Columbus -- It took 364 days to make up 16 one-hundredths of a second. For the members of Gilmour Academy's girls 4x800-relay team, it was well worth the wait. Led by seniors Rebekka Simko and Grace Brennan, part of a state runner-up quartet a year ago, the Lancers erased a frustrating memory in style in the opening event at...
Cuyahoga Heights' Brandon Eddy clears 6-4 in the high jump at the Division III state track and field championships Friday in Columbus. It was his personal record, and he finished seventh.
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(John Kuntz / The Plain Dealer)
Columbus -- It took 364 days to make up 16 one-hundredths of a second. For the members of Gilmour Academy's girls 4x800-relay team, it was well worth the wait.
Led by seniors Rebekka Simko and Grace Brennan, part of a state runner-up quartet a year ago, the Lancers erased a frustrating memory in style in the opening event at the Division III state track and field meet. With freshmen Alexis Anton and Meghan Pryatel joining in, Gilmour finished the eight-lap race in 9:31.28 to win the title by 50 meters.
A year ago, the Lancers finished second in the race by 0.16 seconds, and the feeling stuck with them.
"We were just devastated last year," said Simko, who will run today in three finals. "It was so tough. We definitely thought about it. And it's my senior year, too, and you definitely want to go out on top."
The Lancers led the race for all but the first three laps. Brennan was fourth when she got the baton second from Anton. By the time Brennan handed it to Pryatel, Gilmour was comfortably ahead. Pryatel padded the lead a bit, and Simko stretched it even further during her two laps.
Versailles, which won the event a year ago, finished second in 9:35.80. To the Tigers' credit, they returned just one runner from their state title team, yet were 10 seconds better than the remainder of the field.
Brennan, also part of the near-miss runner-up team a year ago, said the foursome was confident, even with two freshmen running legs.
"I know how good they are, and they were really prepared," she said. "They were very excited, and I think being nervous actually helped them run."
The Lancers are looking for their second consecutive team championship and fifth in sixth years. They'll compete in three finals today -- Simko in the 800 and 1,600, and the 4x400 -- but that might not be enough.
Versailles, which qualified athletes in nine events, will run in seven finals.
Gilmour's team title hopes took a shot when sprinting ace Candace Longino-Thomas was injured last week at the Navarre Regional. Longino-Thomas is a defending state champ in four events, having won the 4x100, 4x200 and open 100 and 200.
"It would be cool to win, but we're sad that she's not here," Brennan said. "But she'll be excited for us too if we win."
After cooling down from the 4x800 win, Simko, Brennan, Anton and senior Kathryn Drew won their 4x400 heat, running the third-fastest prelim time overall.
Simko also will run today in the 800 and 1,600 finals. She is seeded second and third, respectively, so it's conceivable she could follow in Thomas' footsteps as a four-time champ.
"I'm going to really try my best," Simko said. "That would be cool to go out like that."
That would make Simko a state champ in five different events. She won the 400 the past two years before moving this year to the longer distances.
Brandon Eddy fell short of his goal of a state championship, but the Cuyahoga Heights senior still had a nice day. He placed in two events, including runner-up in the pole vault.
"I was surprised that I didn't win," said Eddy, who also finished seventh in the high jump. "I was coming in expecting to win. I wasn't going to be satisfied with anything but first, but I guess I'm happy with [personal records of 15 feet] in the pole vault and [6-4] in the high jump on the same day."
Eddy's prior best outdoor vault had been 14-6, and his regional leap was 13-8. He qualified in the high jump at 6-2, so he bested that as well.
Trinity's boys 4x800 team went into the final with the fifth-fastest regional time. The Trojans dropped nearly a second off that mark but finished seventh. The all-junior squad of Eric Godbey, Nate Babb, Rob Morel and Nick Gliha finished in 8:03.10.
In other preliminary action, Trinity's girls 4x200 team of junior Jessica Glaser, junior Chelsea Nehez, sophomore Nicole Lungaro and sophomore Nicole Kontur advanced, as did Cornerstone junior Courtney Reese (400).
Others running in finals today will be Hawken freshman Alexandra Markovich and Gilmour's Pryatel in the 1,600, and Lutheran West junior Brad Watson in the 800.
Through six events, McDonald led the girls standings with 18 points. Patrick Henry and McComb each had 14. North Robinson Colonel Crawford led the boys race with 20, also through six events. Columbus Grove had 15 and Newark Catholic 14.