DECATUR -- What a way to leave a mark in a sporting event! The Decatur track team produced eight champions, two silver medalists and three bronze medalists. The boys' team also brought home the runner-up trophy by placing second in the 2A state track meet.
The track team traveled to England, Ark., to compete in its last 2A State Track Meet before moving to the 1A conference next year. Shane Holland, Decatur track coach, and 18 athletes left for England on the afternoon of May 1 for a 5-hour journey to central Arkansas.
"I wanted to take the kids down the day before the meet," Holland said. "I wanted them to get plenty of rest before we competed on Monday."
And the ploy worked, because eight Decatur athletes became 2A state champions on May 2.
One area Decatur excelled in this year was the pole vault. Four vaulters, two boys and two girls, qualified for the meet. The end result was that all four placed in the top 10 in the 2A conference.
Bracy Owens became the second in his family to bring the 2A pole vault championship to Decatur. His brother Evan won the 2A state championship with a jump of 13 feet, 4 inches. Owens won the meet with a jump of 12 feet even.
Along with Owens, was pole vaulter Leng Lee. Lee, whose natural athleticism earned him acclaim in every sport in which he participates, placed sixth in the state. This is no surprise since he recently was selected to the 2A 4West all-district baseball team.
Another newcomer to the pole vault was Meagan Smith. Smith never picked up a vaulting pole until the beginning of the track season in March. Smith's 7-foot vault was enough to propel her into a tie for eighth place. Out of more than 100 female vaulters from 57 schools in eight 2A conferences, placing in the top 10 is quite an achievement for novices like Smith.
Desi Meek, the freshman sensation, placed third in the pole vault with a jump of 8 feet. But Meek showed her athleticism by earning a bronze medal in the 300-meter hurdles.
"I was really proud of our kids," Holland said. "They ran really well. The kids that were supposed to perform, performed."
Leading the way for the girls' team was Cameron Shaffer, whose powerful 30-foot, 8.5-inch, throw in the shot put, propelled her to the state championship in that event and led to the senior girls' eighth-place finish on the girls' side of the meet. Not since the early 2000s has the girls' track team won a state event like this one.
"I was very proud of my girls' team. We haven't scored since I've been here," said Holland. "My goal was to get this team in the top 10 and we did just that. Next year, the goal will be a little higher."
The senior boys earned four gold medals, two silver and one bronze during the meet, adding points to the team score and getting them the second-place finish.
"It was a long, hot day and they were getting tired, but they really got competitive as far as the team goes. This bunch bought into this team competition really well," Holland said. "We have had guys all year long that maybe they really didn't want to do something or some event, but for team points or the good of the team, they did it anyway."
Before leaving Decatur, Holland made a prediction that the boys' team would be on the winning track by the end of the meet in England.
"I told my wife before we left that we had a chance in the boys' meet to win four events," said Holland. "And we won all four events."
Most of this years' winning teams will return to participate in the 1A conference when Decatur makes the move in 2017. Holland is confident that his teams will do well in the new conference. But he will relish the accomplishments of both his boys' and girls' teams for a long time to come.
"Of all the track teams that I have coached, this is the best finish I have had since becoming a coach," Holland said.
2A Meet Results for Decatur
Boys
Shot Put: 9 Brandon Coker 38' 05.00"
Pole Vault: 1 Bracy Owens 12' 00", 6 Leng Lee 10' 00"
110 Meter Hurdles: 2 Shaffer 16.96
1600 Meters: 2 Tyler Riddle 4:56.14
300 Meter Hurdles: 4 Ryan Shaffer 45.15, 15 Alex Morrow 47.40
800 Meters: 1 Taylor Haisman 2:06.72, 6 Lee 2:14.24
3200 Meters: 3 Riddle 11:05.45
4x 400 Meter Relay: 1 Decatur - Riddle, Haisman, Shaffer, Jimmy Menoza 3:42.84
4x 800 Meter Relay: 1 Decatur - Riddle, Haisman, Shaffer, Marck Guadarrama 8:51.16
Decatur overall: 2 place/runner up with 73 points
Girls
Discus: 1 Cameron Shaffer 94' 09"
Shot Put: 5 Shaffer 30' 08.50"
Pole Vault: 3 Desi Meek 8', Tied for 8 Meagan Smith 7'
100 Meter Hurdles: 4 Meek 17.14, 13 Paige Vann 1:12.11
300 Meter Hurdles: 3 Meek 50.44
Decatur overall: 8 place with 31.50 points
General News on 05/11/2016