Kohler Leaps Past School Record to Regionals
FINDLAY- The Wapakoneta Track and Field squad competed in day two of the OHSAA Division One Track and Field District Championships at Findlay High School on Saturday.
Host Findlay won the girls division with 111 points, compared to second-place Fremont Ross’ 106.50 points. The Lady Redskins finished eighth, tallying 42 points.
Wapakoneta senior Kali Kohler scored ten of those in the Girls Long Jump, where she was crowned District Champion with a mark of 17’ 6.50”. With the leap, Kohler broke the 27 year-old school record, which was originally held by Kris Minto with a distance of 17’ 4.25”. Kohler said having her Western Buckeye League Title stripped from her last week in a second-place finish gave her all the motivation she needed heading into Saturday’s competition. “Last week didn’t end with the outcome I wanted. I definitely felt knocked down but I knew that I had more in me and I wasn’t ready to settle for WBL Girls Long Jump runner-up. This week I got to work, working on technique and speed to be able to perform to the best of my abilities at the next level. There are a lot of factors that play into my motivation, but I knew that I had a lot of unfinished business going into this week,” she said. “It’s definitely a great feeling and lots of emotions followed. I only have God to thank for how I performed today. I felt relieved to have been able to surpass my season goals, but I’m ready to make new ones and achieve those as well.” That new goal is doing something that less than 20 girls in the state get to do- compete in the State Championships. “Going to State is always the goal, but I am taking it one step at a time. The competition only gets tougher and there’s a lot of hard work that needs to be done. Focusing on God and trusting his plan is my number one priority and I plan to leave it all in the sand in the weeks ahead,” finalized Kohler.
On the track, sophomore Paige Olberding punched her second straight ticket to Regionals with a second place time of 47.43 in the Girls 300m Hurdles. Fellow sophomore Gabby Muller also advanced in the Girls 800m Run with a mark of 2:19.89, which was good for second place. Freshman Grace Burnfield hurdled her way to a Regional spot in the Girls 100m Hurdles with a third place finish of 15.99.
On the boys side, Ashland and Findlay each took home the team crown with a total of 115 points apiece. Wapakoneta ended 11th, compiling 17.50 points.
Individually, Wapakoneta senior Axton Fosnaugh was the lone boy to qualify, and did so in the Boys 3200m Run with a third place mark of 9:51.66.
The Regional Meet will take place on Wednesday in Port Clinton.