Esther Lawrence

COLUMBUS ACADEMY 17 Senior 4.3 Diving Will enroll at Harvard. She plans to major in economics or psychology and join the diving team.

Why economics? I’m leaning toward economics after taking three classes that changed my perspective. My teacher, Mr. (John) Exline, is in his 50th year at Academy. I look forward to his classes every day. It’s the intersection between public policy, economics and the cultural aspects that’s intriguing. I’m also taking government, and you can’t tell where one class ends and the other class begins.

You can’t wait to get to class?

Learning is a passion. It sounds cliché, but I wrote my college essay about the motivation for learning. I’ve always been a curious person and like my questions answered.

What was your reaction to being accepted by Harvard?

I received the official acceptance letter in December. I was sitting on the couch with my mom and got an email about a change to my application status from the dean’s office. I checked the email and it said “Congratulations,” and I barely read the rest. My mom started cheering and gave me a hug.

What was the process like?

I was determined not to have a dream school so I wouldn’t pin all my hopes on it. I have two older siblings (Sydney is 21 and attends Miami University, and Austin is 19 and attends Case Western Reserve; the youngest is 12-year-old Maren) and I followed their college application process. I also visited Duke, Yale and Northwestern for diving.

What clubs and activities are you involved with in school?

I started a book club here. I was on student council my freshman, sophomore and junior years as one of four elected representatives. I was on homecoming committee, I’m on prom committee and am co-editor of our literary magazine, Quest. I have helped plan the school arts fair and talent show.

Have you written for Quest?

Yes, poetry. I pick a theme or idea that has been weighing on me for a while. It’s cool to be able to write for a publication with your peers. Quest is a combination of photography, drawings, paintings, poetry and short stories, and it’s impressive to see all these works from our student body. What else are you in? I’m in an all-girls treble choir. Miss (Amy) Brooks does a good job of picking a combination of songs that have great lyrics and are fun to sing. During our last concert we sang “How Like a Winter,” which is based on a sonnet by Shakespeare. Most people assume girls are going to sing light, happy songs, but that was somber, dark, kind of eerie and fun.

What about things outside of school?

I volunteer at the Humane Society of Delaware County. I do a lot of unglamorous things like scooping dog poop and cleaning cat litter boxes. I also greet prospective adopters and do paperwork. I’m on the junior fair board for 4-H. I’ve gone to the state fair for 4-H four times. My sister, Sydney, was involved in 4-H far more and encouraged me to get involved.

What else should we know about you?

I grew up on a farm in Sunbury and that has shaped a lot about who I am. We have four chickens and a big barn. I also started a lawn-care company with my siblings. My grandma lives in a neighborhood with elderly people and the man who cut their lawns moved. My dad came home and said, “Why don’t you try this?” We had seven or eight customers at the peak and now it’s about four. It’s great because every time I go to the neighborhood I get to see my grandma.

BrecksvilleBroadview Heights will be chasing its 15th consecutive title and 18th overall, but it may not be as easy as in past years. The Bees won the Northeast District championship with 145.15 points, but received a stiff challenge from Rocky River Magnificant (144.25), a 10-time state champion and runner-up the past two years. Northeast District teams claimed the top five places in 2016 and 2017. Brecksville also is riding a streak of five straight individual champions. The Bees' hopes lie with senior Emily Huffman, who was runner-up a year ago but was upset in the Northeast District meet by Madeline Berry of North Canton Hoover (37.475 points). … Runner-up to district champion Thornville Sheridan, Olentangy will make its third straight appearance in the team competition and host Hilliard Bradley its first. The

Wayne Webb’s Columbus Bowl, 3224 S. High St.

Boys, 8:30 a.m. to 3:45 p.m. Friday; girls, 8:30 a.m. to 3:45 p.m. Saturday.

$8, on East Side of facility; also at Judah Tabernacle Church, 3176 S. High St., and at Tom Carter’s Pro Shop and Training Center at the alley.

Central District champion Jonathan Alder, Heath and Licking Valley will represent the area. Their qualifying scores rank 12th, 13th and 14th, respectively, among the 16 teams. Alder advanced to the state last year, failing to advance through the qualifying round. Uhrichsville Claymont and Carrollton, from the East District, turned in the highest district scores, but western Ohio schools have dominated this event in recent years and St. Paris Graham, Mechanicsburg, Urbana and St. Henry all topped 4,000 in the district. Individually, based on district scores, Tyler Downing of Uhrichsville Claymont (762) and Alberto Dunlap of Belmont Union (705) are the favorites. Freshman Ethan Walton of Heath was the district medalist with a 635, followed by senior Jarrett Strait of Licking Valley with a 626. Alder is led by senior Zach Otto (third, 584) and sophomore Jacob Schrock (sixth, 549). Last year, Schrock placed seventh, Strait 29th and Otto 39th at state. Also representing central Ohio are Braves took ninth in 2016 and seventh a year ago. … The top area individual is Dublin Coffman senior Bethany Hurt, who won the district all-around with a score of 37.0. She won the floor exercise, tied for first on balance beam, tied for second vault and tied for third on uneven bars. She placed 13th in the state all-around last year. She is one of 10 area individuals competing. Junior Gianna Brooks of Westerville Central returns after placing 18th in the all-around and senior Chloe Shook of Hilliard Darby was 23rd. Seniors Greta Planck of Hilliard Bradley and Mary Dimitroff of Big Walnut and sophomore Olivia Boone of Olentangy also have state meet experience. … Central Ohio's last team champion was Upper Arlington in 1995. The area has claimed just three all-around champions in the 45-year history of the meet. The last area competitor to win an event was Gracey Brown of DeSales (balance beam, 2009). individual qualifiers Carlton Hogg of Centerburg (565), Seth Parsell of Worthington Christian (564) and Bobby Davis of Pleasant (545).

Eliminated by eventual champion Coldwater in the opening match of the championship round last year, district champion Jonathan Alder returns with a senior-laden lineup making its fourth straight appearance at the state. Sectional champion Rena Kirts took 18th and Rachel Kaeser 19th last year. Logan Elm, Heath and North Union also will represent central Ohio, but they recorded the four lowest qualifying scores. Versailles, Uhrichsville Claymont and St. Paris Graham enter as the favorites. Morgan Heitkamp of Versailles (663), Dani Hickey of Bryan (653) and Kaitlyn Smalley of Minerva (641) lead a field of 10 bowlers with qualifying scores of 600 or higher. That group includes 2017 runner-up Audrey Wilson of Cincinnati Seven Hills (607). Allyia Nicol of North Union (548) and Kally Abrams of Heath (545) were the top two Central District scorers. Individual qualifiers were Brooke Flickinger of Pleasant (534), Laynee Wilson of Cardington (530) and Madison Darnes of Lakewood (529).