Boys track and field outlook: Tygers looking to make a ‘leap’ among area teams
MANSFIELD – Could Mo turn into another Joe?
Nobody was more excited to see Mansfield Senior’s Maurice Ware soar for seven dunks en route to MVP honors in the 43rd News Journal All-Star Basketball Classic than Maurice Ware.
Except maybe Tyger track coach Tyree Shine.
He believes Mo Ware has the potential to become another Joe Ellis, who won a 2017 state championship for Senior High in the high jump with a leap of 6-10.
It doesn’t hurt that Ware and fellow high jumper Amil Upchurch could push each other to new heights. They have both cleared 6-6 in their careers. Ware was last year’s Ohio Cardinal Conference champ, while Upchurch won a district title and advanced to the state meet.
Becoming more consistent will be the goal of both leapers, who should be able to concentrate more on their specialty since they won’t be playing AAU basketball this spring.
“Ware can be a 7-foot jumper,” said Shine, who had another great high jumper after Joe Ellis in Angelo Grose, now playing football at Michigan State. “He’s got the hops and he’s strong. But I need him to be there (at practice) to work on his form, whereas Amil (whose resume includes district and regional titles on the AAU circuit) works on his form but needs to get stronger.
“With more consistent practice, they can compete at state this year. They have that ability.”
The Tygers have pretty good balance throughout their lineup and hope to push five-time defending champ Ashland in the Ohio Cardinal Conference.
Although the Tygers lost Aveon Grose early to the football program at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte, Ware is part of a relay rotation that includes Malachi Johnson, Keontz Bradley, Ontario transfer Antonio Houston and Aaron Thornton. Senior High won the 4x100 and 4x200 relays in last year’s OCC meet.
The Tygers will also feature Bradley and Thornton in the hurdles, Mekhi Bradley in the throws and Chuck Haney and Jaiden Grose in the long jump.
Madison boasts the top returning individual state medalist in senior hurdler Isaac Brooks. He was third last year in Division I in the 300s.
No team will be more fun to watch than Crestview. The challenge for the Cougars will be trying to duplicate last year’s historic run to Firelands Conference, district and regional titles en route to a fifth-place finish in the Division III state meet.
They lost three All-Ohioans and eight seniors – including Ross Kuhn, a state champ in the 800 meters and anchor of Crestview’s state runner-up 4x800 relay – but return All-Ohioans in Tommy O’Neill, Tanner Moore, Adison Reymer, Gabe Smedley and RaShaun Barber.
Crestview kick-started its outdoor season by winning the Bucyrus Invitational, so don’t count the Cougars out, no matter how hard they got hit by graduation.
In putting this area preview together, all of the Richland County schools, along with Ashland and Galion, were asked to submit information about their programs. The 11 teams that are part of this rundown responded to that request:
Ashland
Coach: Dan Fuller
Key personnel: Seth Will, Lukah Will, Bryant Hosse, Trae Boyd, Bryce Mendenhall, Kaden Schmitz, Jacob Stump, Ashden Maffett, Colton Johnson, Ayden Bryant, Luke Wash, Josh Bonfiglio, Braxton Hunt, Colin Rohr
Outlook: The Arrows return 15 lettermen from a squad that gave Ashland its fifth straight Ohio Cardinal Conference championship, Once again, the distance events will drive their success, along with a strong sprint crew. Fuller is excited about a freshman class he believes has a tremendous amount of potential. If they develop depth in the jumps, throws and hurdles as the season progresses, the Arrows may be impossible to unseat in the OCC.
Crestview
Coach: Tim Kuhn
Key personnel: Sr. Tommy O’Neill (distance), Sr. Tanner Moore (sprints, jumps), Sr. Connor Morse (sprints); Sr. RaShaun Barber (sprints, jumps); Sr. Gabe Smedley (mid-distance); Sr. Gage Bloodhart (mid-distance); Jr. Adison Reymer (sprints); Jr. Hayden Kuhn (mid-distance); Jr. Shawn Bailey (pole vault); Jr. Noah Stuart (throws); Jr. Jace Hill (hurdles); Jr. Caden Cunningham (jumps); Jr. John Tackett (throws); So. Wade Bolin (throws)
Outlook: The loss of three All-Ohioans and eight seniors – including 800 meters state champ Ross Kuhn – could make it hard to duplicate last year’s postseason run that included district and regional titles and a fifth-place finish at state. But so far, so good. The Cougars kick-started the outdoor season by winning the Bucyrus Invitational. That wasn’t exactly a surprise since O’Neill, Moore, Reymer, Smedley and Barber are all returning All-Ohioans. Cunningham and Bailey provide a nice one-two punch in the jumps, Hill has a huge ceiling in the hurdles and throwers Bolin and Stuart have the potential to be special.
