Big finish on big stage
March 29, 2023 at 7:20 p.m.
The Franklin County girls track team finished the indoor season with a big result on a big stage.
The 4x200 meter team of Audrey Harper, Ella Flannery, Madison Merritt, and Mackenzie Brzezinski have been on a mission since posting a very respectable 4x100 time at the regional meet last May. With the whole team coming back for the 2023 campaign, they knew they had a chance to be special. They took advantage of that chance at the 1A-3A Hoosier State Relays at the Gladstein Fieldhouse in Bloomington Saturday where they finished 2nd overall and were crowned state runners-up.
Coming into the season, we knew they were going to be four of the fastest on the team, but we also knew that it was going to take some time to gel and get our long speed honed in.”
They were not only “fast” compared to the rest of the team, but they were also fast compared to any foursome in FC's history. In fact, they broke the school record in the 4x200 in only their second race of the year. The next week, they were “fast” again, breaking the school record again and posting the 2nd fastest time in 1A-3A. Their 4th meet of the year, in the short but intense Indiana indoor track season, was the state meet.
They were ranked 2nd going in but I got the sense that some might have felt it was a little fluky. The girls on the team not only knew it wasn't a fluke, but they set their sights on winning the whole thing.
Bishop Chatard was the clear favorite coming into the meet. They had a time a few seconds better than the Wildcats. It was going to take a valiant effort to take them down, but the Wildcats were confident they could do it.
They needed all that confidence once the race started. Getting behind early after the first leg - Harper unfortunately had to fight through an injury - the Wildcats needed the senior Merritt to make up some ground. And she did exactly that. She ran a personal record split (26.1 seconds) and caught back up with the pack. The third leg, Flannery, closed the gap with the lead pack but got passed on the front stretch by the National Age-Group Champion Kya Crooke from Heritage Christian. Crooke won the 60, long jump, and high jump that day; she is a special athlete to say the least. But this race wasn't about one special athlete. It was about a team of athletes competing together and sacrificing for each other.
The Wildcats had one more runner to count on for a huge, final lap of the race. Brzezinsk got the baton during the final exchange in 4th place. She closed on the competition. Around the last turn when everyone usually loses their speed and the legs start to tire out, Brzezinski found the strength to take a wide turn; setting herself up to pass the 3rd and 2nd-place runners. She shot out of the turn, passed them as if they were walking, and held onto 2nd place as the competition surged. Their time was 1 minute, 49.82 seconds. A new school record and good enough for State Runner-up!
I finally fought through crowds to get to them, and they were upset. Hurting. Physically. Emotionally. Hurting for each other. They wanted to win so badly. It wasn't until they caught their breath, got a drink of water, and started climbing onto the podium that their demeanor changed. I was proud of their performance. But I was also proud of the way they carried themselves right after the race. It was a perfect mix of disappointment, support, anger and pride. You never want to be satisfied with 2nd. But when you do your absolute best, break a school record, and win State Runner-up, it's a lot easier to accept the results and celebrate! We are so proud of them!
Of course, the girls 4x200 wasn't the only group that qualified for the state tournament. A group of talented girls like this are going to contribute in other areas as well. The first person to compete for the Wildcats was Brzezinski in the 60 hurdles. Coming off a school record-breaking performance to qualify for state, she was looking to better that time. She did exactly that and set a new personal record and new school record with a time of 10.3 secs.
Emma Rosenberger was the only FC athlete to qualify for two individual events: pole vault and long jump. She cleared opening height of 8 feet but was unable to clear 8 feet 6 inches and finished 16th overall. In long jump she struggled to find the board and, without coaches' boxes in the infield, it was difficult to make any adjustments. She jumped 15 feet to finish 20th overall.
Flannery also qualified for an individual event. The sophomore cleared 4 feet 10 inches to qualify for state. She cleared opening height at 4 feet 9 inches but was unable to clear the next height of 4 feet 11 inches and finished 13th overall.
Senior champion Christian Stortz qualified in the 60 dash but was unable to compete due to injury. He was relied on heavily in the 4x200 and 4x400.
The boys 4x200 competed as well as they could considering they were without Stortz. They finished 23rd overall. The boys 4x400 team of Owen Harvey, Dalton Ward, Hunter Marshall and Earl Carr had their best race of the year. Although they couldn't get on the podium, they ran a season best that put them at 23rd overall.
The last race of the day was the girls 4x400. The team of Merritt, Flannery, Esther George and Taylan Brewer tried their best to land back on the podium but just ran out of steam. They did run a season best; finishing 15th overall.
Our focus turns to the outdoor season as the team looks to continue their upward momentum. Their first outdoor meet of the year will be on Friday, April 7 at Triton Central. Start time at 5 p.m.
