Fitch’s Robinson has his winning form back
Wins the shot put at 36th annual Ledyard Relays
Ledyard — Last winter, Brian Robinson was competing in an event in which he is usually quite efficient and successful, the shot put.
It was his second invitational of the indoor track season and Robinson, then a Fitch High School junior, hit the toe board with his foot in such a way that he dislocated his right knee, immediately dropping him to the ground.
"They rushed me to the hospital," Robinson said. "They gave me a knee brace. Some of the time I had to take standing throws because I couldn't go through the motions. In August, I started feeling better."
Robinson was feeling better Friday afternoon, as well. A 5-foot-11 powerhouse and this winter's Eastern Connecticut Conference shot put champion indoors, Robinson threw a personal-best 48 feet in the shot to win the 36th Annual Ledyard Relays. He led Fitch to a relay win in the event, as well, joining teammates Eli Rosario Vega (42-8.5, 2nd) and Everett Guess (41-7.5, 4th) for a total of 132-4.
Robinson, a lefty, is the top seed for today's discus event, too, and coach Rich Kosta said the Falcons will try to claim the meet record in the discus relay. Fitch already owns the shot put and javelin relay records.
"I started in eighth grade at Fitch Middle," Robinson said. "I was throwing shot. I also started off as a sprinter. When I got to high school, I started getting too tired and big, so I stuck with throwing. I could only throw 32 feet as a freshman. Lifting helps though.
"We meet a lot of people out here. I'm trying not to choke. All the pressure's on you. (On my last throw), coach told me to go as hard as I could."
Robinson was second at the Class L state championship indoors with a toss of 46-4.25. He was 10th in the State Open. This spring, he adds the disc to his repertoire, an event he calls his favorite.
"Sometimes, I can't demonstrate a thing I want to show him," said Fitch throwing coach Wayne Jacob, who then directs Robinson to watch a YouTube video. "He's a stu- dent of the events. Last year was just a lost year for him."
Fitch teammates Matt Kerst (3,200) and Patrick Scheurer ( javelin) joined Robinson in the win column, as did Fitch's Madison Powe in the girls' long jump. Scheurer teamed with Robby Duncan and Donte Paul for a victory in the javelin relay and Powe was joined by Ryana Kelsey and Janaya Burley to win the long jump relay. Scheurer was also second in the 300 hurdles.
The meet traditionally serves as a portal to the second half of the track season, during which things heat up considerably.
Megan Brawner of Ledyard, the reigning Class MM 800-meter champion, the winner of the 800 and 1,600 at last year's ECC meet and The Day's 2015 All-Area Runner of the Year, competed in the boys' 5,000 meters Friday and has been quietly dabbling in the hur-
dles so far this season.
The 5,000, in which she finished sixth of six runners in 19 minutes, 44.2 seconds, should make an eventual 800 seem short by comparison and the hurdles will likely help her in the end-of-the-season CIAC steeplechase, in which she had trouble with the water hazards last year.
"It was a good test of my strength and competitiveness," Brawner, who will compete today in the distance medley relay, said of the 5,000. "The last two laps were kind of painful. ... I've been keeping it low key so far. Hopefully it will pay off in the end. I'm going to push myself to run fast times (in the distances). I'm excited for the end of the season."
Kerst, meanwhile, edged teammate Tom Readett to win the 3,200. Kerst finished in 10:21.2 and Readett in 10:23.6, both beating the qualifying time for the state meet. The catch: Kerst is a soccer midfielder and more of a middle-distance runner, while Readett is the cross country guy.
Kerst said by the end of the season, he expects Readett to surpass him, though.
"We were all disappointed we lost (Wednesday against Large Division rival Norwich Free Academy). Today was a day to run some fast times," said Kerst, a junior, who was good-naturedly bantering with Readett following the race. "We've been thinking about this for a long time. "I knew I had the speed (at the end). I knew 10: 30 was the state qualifying time. It's been a long time since we've had a distance qualifier." v.fulkerson@theday.com