Galion
Coach: Dave Kirk
Key personnel: Sr. Jordan Borders (sprints), Sr. Cannon Butler (mid-distance), Sr. Kyle Foust (high jump), So. Logan Shifely (sprints), Sr. Andy Sparks (hurdles, sprints), So. Chad Taylor (distance), Sr. Clayton Yost (throws)
Outlook: The Tigers lost some strong seniors to graduation, including Caleb Branstetter, the state runner-up in the high jump. But because of the example they set for younger members (40 percent of last year’s boys and girls program was made up of freshmen), the team has a number of athletes ready to step into leadership roles this season. Foust placed eighth in the high jump at this year’s state indoor meet and Taylor advanced to the state cross country meet last fall. Butler, Sparks and Yost all have regional meet experience.
Lexington
Coach: Ralph Baker
Key personnel: Sr. Ethan Peebles (distance), Sr. Garet Weaver (hurdles, high jump), Sr. Kenyon Cole (throws), Sr. Logan Haas (throws), Sr. Cooper Schurig (distance), Jr. Cam Sentieri (sprints), So. Ethan Slone (distance), So. Carter Newman (sprints, throws)
Outlook: Newman, whom Baker refers to as a future decathlete, gives the Minutemen strength in the sprints and discus. Peebles, Cole and Slone, like Newman, have regional experience. Baker hopes his squad has the right blend of experience and promising newcomers to compete for an Ohio Cardinal Conference title.
Lucas
Coach: Spencer Adams
Key personnel: Sr. Colin Arnold (throws), Sr. Grant Barrett (sprints, throws), Sr. Eric Barrino (jumps, sprints), Sr. Jackson Boyd (sprints. jumps), Sr. Hunter Cultrider (mid-distance, sprints), Jr. Kason Antrican (sprints, jumps), Jr. Ty Lehnart (sprints, jumps), Jr. Jadon Walter (sprints), So. Colby Crawford (sprints, pole vault), So. Trevor Estep (hurdles, mid-distance), So. Cole Fairchild (distance), So. Zach Krupa (distance), So. Brody Olson (throws), So. Kalem Warner (distance)
Outlook: The Cubs returned most of their team from last season and because that’s the case Adams said he would be very disappointed if they are not on top in the Mid-Buckeye Conference, with several individual champions. Barrett is the lone returning regional qualifier, but Arnold and Walter just missed.
Madison
Coach: Andrew Saris
Key personnel: Sr. Isaac Brooks (sprints, hurdles, jumps), Sr. Phil Stupka (sprints), Sr. Ethan Spillman (sprints), Sr. Kole Evans (jumps), Jr. Noah Finley (sprints, hurdles), Jr. Owen Hoffman (mid-distance), So. Justin Chumbley (distance, high jump), So. Justin Gibson (distance), So. Troy Groff (throws), So. Will Kepple (sprints, hurdles), So. Grayson Sasis (sprints, hurdles), So. Joe Stupka (sprints)
Outlook: The Rams will be led by fourth-year lettermen Brooks and Stupka. Brooks was a state-qualifying hurdler last year in the 110s and 300s, earning a third-place medal in the latter. Stupka, who can run all of the sprints, was a regional qualifier last year in the 400. The Rams have the most depth in the sprints and hurdles. Until they find multiple ways to score in the distance and field events, Saris believes the Ohio Cardinal Conference still runs through Ashland.
