Findlay boys 'on cloud nine' after another TRAC crown

Preston Perkins did not win a single event at the 2023 Three Rivers Athletic Conference track meet. Neither did Zach Doepker. Both ran the kind of races, though, that made them – and their Findlay High teammates – champions. A 3-4 finish in the 3,200 earned Findlay the lead and a runner-up placing in the 1,600 relay made sure it stood up as the Trojans rallied past Toledo St. John's in the final two events of the day to overtake the Titans and win a third straight boys title in the Three Rivers Athletic Conference championships at the Cooper Tire Track and Field Complex on Friday. "Back to back to back …. I'm on cloud nine," FHS coach Brian Rosendale said as threatening thunderheads that forced the meet to be moved up a few hours continued to roll overhead. "We had a meeting the other day and I told the kids every point is going to matter. Nobody gave us a chance to beat St. John's but this team here, they've got heart. "They came through. They did what they had to do. I can't think of a better win I've had in my coaching career." With 15 events in the books, Toledo St. John's led Findlay by half a point (117-116½). Toledo St. Francis was a distant third (96½) at the time, but quickly jumped into the championship mix when Ryan Winkler (9:47.51) and Logan Dykema (9:451.21) earned the Knights 18 points with their 1-2 finish in the 3,200. Findlay's Adrian Stechschulte, already with a third-place finish the 1,600 (4:25.96) under his belt, added a third in the 3,200 (10:10.38). Toledo St. John's Seamus Leonard was running fourth the first half of the race, but Perkins caught him on lap five, matched Leonard's pace for a while, then put on a strong kick over the final 200 yards to take the No. 4 spot. "I knew going into that race I had to do my best. That was the only way we were going to pull away from them (St. John's)," Perkins said. "I stayed behind him at first. I didn't want to expend too much energy at the beginning. He actually set a pretty good pace, but when the pace slowed I knew I had to make my move. I knew he was on me, but I knew I couldn't let him pass me at the end." By doubling up, Stechschulte and Perkins earned Findlay 11 points and a 127½ to 121 lead on S. John's. Rosendale told his 4-by-4 relay it needed to place third or better to lock up the title. Actually, fourth or better would have worked as well. "I know, but I didn't want to tell them that," said Rosendale, who was named the 2023 TRAC boys coach of the year. St. John's won the 1,060 relay, posting a meet-record time of 3:19.08. Findlay did better than third or fourth, with anchor-man Doepker finishing strong to post a time of 3:28.54 and edge St. Francis (3:82.74) for second place. For Doepker, a multi-event competitor who had won the high jump and long jump at a meet just a week earlier but placed sixth and seventh in those events during the TRAC, it was a redemptive run. "It was a rough day in the field events," Doepker said. "I don't know if it was the rain or just a slow day but I needed to redeem myself in the 4-by-4. I wasn't sure if I was even going to run the race, but after I heard we were close with St. John's I told coach I wanted to run it to see what we could do." "I'll tell you, this team this year is always surprising me," Rosendale said after ducking to avoid the bulk of a Gatorade shower aimed his way by his team. "Adrian (Stechschulte) places third (in the 3,200) and Preston (Perkins) beats St. John's No. 1 guy and finishes fourth. I tell our 4-by-4 team they need to finish third and they place second. "I thought the two-mile was huge, we got higher points in the shot and discus than I thought we'd get, we won the pole vault (Jeremiah Spiceland's leap of 12-6 on Wednesday) … it was all over the board. "Hey, you can't win it on the first day, but we had a pretty good day. We just had to keep it going and we did." Findlay built a 38-32 lead over St. John's after Wednesday's final events, then went back to work on Friday. Avion Miles, runner-up in the long jump on Wednesday, anchored two relays, the second-place 400 relay (43.86) that included Donovan Harris, Reese, Little and Israel Moore, and the third-place 800 relay (1:30.1) that included Moore, Little and Jimmy Steffen. Moore was fourth in both the 100 (11.28) and 200 (22.69) and Steffen was fifth (15.63) in the 110 high hurdles and fourth (39.82) in the 300s, ahead of Little (7th, 41.38) Findlay's ability to double up was pivotal. Peyton Bogard was third (51.20) and Conner Hermiller fifth (52.11) in the 400, Jevon Robertson fifth (2:02.68) and Spiceland seventh (2:04.50) in the 800 and Stechschulte third (4:25.96) and Phat Tran eighth (4:46.03) in the 1,600. Sam Erenst was fifth (5-10) and Doepker sixth (5-8) in the high jump, and Vince Himebaugh third (45-10) and Hunter Marquis fifth (45-3) in the shot. Findlay's girls team got a great start in its bid for a repeat TRAC championship. But the on-the-track speed of Toledo Whitmer and Toledo Central Catholic took over. Whitmer, four times a TRAC runner-up claimed its first-ever league title with 124½ points. Central Catholic (110) edged Toledo Notre Dame (108) for third and Findlay finished fourth (97), followed by St. Ursula (94½), Fremont Ross (59), Oregon Clay (48) and Lima Senior (14). Makenna Hall won the TRAC shot put title on Wednesday, was third in the discus (114-07) on Friday and was named the meet's female field events MVP. Makayla May won a TRAC title in the pole vault (11-6) with Emmy Caton placing third (10-6). Katelyn Stechschulte was third in the long jump (16-7½) and Chayse Wolk fourth in the discus (111-9). Freshman Natalie Gutman led the Trojans on the track, placing second in both the 1,600 (5:09.81) and 3,200 (11:52.13). "We came out of the field events with 55 points. That's pretty good," said FHS girls coach Mark Gleason. "(Natalie) Gutman PRs by 15 seconds in the 1,600, runs the second fastest mile we've ever had and she's just a freshman. "Compared to last year we have a lot of young runners on the track, but they're stepping up, they're turning in their best times. They've got great attitudes, they're working hard and that's all you can ask." Stechschulte, Hannah Ragland and Olivia Gayhart placed fourth in the 400 relay (51.19) with Bella Watson and fifth in the 800 relay (1:49.47) with Lillian Zacieski. Corinne Seager was seventh in both the 100 (17.63) and 300 (52.06) hurdles. Lindsey Cassata was sixth in the 800 (2:31.82), Lindsay Clarke sixth in the 3,200 (12:31.30) and Watson was eighth in the 100 (13.57). The Trojans were also fifth in both the 1,600 (4:16.11) and 3,200 (10:13.09) relays.