’Cats’ Coe qualifies for state in 100

LEXINGTON>> Keystone senior Mitchell Coe knew something was off.

At the Division II Lexington Regional on May 27, Coe was vying for a repeat regional title in the 100-meter dash, but took fourth instead (11.12).

It was enough to qualify him for the state meet next week on June 2-3. In the 200-meter race, Coe ran in the always challenging lane 8 for the first time this season and placed seventh with a 22.58. The Lexington boys won the team title with 44 points, while Orville took the girls title (55).

In a perfect world, Coe would have loved to qualify in both. And he would have loved it even more if he captured the 100-meter dash title.

“I just had a bad day and I felt

tired,” Coe said.

The night before, Coe graduated from Keystone. He said that factored into his not feeling well. He usually prefers to spend the night prior to a big race picturing how he will run and getting mentally prepared.

The graduation, although a special moment, didn’t allow for that to happen.

“I wanted to focus on the race a bit more but I had to go there,” Coe said. “I like to sit in my bed around 9 o’clock and just think about my race. But hopefully now I can focus more on state.”

Despite feeling a little down, Coe is excited about the opportunity of going to the state meet for a second year in a row. Able to draw from last year’s experience, he should be even more prepared.

“Next week I should be good,” Coe added. “I want to get podium. I won’t really do anything too differently from last year. I don’t know if I’ve already hit my peak week. This might have been my peak week and it’s hard to get it back. But qualifying out of the 100 was my main goal today. The 200 would have been a cherry on top but I’m still moving on.”

Coe was the only state qualifier in the meet from the Morning Journal coverage area.

Brookside junior David Chambers, coming off a school record 50.50 in the 400 in the prelims, finished sixth with a 50.53. Chambers was noticeably down after the race but knows he still has another year to crack the top four.

“I think I should have gone out a little harder than I did,” Chambers said. “But this is going to motivate me a lot for next year. I’m never going to forget that race. I love to run and it’s my passion. I can’t wait

for next year.”

Clearview’s Alyzabeth Lighty, coming off a pair of district titles in the 100 and 200, didn’t qualify in either event. She finished eighth in the 100 (13.01) and fifth in the 200 (26.43).

Still a junior, Lighty is eager to make a return next season.

“I tried really hard,” she said. “I didn’t have a very good start. This will motivate me.”

The Clippers’ 4x2 boys relay team of Jacob Collier, Jonathan Coutch, Zavier Felder, and Sam Daniels placed sixth for a season-best time of 1:31.23.

Daniels was the fourth leg, but had a mishap on the baton exchange with Felder and put the loss on his shoulders.

“I take full responsibility for what happened on the last leg,” Daniels said. “I took off too fast and I saw that he wasn’t there yet so then I kind of had to slow down. It messed us up. The other teams that beat us rose up well and I’m happy for them. But this was a fun experience and it’s not every day you get to come out here and race against competition like this, so I’m blessed and really fortunate to be out here.”

Firelands’ Blake Ruffner scored the only two points for the Falcons, placing seventh in the high jump for a PR 6-1. Ruffner’s previous PR was 5-10 and he is only a sophomore.

“I expected to get 6-2, but it’s just great to come out here and compete at regionals and place, it’s just amazing,” Ruffner said.

This was the first year Ruffner competed in track and field. He was also on the football team. He dealt with a back injury early in the season, but returned after the Nelson Howe Invitational. His biggest priority was to be ready for the postseason.

“I plan to get a higher jump throughout my high school career,” he added. The state meet will be at Ohio State University.