Submitted by Coach Joe Davidson
Latest News
E-Editions
Events
The Franklin County girls track team finished the indoor season with a big result on a big stage.
The 4x200 meter team of Audrey Harper, Ella Flannery, Madison Merritt, and Mackenzie Brzezinski have been on a mission since posting a very respectable 4x100 time at the regional meet last May. With the whole team coming back for the 2023 campaign, they knew they had a chance to be special. They took advantage of that chance at the 1A-3A Hoosier State Relays at the Gladstein Fieldhouse in Bloomington Saturday where they finished 2nd overall and were crowned state runners-up.
Coming into the season, we knew they were going to be four of the fastest on the team, but we also knew that it was going to take some time to gel and get our long speed honed in.”
They were not only “fast” compared to the rest of the team, but they were also fast compared to any foursome in FC's history. In fact, they broke the school record in the 4x200 in only their second race of the year. The next week, they were “fast” again, breaking the school record again and posting the 2nd fastest time in 1A-3A. Their 4th meet of the year, in the short but intense Indiana indoor track season, was the state meet.
They were ranked 2nd going in but I got the sense that some might have felt it was a little fluky. The girls on the team not only knew it wasn't a fluke, but they set their sights on winning the whole thing.
Bishop Chatard was the clear favorite coming into the meet. They had a time a few seconds better than the Wildcats. It was going to take a valiant effort to take them down, but the Wildcats were confident they could do it.
They needed all that confidence once the race started. Getting behind early after the first leg - Harper unfortunately had to fight through an injury - the Wildcats needed the senior Merritt to make up some ground. And she did exactly that. She ran a personal record split (26.1 seconds) and caught back up with the pack. The third leg, Flannery, closed the gap with the lead pack but got passed on the front stretch by the National Age-Group Champion Kya Crooke from Heritage Christian. Crooke won the 60, long jump, and high jump that day; she is a special athlete to say the least. But this race wasn't about one special athlete. It was about a team of athletes competing together and sacrificing for each other.
The Wildcats had one more runner to count on for a huge, final lap of the race. Brzezinsk got the baton during the final exchange in 4th place. She closed on the competition. Around the last turn when everyone usually loses their speed and the legs start to tire out, Brzezinski found the strength to take a wide turn; setting herself up to pass the 3rd and 2nd-place runners. She shot out of the turn, passed them as if they were walking, and held onto 2nd place as the competition surged. Their time was 1 minute, 49.82 seconds. A new school record and good enough for State Runner-up!
I finally fought through crowds to get to them, and they were upset. Hurting. Physically. Emotionally. Hurting for each other. They wanted to win so badly. It wasn't until they caught their breath, got a drink of water, and started climbing onto the podium that their demeanor changed. I was proud of their performance. But I was also proud of the way they carried themselves right after the race. It was a perfect mix of disappointment, support, anger and pride. You never want to be satisfied with 2nd. But when you do your absolute best, break a school record, and win State Runner-up, it's a lot easier to accept the results and celebrate! We are so proud of them!
Of course, the girls 4x200 wasn't the only group that qualified for the state tournament. A group of talented girls like this are going to contribute in other areas as well. The first person to compete for the Wildcats was Brzezinski in the 60 hurdles. Coming off a school record-breaking performance to qualify for state, she was looking to better that time. She did exactly that and set a new personal record and new school record with a time of 10.3 secs.
Emma Rosenberger was the only FC athlete to qualify for two individual events: pole vault and long jump. She cleared opening height of 8 feet but was unable to clear 8 feet 6 inches and finished 16th overall. In long jump she struggled to find the board and, without coaches' boxes in the infield, it was difficult to make any adjustments. She jumped 15 feet to finish 20th overall.
Flannery also qualified for an individual event. The sophomore cleared 4 feet 10 inches to qualify for state. She cleared opening height at 4 feet 9 inches but was unable to clear the next height of 4 feet 11 inches and finished 13th overall.
Senior champion Christian Stortz qualified in the 60 dash but was unable to compete due to injury. He was relied on heavily in the 4x200 and 4x400.
The boys 4x200 competed as well as they could considering they were without Stortz. They finished 23rd overall. The boys 4x400 team of Owen Harvey, Dalton Ward, Hunter Marshall and Earl Carr had their best race of the year. Although they couldn't get on the podium, they ran a season best that put them at 23rd overall.
The last race of the day was the girls 4x400. The team of Merritt, Flannery, Esther George and Taylan Brewer tried their best to land back on the podium but just ran out of steam. They did run a season best; finishing 15th overall.
Our focus turns to the outdoor season as the team looks to continue their upward momentum. Their first outdoor meet of the year will be on Friday, April 7 at Triton Central. Start time at 5 p.m.
Submitted by Coach Joe Davidson