Indians hoping for state medals

It took Travis Sutter until his final try to earn a state berth.

Three freshmen and a sophomore are making the trip for the first time.

Robby LeFevre is on his way back.

The six of them all have the same goal in mind: return to Fort Recovery with hardware.

A half dozen Fort Recovery High School boys will be competing in the Division III OHSAA Track and Field State Finals at Jessie Owens Memorial Stadium on the campus of Ohio State University on Friday and Saturday, and all of them hope to come home with medals around their necks.

“It’s pretty cool,” said Sutter, a senior, who will compete in the 1,600-meter run at 10:05 a.m. Saturday. “It’s something I’ve always wanted to do and to finally get it done, it is pretty awesome.”

Sutter was fourth in the Troy regional with a time of 4 minutes, 29.53 seconds, and he is seeded 13th for the state finals. Ottoville’s Brendan Siefker, who was second in the state last season, is the top seed at 4:21.29. Sutter is in a bit of a logjam, as the fifth through 14th seeds are within four seconds of one another.

“If I can come out in front of the pack I should be able to get top eight,” he said.

The top eight places earn a state medal.

LeFevre, who tied for seventh in the state in the 200 dash as a freshman, returns to Columbus with his sights set on stepping up a few more places on the podium. The speedster was third in regional at 22.77 seconds and is seeded 15th out of 16 competitors for preliminaries at 11:50 a.m. Friday.

The top two from each heat and the runners with the next five fastest times from prelims reach the finals, which are slated for 11:20 a.m. Saturday.

“I didn’t really finish hard,” LeFevre, one of two sophomores in the state field, said of his regional performance. “The last 50 meters I kind of died out and I think with the adrenaline pumping at Jesse Owens I’ll finish a little bit better.”

Brookfield’s Xavier Bailey is the top seed at 21.78 seconds, and only 1.31 seconds separate him and the No. 16 seed. Cory-Rawson senior Mason Warnimont, last year’s state champion, is seeded second at 22.04 seconds. East Canton’s Mitch Mitchell is the ninth seed at 22.44 seconds.

LeFevre is also the most experienced of five underclassmen who make up the state-bound 4x100 relay. He teams with classmate Brayden Schoen and freshmen Riley Pearson, Jared Timmerman and alternate Jacob Acheson to make up the youngest of the 16 qualifying relay squads.

“I think it is a big achievement for them,” said first-year FRHS coach Hank Bevington. “I think it is so great for them. I think it is just outstanding that you have three freshmen and two sophomores. It is just unreal how well they’ve developed, how they’re getting better.”

The relay — prelims are slated for 10:55 a.m. Friday with finals at 10:20 a.m. Saturday — was fourth at regional in 43.9 seconds, and is seeded 10th for the state finals. Gamble Montessori is the top seed at 43.14 seconds.

“I didn’t really expect to make it to state this year but it’s pretty awesome,” Pearson said.

LeFevre, who anchors the group, is also impressed with its ability to get this far despite their youth.

“I think having four underclassmen in a relay is unbelievable in itself,” he said. “I think that these guys are running out of their minds. We haven’t seen anything like this.”

But the youngsters aren’t fazed by the notion that they are the only team comprised only of underclassmen.

“It is definitely a challenge, but we ain’t really too worried,” Acheson said.

“Looking at the times it looks like we have a chance to the finals,” Pearson added. “And we could make it to the podium which would be a really cool experience.”

Bevington said he has been reminding them all week not to be concerned about the experience of the other teams.

“We might not be the fastest ones out there, but they will not outwork us,” he said. “There hasn’t been a team that has trained as smart as us and who has worked as hard as us.

“They’ve had to work, and work, and work on handoffs to be as smooth as possible and to cut as much time as we did.”

At regional, the Tribe trimmed two seconds off its time from district, which Schoen and Bevington both attribute to the handoffs.

“It shows how well everything is working,” Bevington said.