After getting cut in basketball, Brophy’s McHenry took off in track
After getting cut from Phoenix Brophy Prep’s freshman basketball team, Brennen McHenry took advice from a friend.
His friend convinced him to do track and field, talking to him about some of the past Brophy greats, such as two-time Olympian Devon Allen, who holds the state record in the 110-meter hurdles.
“I decided to give it a shot, and really fell in love with it,” McHenry, now a senior, said. “I just kept going.”
And going and going.
His high jump of 7 feet in the seasonopening Aztec Invitational at Tempe Corona del Sol set a school record and tied him for the best in the nation this season for high school athletes.
His state championship long jump of 23 feet, 10 inches in last year’s Division I state track and field championships is a school record.
It’s all led to Texas, where he’ll be competing next year on a track scholarship.
Today, McHenry will be competing in the events at the newly named Brophy Devon Allen AMDG Invitational for top boys and girls track and field athletes from all over the state. Devon Allen, who was part of the Philadelphia Eagles team that reached the Super Bowl last season, is sponsoring the meet. He also will be there to hand out awards. The meet runs from 1 p.m. to 9 p.m.
Now the 6-foot-2 McHenry is carving out his own legacy at Brophy Prep.
“Brennen improved greatly between his freshmen and sophomore year,” Brophy head coach Bill Kalkman said. “He came back to track after the COVID break (in 2020) with a passion for the jumps.
“He is a self-motivated athlete.”
COVID-19, which wiped out Arizona high school spring sports starting in mid-March of 2020, prompted McHenry to find creative ways to improve his jumps on his own.
He built a jumps area in his backyard with PVC pipes and wooden beams and a tape measure, along with standards and crossbars to practice his high jumps.
He used an old mattress to land into. Then, he would simply long jump into the swimming pool to work on those jumps.
“I did that all summer,” McHenry said. “I came into my sophomore year a completely new jumper.”
COVID closing everything down, actually, brought the best out of McHenry, who poured his passion into track and field.
“I never fell in love with basketball again,” he said.
This passion has become contagious with teammates at Brophy, where he’s always putting in the time and trying new approaches year-round.
“He is intrinsically determined to be the best,” Kalkman said.
“Brennen’s positive attitude and energy for working on the details of his track and field events has encouraged many of his Brophy teammates to do the same.”