NEW CONCORD — Day Two became a big day for Steubenville Big Red runners Saturday at Muskingum.
The boys finished with 48 points — six shy of first-place Fairfield Union with 54 — to finish as the Division II, Region 7 runner-up while the girls weren’t far off, finishing third with 54 points, fewer than four behind runner-up John Glenn as Fairfield Union doubled up with team titles by scoring 72.
Buckeye Local’s girls finished in eighth with 33 while the East Liverpool boys tied Indian Valley for fifth with 30 team points and St. Clairsville was right behind in seventh with 29. The lady Red Devils finished just outside the top 10 at 11th with 23 points.
Big Red’s boys did their damage both individually, and especially, in the relays. Both the 4×200 and 4×400 relay teams finished atop the medal podium, winning their respective races.
For the 4×200 team, it finished in 1:29.26 while the 4×400, one of the top 3 or 4 teams regardless of region, clocked a 3:21.96 with East Liverpool finishing third.
While the 4×100 team didn’t qualify for next week’s state championships in Dayton, it did come in 8th, providing another point to the team total.
“We had some strong performances,” Big Red head coach Andy Kidwell said. “(Ziare) Scurry I think might have a pretty good chance of placing individually next week, as could Josh Schoonover in the 800.
“Our relays are pretty solid, especially the 4×4 with one of the top three or four times, regardless of region.”
Scurry won the open 400 in 50.45 as a freshman while teammate Savior Faulks finished second in the 300 hurdles at 38.58. Joshua Rea came up big in the high jump, finishing fifth at 6-4 and provided needed points.
For those that placed but won’t advance, Kidwell knows how impressive it is even making it into the top 32 across the Buckeye state.
“You’re one of 32 people or 32 teams left in the state and sometimes our kids lose perspective and just how much they actually accomplished.”
Schoonover finished 4th in the 800 at 1:57.77.
Barnesville’s Aden Zumock came in seventh in the 100 at 11.43. Harrison Central’s Beau Rinkes came in eighth in the 110 hurdles.
St. C. distance ace easily Ben Shields easily captured the 3,200, finishing in 9:19.01, nearly 10 seconds ahead of Tate Ruthers of Sheridan.
East Liverpool’s Julius Jones won the 800 in 1:54.97. Beaver Local’s Jeremiah Moore and the Potters’ Maddox Roach moved on in the 1,600, coming in third and fourth, respectively. Barnesville’s Conner Starr finished sixth and St. C.’s Sawyer Bonnett was eighth.
St. C. just missed the auto qualify in the 4×100, coming in fifth at 43.32.
Girls
Much is expected of Big Red’s Sabria Jones, considering (a) she’s a WVU recruit and (b) she reached the medal stand at the stadium meet her freshman year four times.
Jones finished another solid day, despite her personal equipment taking its best shots at blowing her chances.
Jones’ day started strong, with the Big Red senior winning the long jump in 18-2.75. St. C’s Ava Borkoski finished sixth and Cambridge’s Zoey Caldwell eighth.
Jones then finished second in a competitive 100-meter-dash field in a time of 12.32 with St. C’s Emma Henry winning the regional crown and Buckeye Local’s Brynn McKeever finishing third.
Then during the 4×200 relay, during Jones’ leg of the relay, her Nike track spikes had a blowout similar to NBA star Zion Williamson. Big Red finished sixth in the 4×200, not a qualifying spot but it did account for some points.
All taped up and ready for the 200, Jones’ shoe came apart again, nearly costing her a spot in Dayton in the 200. She finished 4th in 25.64, nearly a full second off her qualifying time in the prelims where she posted the best mark. McKeever took second in the 200 and Henry fell back to finish sixth.
“Sabria is a tough competitor and it’s kind of like no matter what the day threw at her, she was going to overcome it and make it to Dayton.”
Big Red got a nice surprise as steadily improving freshman Adrianna Crabtree not only advanced in the 100 hurdles, but won the event after finishing runner-up at the district level. She finished in 15.44 to Caldwell’s 15.45. Caldwell came in second in the 300 hurdles with Crabtree just missed the final qualifying spot, finishing fifth.
“She’s come a long way. She’s an extremely hard worker ands keeps getting better and better,” Kidwell said of Crabtree.
Fellow frosh Bri Hudson finished fifth in the discus, but her twirl of 126-4 should give her one of the two at-large bids.
Big Red didn’t own the only individual championships locally.
Buckeye Local’s Pam Kandrach, after finishing sixth in the shot put, roared back Saturday to win the girls’ discus with a 133-3. Kandrach previously reached the state meet in the shot put, but this is her first time in the discus.
It makes up for earlier in the week, as well as for her junior season, when Kandrach’s regional level throw would have won the event had she not lightly touched the top of the ring, earning a scratch on what would have been her best throw.
“She was bummed about not finishing higher in shot, but she’s been taking off in discus so much this year. She’s seen nothing but improvement,” noted Buckeye Local head coach Donnie Yeager. “She was relaxed and focused (Saturday) and not affected by her finish in the shot.
“It was good to see her win the regional.”
McKeever, while not winning in any individual event, continued her strong postseason in qualifying in all three sprint events for the second year in a row.
In addition to finishing second in the 200 and third in the 100, McKeever came in third in the open 400 in 58.58, a event she ran somewhat sparingly her senior season while focusing primarily on the shorter sprint races.
“She only ran it a few times this year to see how it went, but then she wins the OVAC and qualifies for state,” Yeager said. “That was good, even for her and I’m so proud of her and the work she’s put in.”
Martins Ferry’s Alanna Williams and Barnesville’s Marah Bethel both punched their respective tickets to Dayton, finishing second and fourth in the 800.
Big Red started strong in the relays, advancing in fourth place in the 4×100 in 50:31 as South Point (50.12) took top honors. The Red came in sixth in the 4×200 at 1:47.98.
Capping the evening, Big Red came in sixth in the 4×400 in 4:11:48.
St. C. sophom*ore Ava Crum advanced finishing third in the pole vault at 10-4.
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