The News Herald (Willoughby, OH)
Floriea breaks her own area long jump record
Hosts sweep team crowns at Mentor meet
Perhaps the perfect microcosm for Paige Floriea’s drive to be great can be derived from a podium picture during the 2019 Division I state track and field meet.
The then-Mentor sophomore had just taken third in D-I 100-meter dash.
On the podium, seven of the top eight placers smiled.
Floriea did not — not because she wasn’t pleased to place among the best sprinters in Ohio, mind you, but rather because she was cognizant more and better lay ahead.
So when the senior took another swing May 1 at her own News-Herald coverage area alltime long jump record during the Mentor Cardinal Relays — and got it — her understated reaction was not surprising.
Floriea wants more — just as the all-time greats seemingly always strive and aspire.
The North Carolina recruit nosed past her all-time area standard of 20 feet, 2 1/2 inches in long jump on her third attempt of the morning — a masterpiece of an effort of 20-4 1/2.
In a dual this past week, Floriea tied her prior area standard with a 20-2 1/2. Then on her second jump May 1, she also recorded a 20-2 1/2.
But she wants Tianna Bartoletta’s D-I state record of 20-5 3/4, and remaining oh-so-close to surpassing it fuels her, a mindset Bartoletta graciously noted on Twitter she appreciates.
“It’s extremely encouraging that I know I can get that,” Floriea said. “I’m disappointed in myself. I know I can do better, and I know I have a bigger jump coming. I just need to get it all together.
“(The 20-4 ½) felt huge. I know that jump had the best explosion of the day and the best in the past couple weeks. So I knew the moment that I left the board that it was going to be big.”
Speaking of big, the Cardinals girls put on an allencompassing performance in their home facility to roll to the team crown with 159 points and eight event wins. Floriea was named the meet’s outstanding female athlete, also capturing 100 with a 12.01 and running a leg on Mentor’s victorious sprint medley (1:45.53).
But what really made a statement beyond long jump was Mentor’s 4x4. A week after Chardon made a statement on its home track at the Hilltopper Invitational with a 4:01.27, the Cardinals in a sense responded in kind to take back the claim of The NewsHerald coverage area’s fastest time of 2021 with a sterling 4:00.30.
“I’m so proud of our team,” Floriea said. “We’ve worked through some slight injuries. We just have to work hard, because we know we’re great. We won’t let anything stop us from being great this year.”
On the boys side, University was in peak form, especially on relays.
Michael Beros anchored the Preppers to wins in 4x1, 4x2 and 4x4. The 4x1 (43.25) and 4x2 (1:30.18) were The News-Herald coverage area’s fastest this spring, and 4x4 (3:28.37) hit a sub-3:29 for the second time in a month.
US has never advanced a 4x1 to state and hasn’t gotten a 4x2 (2011) or 4x4 (2009) out of regional competition in recent memory.
Beros and his counterparts in Hunting Valley are eager to halt that drought.
“I think this gives us a lot of confidence, especially when we get later into the race,” Beros said. “It’s nice to have a lead, and we’re super lucky. Our juniors have done a really good job keeping the seniors in check and pushing each other throughout the year. When we get to district and hopefully regional, there’s that system where we all push each other.
“At the end of the day, we’re going to throw down, and we’ve done that all year. I am very proud of how our guys have done so far.”
Perry’s Javin Richards, amid the Pirates’ annual back-to-back weekend with the Dick Beeler Booster Invitational on Friday night and then Mentor Cardinal Relays on Saturday morning, impressed yet again in hurdles.
Richards won 110 hurdles with a 15.04, displaying impeccable power coming home, and reigned in 300 hurdles with a 40.10.
He attributed dropping time in 110s lower into the 15s to YouTube film study and is pleased with his trajectory in hurdles to go with his state championship-caliber pole vaulting.
“I love it,” Richards said of 300s. “I really want to get into the 39s, though. It felt pretty good. I hit Hurdle 2 pretty bad, and a couple hurdles, I caught my toe on, which cost me quite a bit of time. It’s still a good run.
“Actually, we watched some YouTube videos of Olympic people (in 110 hurdles), and we watched them. The person in front snaps their leg down way faster than anyone else, which I knew was important. But when you see it on video, it’s just like, ‘Oh my gosh. That’s what you need to do.’ “
The Mentor boys stampeded to the team title with 149 points. Michael Petrovic enjoyed a breakthrough run in 3,200 with a smartly executed back end en route to a 9:38.58. That’s good for the fastest time in The News-Herald coverage area in 2021.
Hawken’s Ella Gilson logged a dynamic effort in 3,200 with a 10:37.45, a little less than eight seconds off Leah Roter’s all-time area standard.
Other runs of note were turned in by Mayfield’s Nick Biega, named the meet’s outstanding male athlete after a 10.67 to capture 100, and US’ Nate Miller, who went 1:57.01 to reign in 800.
Coming soon
For more from this meet, check back in the coming days on News-Herald.com and in our print edition.