SCOUTING THE STATE MEET
An event-by-event look at the boys track and field state meet:
4×800 relay
Top seed (based on regional performances): Zionsville (7:48.84)
Local qualifiers: Greenwood (14th, 7:55.79); Center Grove (22nd, 7:57.13)
Outlook: The race for first should be a tight one between the top-seeded Eagles, Columbus North and Bloomington North — all three are seeded within 0.38 seconds of one another. The bottom portion of the podium could end up being occupied by just about any team that has a good day; Greenwood’s seed time is less than three seconds out of the top four and the Trojans are also within shouting distance.
110 hurdles
Top seed: Javion Westfield, Fort Wayne Northrop (13.95)
Local qualifiers: Dallas Johnson, Center Grove (third, 14.25); J.D. Sever, Franklin (21st, 14.86)
Outlook: Westfield and second-seeded Tyler Tarter of Fishers (14.00) are a quarter of a second clear of the pack, but Johnson heads up a group of seven others under 14.5 seconds; if he can run under that mark again during prelims, he should be in good position to medal. Sever would need to pull a surprise to make the final, but he’s done it before, having made the podium in the 300 hurdles last spring.
100 meters
Top seed: Jaidyn Johnson, Bloomington North (10.43)
Local qualifiers: Will Riley, Greenwood (second, 10.50); Daxon Sauer, Center Grove (12th, 10.85); Alex Leugers, Franklin (18th, 10.93)
Outlook: Riley represents Johnson County’s best chance at a winner; he’s ranked among the state’s top two or three times all season and is peaking at the right moment. If he can get an inside lane next to Johnson in the final, anything goes. Sauer and Leugers could very well sneak into the final race as well — just two tenths of a second separate the ninth and 26th seeds, so it’ll really come down to the little things in the prelims.
1,600 meters
Top seed: Martin Barco, Martinsville (4:13.28)
Local qualifier: Kyle Montgomery, Center Grove (12th, 4:17.91)
Outlook: Barco and Terre Haute South’s Ethan Aidoo (second, 4:14.06) are the top contenders, but 13 runners are within five seconds of the top seed, so there’s plenty of wiggle room within the pecking order, especially around the bottom part of the podium. Montgomery is quite capable of putting himself into medal contention.
4×100 relay
Top seed: Penn (41.11)
Local qualifiers: Center Grove (10th, 42.06); Greenwood (13th, 42.11)
Outlook: The Trojans got the better of the Woodmen at the regional after Greenwood won the county and sectional races; it’s quite possible that one could bump the other off of the podium — or both could make it. If a race comes down to the anchor leg, Greenwood has an advantage coming down the stretch with Riley, the fastest runner in the field.
400 meters
Top seed: Dehnm Holt, North Central (47.63)
Local qualifier: Austin Hennessy, Center Grove (15th, 49.11)
Outlook: Holt comes in seeded sixth tenths of a second ahead of the others, so he’s a reasonably solid favorite, but the rest of the medals are very much up for grabs, with less than a second separating the No. 2 seed from No. 19. Hennessy would probably need to drop into the mid-48s to have a chance to score, but he’s at least got a puncher’s chance.
300 hurdles
Top seed: Tarter, Fishers (36.17)
Local qualifiers: Sever, Franklin (third, 38.32); Ben Tapak, Center Grove (fifth, 38.55)
Outlook: Tarter and Westfield, the top two seeds in the 110 hurdles, swap spots here, with Tarter holding a sizable 1.54-second seeding advantage. Sever and Tapak head up a group of eight hurdlers within 0.6 seconds of one another — so while medals are probable for both, finishing out of the money is just as much in play as a top-three finish.
800 meters
Top seed: Barco, Martinsville (1:52.17)
Local qualifier: Mason Vrshek, Center Grove (15th, 1:55.70)
Outlook: Though his margin over the field is much narrower here than in the 1,600 (Matthew Kim of Fishers is second at 1:52.77), Barco does come in as a slight favorite. There’s room for Vrshek to climb the ladder — he’s less than a second out of the top nine — but he’ll almost certainly have to run a lifetime best to have a shot at the podium.
