Mar 16, 2023

Photo by Shawn Conlon // Connor Ackley during the 2-Mile at New Balance Nationals Indoor.

Last weekend, all of the top athletes in the country rallied to Boston, Massachusetts for one of the most anticipated competitions from the entire indoor season, and that was New Balance Nationals Indoor, where we saw many elite performances from #TeamOhio.

Within the bunch however, two state records went down in the 2-Mile by Connor Ackley (Hilliard Davidson 2023), and the Triple Jump by Juliette Laracuente-Huebner (Mar. Highlands 2023), with another one taking place enroute Connor Ackley's Mile, with a recorded 1500m split of 3:52.30

See below for a quick recap on both of these athletes regarding last weekend.

Photo by Shawn Conlon // Juliette Laracuente-Huebner during the Triple Jump at New Balance Nationals Indoor

Juliette Laracuente-Huebner

Just a little over a week after sealing herself in the Ohio Track and Field history books with her solo team state title efforts at the OATCCC D2/3 Indoor State Championships, Marengo Highland and Ohio Speed Academy's Juliette Laracuente-Huebner closed out her high school indoor track and field career with three All-American finishes, a new state-record (personal best), and last but not least, a national title.

After having pretty much dominated the jumps all season long, Juliette certainly had quite a conclusion to her indoor campaign, and that was with a national title on Saturday at New Balance Nationals Indoor, which took place over the span of several days in Boston, Massachusetts.

Leading up to this finale, Juliette had gone undefeated in two events (Long Jump, Triple Jump), and won the High Jump 4/5 times she contested it this past OATCCC Indoor season.

Going into the competition, she previously already had the state record in the Triple Jump once again at the OATCCC D2/3 with a mark of 41-8.75, which was ranked within the Top-10 in the country at the time. This past Saturday however, she demolished that with a US #2 performance of 42-0.5, which is also a US #24 all-time.

To top it off, this was not her only All-American finish, as she also took 4th in the High Jump with a height of 5-6, and 2nd in the Long Jump with a mark of 20-2.25.

High Jump - 5-6, 4th Place, All-American
Long Jump - 20-2.25, 2nd Place, All-American
Triple Jump - 42-0.5 // OH #1, US #3 - State Record

Connor Ackley

They say consistency is key, and that is exactly what Hilliard Davidson's Connor Ackley has been all year, and he sealed that sentiment with his performances at New Balance Nationals Indoors last weekend, posting up two new personal bests in the full Mile and 2 Mile, with the 2 Mile also being a new state record of 8:51.10, overtaking Tommy Rice's 9:08.78 from last year. A 1500m (enroute) split was also taken down during the race, in which Ackley clocked a 3:52.30, which is good for a US #10.

Along with that, his mile performance of 4:08 settles himself as OH #2 All-Time in the event, just right behind Dustin Horter's 4:08.03 set back in 2018.

These performances basically seal him into the Ohio history books, given the monumental year he's had so far in terms of both astounding performances and just how consistent he was, racking up countless victories, going nearly undefeated the entire season in both the 1600m and 3200m Run, and inevitably setting a state record in the 1600m Run at the OATCCC D1 Indoor State Meet.

With an upcoming outdoor season, we could potentially see Ackley pull off the double once again when June comes around.

1500m (enroute) - 3:52.30 // OH #1, US #10 - State Record

Mile - 4:08.65 // OH #1, OH #2 All-Time, US #14

2 Mile - 8:51.10 // OH #1, US #7 - State Record