'Our depth is insane': How Bloomington North boys track kept title hopes alive
· Yahoo Sports
Alan Hays wasn't the only state hopeful on the Bloomington North boys track team with plenty of hurdles in his way this season.
The Cougars were runner-ups last year and three-time indoor champs, and with most of the crew back, they're looking to grab the first outdoor state title in school history. But things hadn't gone as planned, and until last week's regional, competing for the top spot was suddenly in doubt.
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Bodies healed well enough among a few of North's star athletes, but the reason they could bide their time, especially when it came to the Cougars' three relays that all made it to state, was due to the depth and talent around them.
"I'm pretty impressed," North senior Caelan D'Onofrio said. "We've had so many guys step up. Our depth is insane. This is one of the strongest teams I've ever seen overall. We used to be just a heavy distance program, but we've seen everyone come along."
D'Onofrio was in on the ground floor and would like to think the success they've had over the past few years has spurred others to work a little harder to be a part of something big.
"I had that same experience when I was a freshman looking up to Kyle Clark, and now it's kind of cool to be in the same position, dragging others along," D'Onofrio said.
Caleb Winders, unquestioned anchor for the 4x800 and 4x400, hasn't run in either race for two weeks. But both relays sped to state, and Winders just survived his hamstring issues at sectional well enough to post the state's top time in the 800 at regional.
Now, he has a chance to get healthy enough to go for an unprecedented four-peat in the 4x800 and give the 4x400 a chance for a podium finish. Heading to Indianapolis on Saturday, all seems well again on the north side.
"I'm super excited about some relays next week," Winders said after the regional. "But I'm super thankful for my teammates because I didn't have to run today and we still made it."
Many feet make light work
The 4x800 has used a mix of bodies as senior Jacob Mitchell, once a top contender in the 3,200 before a double-illness whammy slowed him all year, recovered.
"I'm happy that he's here contributing," North coach Justin Helmer said of Mitchell. "It'll be a much better memory for him knowing that he's been a part of this stuff. Obviously, not having the season that he envisioned coming off of last year and coming off of cross country, but still making a contribution."
Mitchell is back in the group, as Jake Gentry, Jackson Walker, Tom Keith, Tucker Inman and D'Onofrio, North's best miler, have all manned spots in the past month.
"It's really a huge confidence booster," D'Onofrio said. "We have that little buffer now where we know we can rely on other people as well and we can run a little bit more freely and do what we need to do."
That 4x400 group will include junior James Bosco, one of the state's best in the 400, but it's been bolstered by fresh legs from RaShon English and Kellen Bishop. Brody Arther ran at sectional while hurdler Alan Hays jumped in at regional.
"Just finding the right balance of not over-working people here at the end of the year," Helmer said. "Keeping people fresh and mindfully kept Kellen and RaShon out of the 400, even though that's probably our No. 2 and 400 guys, but Brody was going to score at sectional.
"We kept Kellen and RaShon off just for the four-by-four. Last year, we just missed the fast heat by .2, so wanting to be in the fast heat."
But given how fast this year's meet is, North is only seeded 14th after a 3:20.38 and will run in the second-to-last heat again.
Trying to pile up points
In addition to its legacy of mid- and distance runners, the throws have always been a strong suit for the Cougars.
Adis Hamidovic is back in the discus, adding shot put; sophomore Quinn Walters made it in discus. But there's Hays with a shot to score in both hurdles, the 4x100 team made it, and senior Evan Cheng, who hadn't practiced or jumped since the second meet of the season, made it through in the long jump.
Suddenly, the band is back together. Only it's not at the fabulous Palace Hotel Ballroom "north of Lake Wazzapamani" of Blues Brothers fame, but at North Central High School as the Cougars look to send assistant coach Charlie Warthan out with another title on his retirement day.
Franklin Central and star Rylan Hainje and Brownsburg's sprint group figure to be the top competitors.
"All the other things, it's a team effort," Helmer said. "We have a lot of athletes going and we're going to be represented in a lot of different events. We did that last year and we did it again this year and that's fun. It makes the state meet a blast because you've constantly got people to watch.
"The sprinters really stepped up here at the end of the season. The 4-by-1, going 42.4. We had held Josiah (Powell) of it for a while knowing we'd get him back here (at regional). That made a big difference and hopefully we can go a little bit faster again."
This article originally appeared on The Herald-Times: Group effort keeps Bloomington North boys track's state title hopes alive