Mansfield Christian
Coach: Brooke Trumpower
Key personnel: Fr. Nicholas Adams, Fr. Isaac Delp, F. Jeiel Phillips, Fr. Evan Keib, Fr. Riley Rasberry, So. Andre Harrison, So. Caleb Hupp, So. Noah Kapustar, So. Oliver Cramer, So. Landon Mattix, Jr. Cooper Stigall, Jr. Vincent Aldrich, Jr. Ben Williams, Sr. Michael Gregory, Sr. Seth Them
Outlook: The team has grown in numbers, but many of the athletes on the roster are first-year participants. Harrison (distance) and Keib (throws) have the most potential when it comes to scoring points for the Flames.
Mansfield Senior
Coach: Tyree Shine
Key personnel: Keontz Bradley (hurdles, sprints), Malachi Johnson (sprints), Antonio Houston (sprints), Maurice Ware (sprints, high jump), Amil Upchurch (high jump, relays), Jaiden Grose (long jump), Chucky Haney (long jump, relays), Mekhi Bradley (throws), Christian Javier (sprints), Carmelo Smith (throws), Aaron Thornton (hurdles, relays), Jaontay Bryant (sprints), Griffin Debolt (distance), Diego Tolivia (distance), Zyion Brown (sprints)
Outlook: As long as the Tygers stay healthy, Shine likes the balance on this team, believing they can score big points in the sprints, hurdles and field events. Ware and Upchurch finished one-two in the high jump in the Ohio Cardinal Conference meet and the Tygers also won league titles in the 4x100 and 4x200.
Plymouth
Coach: Matt Anderson
Key personnel: Sr. Landon Blankenship (mid-distance), Sr. Logan Nichols (distance), Sr. Nick Cole (sprints, long jump), Jr. Caiden Allen (sprints, high jump), Jr. Colton Sparks (throws, sprints), Jr. Gavin McClary (sprints, long jump), Jr. Andrew Miller (hurdles, mid-distance), So. Layne Bushy (sprints, high jump), So. Malachi Keefe (mid-distance), So. Aiden Durbin (sprints)
Outlook: The Big Red will do most of their scoring in the sprints and throws. Allen could be one of the top sprinters and high jumpers in the area. Sparks can score points in a variety of events. With hard work and a little luck, Anderson believes his squad could compete for a top three finish in the Firelands Conference.
Shelby
Coach: Chris Zuercher
Key personnel: Connor Henkel (long jump), Xander Wilkens (throws), Garret Baker (pole vault, high jump, 400), Huck Finnegan (distance), Luke Dininger (distance), Mason Hendrickson (distance), Marshall Moore (distance)
Outlook: Although Zuercher believes everyone is chasing Marion Harding in the MOAC, he has a number of individuals and relays who could be in for a big season. Henkel and Finnegan both went to state last year. During this year’s indoor season, Henkel was fourth at state in the long jump while Finnegan ran a 9:41 in the 3200 and joined Dininger, Henderickson and Moore to go 8:16 in the 4x800 for a sixth-place medal. That relay, along with Finnegan and Hendrickson in the 3200, has a chance to make the podium in the outdoor state meet. Wilkens is the defending MOAC champ in the shot and discus and Baker gives the team versatility although he didn’t get to show it last post-season because he was hurt. The Whippets need to find hurdlers and sprinters, but should score a lot of points from the 400 on up.
St. Peter’s
Coach: Dan Schlitt
Key personnel: Sr. John Harris (hurdles, sprints), Sr. Zach Keffalas (800, 1600), Sr. Cory Schenkelberg (distance), Sr. Kellon Young (throws), Jr. Peter Bodnar (sprints)
Outlook: The Spartans were Mid-Buckeye Conference champs in 2021 but they’ll be defending their title without departed state hurdles champ Donovan Dunan and regional-qualifying sprinter Albree Grose. The good news is that for the first time in his 10 years at the helm, Schlitt has depth, with 16 boys out. Harris, Bodnar and Keffalas were all regional qualifiers in their specialities last season. Big things are expected from Schenkelberg in the 800 and 1600, while newcomers Angelo Gasper (discus), Jordan Lindsay (sprints) and Feree Kent (sprints) should be impactful.
This article originally appeared on Mansfield News Journal: Boys track and field outlook: Tygers looking to make a ‘leap’ among area teams
