COLUMBUS — The journey to the top of the podium was a long and winding one for Loudonville senior Emily Weber.
A senior, Weber edged out Lucas sophomore Emily Niswander on her final attempt to win the Division III state championship in the long jump on a scorching Friday afternoon at Ohio State’s Jesse Owens Memorial Stadium. Weber winning leap of 18 feet, 1.5 inches was one inch better than Niswander’s best effort (17-11.5) in a showdown of Mid-Buckeye Conference rivals.
The victory was especially sweet for Weber, whose star-crossed high school career included two tears of the anterior cruciate ligament in her left knee — once in soccer and once in basketball. She finished third at state in the long jump as a freshman in 2014, but was sidelined as a sophomore and junior.
“I was a little nervous because I didn’t long jump for two years,” said Weber, who set a personal best and broke her own school record. “I just had to prove myself one more time.
“It was like, ‘It’s all or nothing because you are a senior.’ I knew I could do it. I had hope.”
Like Weber, Niswander broke her own school record. In fact, Niswander broke her school mark on all three of her preliminary attempts with leaps of 17-5.75, 17-10.25 and 17-11.5.
“My prelims were better than my finals,” Niswander said. “I never thought I would be second at state.”
Runner-Up: Lexington’s boys 4×800 relay team took second in the only scored running event of the day, missing out on a Division II state championship by less than a second.
Worthington Christian won the event with a time of 7:50.65. The Minutemen finished in 7:51.09.
The Lex foursome of Kyle Johnston, Mason Kearns, Forest Volz and Ryan Johnston beat Worthington Christian by a fraction of a second at last week’s regional meet.
Lex was in first when junior anchorman Ryan Johnston took the baton from Volz, but WC anchor Jordan Jackson, who also qualified for Saturday’s final in the 400 dash.
“Running the 400 and 200, he has a lot more foot speed than me coming around that last 200,” Ryan Johnston said. “Right at that last 100 … I saw him blow right by.”
All four members of the relay team are underclassmen.
“The good news is we’ll all be back next year,” Ryan Johnston said.
Return to Form: Galion junior high jumper Marisa Gwinner took third at state as a freshman, but slipped off the podium last spring with a ninth-place finish.
Gwinner returned to form Friday afternoon with a fourth-place leap of 5-6.
“Last year was an off-year for me,” said Gwinner, who won an indoor state title this year. “To get back on the podium was great.
“It was tough competition, especially with all the juniors here. If I want in next year, I’ll have to put in some more work.”
Podium Finish: The Ontario girls 4×800 team of Amanda Kuenzli, Grace Maurer, Anna Gregg and Brittany McCauley took eighth in 9:30.50.
