2/01 Boys Indoor Recap

This past weekend featured several high-stakes indoor meets across Ohio, with Central Ohio distance runners making their mark. Dublin Jerome continued to prove its dominance at the Jerome Fields HS Open, while standout performances at the Ohio State HS Qualifier and Wittenberg HS Open showcased emerging state contenders. From blazing-fast 4x800 relays to breakthrough individual performances, here’s a recap of the key results from an action-packed weekend on the track.

Jerome Fields HS Open: One of the biggest meets of the weekend took place on Saturday in Akron, where Dublin Jerome asserted its position as one of the best distance squads in the state. In the 1600, Charlie Guerrera ran 4:17.19, Graham Tyler ran 4:22.20, and Cayden McClure ran 4:24.50. With McClure’s breakout performance, Jerome now has four runners this indoor season who have run under 4:25, positioning them for an All-American finish should they decide to race the 4x1600 relay at a national meet. Graham Tyler also doubled back in the 800, running 1:56.68—one of the top times in Division 1. With their presumed fourth leg, Cayden McClure, running 2:03.57 off the double as well, their 4x800 should also challenge for the state title. Charlie Guerrera doubled back in the 3200 for a smooth 9:42.71, while his teammate Lincoln Kelly ran 9:52.51. Outside of Jerome’s dominance, Gahanna Lincoln put up an 8:17.89 in the 4x800, which will likely be a state-qualifying mark.

Ohio State HS Qualifier #3: The other large meet on Saturday took place at Ohio State. Although it didn’t yield results as significant as those in Akron, there were still notable performances. Gordon Kimberly won the mile in 4:38.03, Sam Brockbank placed third in the 800 with a 2:03.01, and Wesley Nash was the top Central Ohio finisher in the 3200 with a 10:19.81. The most competitive distance race was the 4x800, where Marysville ran a strong 8:23.86. Thomas Worthington and Hilliard Davidson also posted solid marks of 8:30.58 and 8:34.36, though neither is likely to qualify for states.

Wittenberg HS Open #2: Sunday’s indoor qualifier at Wittenberg featured top marks from Central Ohio in every distance event. The day kicked off with a highly competitive 4x800, where Westerville North outran competition from across the state to post a state-leading time of 8:02.93. Westerville Central also ran 8:24.05, which will be on the fringe of state qualification. Mick Temple opened his season with an impressive 4:18.15, while Brock Jarrett and Casey Carlos posted strong marks of 4:23.53 and 4:25.57. Zee Rabi and Owen Kockentiet also ran respectable times of 4:30.79 and 4:33.04.

In the 800, Matthew Schroff ran one of the top times in the state with a 1:56.41, followed by Dylan Winters (1:57.16) and Ty Munroe (1:57.80). Several other Central Ohio athletes finished in the 2:00-2:03 range, including Jacob Ogilbee, Gabe McNeil, Jonas Roush, Braydon Nix, and Dylan Willis.

In the 3200, McKinley Norman led the Central Ohio contingent with a time of 9:28.50, followed closely by Jeffrey Kerns at 9:29.56. Bradyn Allender and Austin Benedict both clocked in the 9:30s, running 9:36.84 and 9:37.51, respectively. Other notable performances included Louie Perry’s 9:42.67 and Vansh Sethi’s 9:46.64.

Other Notable Performances: The DeSales trio competed at the SPIRE Ohio Preview Meet, with Jacob Reash running 4:30.43 in the 1600, Ashton Boyd clocking 2:01.34 in the 800, and Charles Rizek posting a 9:33.53 in the 3200. At the Muskingum February HS Meet, a pair of Darby runners delivered strong performances—Brendan Steele ran 2:00.98 in the 800, and Logan Behm clocked 9:48.87 in the 3200.