GENEVA – On Saturday, March 7th. Ansonia boys and girls track team competed in the OATCCC indoor state track meet in Geneva, Ohio, at the Spire Institute Academy.
Ansonia had 11 athletes total who qualified for the Division 4 state indoor track meet. The day started with Pole Vault as both Cade Shellhaas and London Reichert made the podium for Ansonia. Cade finished 2nd overall, and London finished 4th overall.
Ansonia pole vault coach Steve Shellhaas had this to say after the meet
“London had a great day; it was the best jump of the indoor season. We have not had much time to practice since she was in basketball, which has limited what we can do. I’m excited for the outdoor season, which will give us more time to work on areas we need to improve.
Cade had a good day and has been jumping consistently, but the other kid had an amazing day. We will be fine, need more time to work on bigger poles, which will make a big difference. Cade had a scary fall two weeks ago, and we are lucky that he even jumped this weekend.
London also competed in the 200 meters and 4×200-meter relay for Ansonia. She finished 12th in the 200 in an indoor school record of 26.97. Then, in the 4×200-meter relay, along with senior Rose Barga, Olivia Creager, and sophomore Charlotte Barge, she grabbed the 5th spot to make the podium. Rose Barga anchored the relay and ran with an ACL injury, but managed to push and hold onto the 4th position for the Tigers.
Ansonia sprint coach Clint Neal had some thoughts on the Tigers’ strong performance.
“On the sprint side, Cade Shellhaas qualified for the OATCCC Indoor State Meet in the 200m with a time of 23.08, which is near the personal record he set at the end of the outdoor season. Cade also had a fantastic indoor season in the 60m hurdles, running a personal best of 8.41, which seeded him 7th in Division IV. Ultimately, Cade finished 13th overall, which will help drive him even more heading into the outdoor season.”
On the girls’ sprint side, the 4x200m relay looked to build off the success they had last season. After Lauren Warner graduated, we looked to Charlotte Barga, a first-year track athlete, to step into the relay. Prior to the OATCCC State Meet, Charlotte had only competed in one other indoor track meet. The way she remained calm and poised was truly impressive at such a large event.
“With Rose Barga running on a torn ACL, I wasn’t sure what to expect from the relay team. The goal was simply to give her the opportunity to run with her sister and compete one last time before her surgery. As always, Rose showed the competitor she is and stepped up when it truly mattered, helping the team earn a 4th-place podium finish and improving our indoor school record to 1:53.27. It was truly heartwarming to see the resilience Rose showed throughout the race, and even more special to see her share that final opportunity on the track with her sister.”
In the horizontal jumps, Ansonia had a fantastic day with Freshman Branson Landis and Olivia Creager, both long jumping, with Branson finishing 9th and Olivia making the podium at 6th. It was in the triple jump that Ansonia got the first of 3 individual state titles, with Olivie taking the triple jump in 34 feet 2.25 inches.
Ansonia Jumps coach Craig Riethman had this to say about Olivia and Branson’s performances.
“Olivia Creager (OC) had a goal of qualifying for the indoor state meet again this year in the long jump. Since she will be triple jumping in college next year, she figured she would try it as well. Not to my surprise, OC picked it up very quickly. We asked the college athletes working at the event each week to critique and teach us how to adjust. OC locked in on the details and continued to improve each meet. By the time it was all said and done, she found herself on the top of the podium as the Division 4 State Champion. OC has worked very hard with the sprinters over the last couple of years on her speed and technique, all of which came into play today. It allowed her to take the instant feedback she was receiving and apply it immediately to her next trip down the runway.”
Branson Landis (freshman) was new to indoors this year and had an incredible season. Branson qualified for the state in the triple jump. He attacked every jump fearlessly and qualified for the finals. Branson just missed making the podium by 2 inches and already has goals for outdoor track, along with indoor next year. Branson’s eyes lit up as he walked into the facility. The feeling of belief and awe he had at the same time from being on such a big stage was very rewarding to see. He gave off confident vibes that nothing would stop him, and it felt contagious. I am extremely proud of OC and Branson in the way they attacked the horizontal jumps at state.
“In the boys’ 4×800-meter relay, the Ansonia team, consisting of Wyatt Unrast, Luken Longenecker, Gavin Stachler, and Bennett Lehman, finished 6th. The goal was to get our 2 seniors on the podium,” said Ansonia middle-distance and long-distance coach Allen Newbauer.
Wyatt Unrast took 10 seconds off his 800-meter personal best running leg 3 of the relay, and Luken ran a personal best of 2:08. Gavin held his own despite not being in runner shape coming off swim season, and Bennett brought it home with a solid run.
Bennett Lehman also captured state titles in the 1600 meters and 3200-meter runs. Coach Newbauer added, “Although I could say a lot about this, right now we are focused on improving and being one of the best in the nation, not just in-state. Bennett has a lot to work on yet, but today was a step in the right direction.”
Anna Yeomans, competing in the 1600 meters and 800 meters, made the podium in 6th place in the 1600 meters (5:20.95) and finished 16th in the 800 meters (2:35.26).
Anna’s 1600-meter time was an indoor school record. Also, an all-time fastest at Ansonia and in the young Western Ohio Athletic Conference.
The day was capped off with the Ansonia boys’ 4×400, made up of Luken Longenecker, Gavin Shachler, Wyatt Unrast, and Bennett Lehman, finishing 16th and running on some tired legs. We knew the 4×400 would be tough after everything the guys had done today; however, it was important for them to run it and put forth a great effort, added Newbauer.
Now that indoor track season has concluded, Ansonia is focused on outdoor and going after some huge goals as they head into spring.
