well as school records.
"At the beginning of the year my goal was to make it to state," said Reynard, who won the sectional title easily and was third at the North Central regional, at Wednesday's practice. "And now that I'm here it's to have fun and enjoy it while I'm there."
Along with the goal of reaching the state medal podium, Reynard also hope's to break Nick Hoffman's school record of 38.21 seconds. Hoffman set the mark during his senior season in 2002, when he finished sixth in the state. He is the last JCHS boy to earn a state medal in track.
Reynard's time of 39.37 seconds at the regional meet earned him the final slot in the fastest of Saturday's three heats. He will be up against the best of the best, including top-seeded D'Juan Richardson of Warren Central (37.23).
"It will push me to do as good as I can do," said Reynard. "What I do this year hopefully I can improve on next year."
For Johnson, this is next year.
The JCHS senior has been to this point twice before. As a sophomore she came from out of nowhere to break the school record in the 800 run and finish third in the regional and 25th in the state.
Johnson was the regional runner-up last year, and went on to break her own record en route to an 11th-place finish at the state finals.
"(Experience is) a big factor, for me at least," said Johnson, who is seeded 13th. "I know my sophomore year I did not run my race at all. My first year there I mentally just psyched myself out. Last year ... I was able to run a good 800 race ... And so, I'm really hoping that this year ... I can just get out there and use the good competition to excel and perform to my potential."
Last season's experience was interesting to say the least as lightning postponed the competition several times. Johnson's race was delayed by several hours before she finally got on the track and finished less than a half-second short of earning a state medal.
She said she was happy with her effort, but there was still a shade of doubt as she wondered whether she could have passed two more runners.
"I didn't realize during the race that I was in 11th," Johnson said, who will try to become the first Patriot to medal in girls track since Kerri McClung won back-to-back state shot put titles in 1999 and 2000. "So, it kind of makes me wonder if I knew that I was that close if I would have stepped it up. I guess this time I don't want to have that doubt. This time I want to know where I stand.
"I want to be on the podium. But if that doesn't happen, mainly I just want to be able to finish my race just knowing that I put it all out there. I don't want to leave there with any regret. ... I just want to do the best that I can do."
Coach Brian McEvoy said Johnson has been working to be ready for the grueling first lap of her race. At the regional meet she ran from box alley one (lanes one and two), led for the first 500 meters and finished third.
It was a stark contrast from her previous regional and state races, in which she paced herself on the first lap and made up ground on the second. She will run from box alley one again Friday night, and will seek to repeat her regional strategy.
"That race I think will probably sort itself out by the 300- to 400-meter mark," said McEvoy. "It's going to be pretty hard after that point to make a lot of passes ... Her position there in that second turn is really going to be crucial.
"Our goal for her is to be a medalist, to get on the podium. That would make her an all-state athlete. So that's a big goal. I personally ... would like to see her re-break the (school) record. Hopefully put it at the 2:16 mark and kind of put it out of reach to let that record stand for a while."
In her career, Johnson has already smashed the previous school record by nearly five seconds. Sharon Donnally's mark of 2:22.4 stood for 24 years before Johnson snapped it in 2006 and dropped it again to 2:17.43 at last season's state finals.
Shreve had chances to reach the state finals in three different events - the 400 dash, the high jump and the long jump. Entering the regional competition the long jump seemed to be the longest shot for a state berth - he was the 11th seed in the long jump, fourth in the 400 dash and tied for third in the high jump - but Shreve delivered on his sixth and final leap into the sand.
Having already been eliminated from contention in the high jump and still hoping for a top-three finish in the 400 dash - he ended up fifth - he uncorked a career-best leap of 21 feet, 10 ΒΌ inches at the North Central regional. That distance was good for only sixth place in a meet where just the top three advance, but cleared the automatic state qualifying distance by nearly two inches.
His regional mark, which was just one-quarter inch short of the school record set by Jason Hammond in 1996, has him in a tie for the No. 17 seed with Jerry Smith of Hammond.
"My goal is to place, because when I went down to Bloomington for indoor state I got eighth," said Shreve. "I want to do that in the outdoor competition."
Shreve would likely need to add another six inches to his regional leap to have a chance to bring home a medal. Seventeen athletes cleared 22 feet in regional competition, and the No. 9 seed in the state finals sits at 22 feet, 4 inches.
"I've really just got to hit my mark and hopefully get some good carry," said Shreve. "It's good to be consistent, but it only takes one. And hopefully I have that in me."
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