200 meters
Top seed: Johnson, Bloomington North (21.59)
Local qualifier: Riley, Greenwood (fourth, 21.69)
Outlook: Depending on how the preliminaries shake out, this has the potential to be the most exciting event of the night. Four runners come in seeded within a tenth of a second of each other, with West Lafayette Harrison’s Finley Huber (21.64) and Avon’s Marcus Townsend (21.66) sandwiched between Johnson and Riley; the top 10 seeds all come in at 21.89 or better, and LaPorte’s Tayshaun Williams, the 13th seed, has clocked a 21.68 earlier this season. Can Riley bring home a pair of victories?
3,200 meters
Top seed: Tony Provenzano, Carmel (9:00.35)
Local qualifier: Gavin Rockwell, Center Grove (10th, 9:18.30)
Outlook: Provenzano and fellow Greyhound Kyle Grove (9:02.95) occupy the top two spots, but the fastest time this year belongs to third-seeded Will Conway of Floyd Central, who blazed an 8:41.18 in early April. Brebeuf’s Cameron Todd has also gone well under nine minutes. Rockwell is capable of sneaking into the medal conversation, but he’ll likely need to shave a good five or 10 seconds off of his regional time.
4×400 relay
Top seed: Hamilton Southeastern (3:16.48)
Local qualifier: Center Grove (third, 3:16.75)
Outlook: The Trojans have had success in the meet’s final race before and could very well take it this time around — the foursome of Tapak, Brevin Holubar, Sauer and Hennessy is seeded just behind HSE and Franklin Central (3:16.57) and will be right beside them to cap the evening.
Pole vault
Top seed: Lincoln Hulsey, LaVille (15-9 1/4)
Local qualifiers: Carson Sommers, Franklin (13th, 14-6); Carter Pheifer, Center Grove (15th, 14-6); Hayden Luttman, Whiteland (23rd, 13-6)
Outlook: The top seven seeds all cleared 15-3 or better at the regional, with Sommers and Pheifer part of a gaggle behind them at 14-6. Peyton McQuinn of Hamilton Heights has hit the 16-foot mark this season; can any of the locals get up to 15? Doing so would likely mean a medal.
Long jump
Top seed: Elijah Coker, Penn (24-2 1/2)
Local qualifiers: Jackson Hartwell, Edinburgh (sixth, 22-6 1/4); Jeremiah Carter, Greenwood (22nd, 22-1); Benian Walls, Whiteland (23rd, 22-0 1/2)
Outlook: Hartwell, the Lancers’ first boys state qualifier since the Eisenhower administration, is in the mix for a medal — but with 24 jumpers having gone past the 22-foot mark last week, almost everyone has a chance to get into podium position with one good leap, including Carter and Walls. Coker is the only jumper in the state to go more than 23-3, though, so it’s his event to lose.
Discus
Top seed: Michael Good, LaVille (178-3)
Local qualifiers: None
Outlook: There aren’t any Johnson County throwers in the field, but Roncalli’s Seth Brosseau is the second seed, having matched Good’s 178-3 at regional. Floyd Central’s Brock Conrad has the longest throw of the season, uncorking a 188-1 during the sectional; three others have eclipsed 180 feet this year.
High jump
Top seed: Jordan Randall, Warsaw (7-0 1/2)
Local qualifier: Braxton Freeman, Indian Creek (24th, 6-4)
Outlook: Randall had the only 7-foot regional jump, though Greenfield-Central’s Elliot Ryba cleared 7-0 back in April. Seeds 13 through 25 all finished the regional round at 6-4, so Freeman can climb the ladder; he’ll probably need to go 6-6 or better for a shot at a medal.
Shot put
Top seed: Luke Himes, Heritage Christian (67-5)
Local qualifiers: None
Outlook: Himes is seeded more than five feet ahead of everyone, and he’s got a best of 68-10 this season. Brosseau, seeded 11th, has thrown more than 62 feet this spring and could well end the day with a second medal.
