While every event at the state meet is important and fun to watch and each has its little elements and story lines that interest different individuals, but here are five events that should be labeled "Do Not Miss." If you are a true fan of Track and Field you won't want to miss these events.
1. Discus
Friday at 3:00pm
Matthias Tayala, a senior at McDonald, is the clear cut favorite in this event. The Kent State University bound senior is the state leader in the event with a season's best throw of 197'0", which is the seventh best throw in the nation. Tayala has over a 25' lead on the next closest competitor to him in Division 3. Tayala could capture four records at the state meet. The first record that he could take down is the Division 3 State Meet Record of 193-3, set last year by state champ Isiah Kent of Colonel Crawford. The second is the Jesse Owens Stadium Record of 197-1, set last year by Justin Welch of Eastwood during the Division 2 competition. The third record that could go down is the Division 3 State Record of 200-11, set by current proffessional thrower Dan Taylor, and the fourth record is the All-Division Ohio Record of 204'5 set by Charles Moye Jr.
2. 1600m Run
Saturday at 10:05am
12 entrants in the field have already gone sub-4:25, of those, only two have dipped below 4:20. Those two athletes that have gone sub-4:20 are Andrew Trusty of Mohawk (4:18.06) and Colin Fisher of Delta (4:18.33). The two biggest challengers to Trusty and Fisher will be Luke Pohlman of Russia and Nick Gliha of Trinity. Gliha already has an individual title under his belt (the 3200m Run in 2009) and will look to add another title to his list of running accomplishments. Of not is that the field is made up of 13 seniors and only 3 juniors, so there will be plenty of fresh faces in the field next year for the Division 3 1600m Run.
3. 400m Dash
Prelims on Friday at 11:10am
Finals on Saturday at 10:35am
This is a field with no clear cut favorite. 15 of the 16 athlete have all ran a 50 point quarter mile and only four in the field have run a 49 point 400m Dash this year. This event is literally wide open for whoever wants to step up and take home a title. There are only two that return this year from the 2010 finals and they are the 4th (Zeke Young of Cedarville) and 5th (Matt Tobin of Fairview-Sherwood) place finishers. These two are two of the favorites because they have run in the 49's this year. Two more notable contenders are Alex Peoples of Mechanicsburg, who has the fastest 400m Dash time in Division 3 with a 49.23 and Justin Stewart of Lehman Catholic.
4. High Jump
Friday at Noon
Senior Brant Reardon of St. Joseph Central Catholic recently set the Division 3 State Record at 7'0.25" and is the favorite as he has a 6" lead on the rest of field. Reardon will look to break, or at least tie, the current Division 3 State Meet Record of 7'0" which was set by Toronto's Otis Winston in 1992.
5. 4x400m Relay
Prelims on Friday at 12:10pm
Finals on Saturday at 11:40am
The team title will likely come down to Trinity and McDonald. Going into Saturday's 4x400m Relay McDonald's team points will be set, but Trinity will still have a chance to add to their total points. Trinity will likely start the meet off with a 10 spot and could very likely end the meet with another 10 point achievement. If Trinity is in the team title picture, they will know where they will have to place to take home the big trophy. Trinity already holds the fastest time in Division 3 with a 3:22.89 team effort, but they will be pushed by the likes of St. Thomas Aquinas, Archbold, Columbus Academy, Minster and Cedarville.