RANDY HISNER
WZBD.com
Note: Our coverage of the IHSAA Track & Field tournament series was only made possible because of the generous support of the following businesses: DDD Maintenance & Repair, Fleming Properties, IronClad Metal Worx, Landis Farm Drainage, Glaser & Ebbs, Miz Lehman Auction & Realty, Miller Land Surveying, Miller Supply in Decatur and Two Brothers Bar & Restaurant.
Double winner Tyler Tarter led Fishers High School to the 2024 IHSAA Boys’ Track and Field title Saturday at Indiana University. The Tigers edged county rival Hamilton Southeastern, 60-54. Bloomington North took third with 40 points.
Tarter won both hurdle competitions, the 110-meter race in 13.85, the 300-meter event in 37.25. Though the Tigers didn’t earn any other firsts, they did collect runner-up finishes in the 4X800 relay (Declan Moore, Makell Wiggins, Bryson Slagle, Matthew Kim), the long jump (JoAnthony Hall), and the discus (Joel Gates).
The title was the first in track and field for Fishers.
Eastside and Northrop were the highest-placing area teams, finishing in a tie for 12th with 15 points. Eastside’s Dane Sebert scored all his team’s points in the throws (second in the shot put with a 61-7 mark, third in the discus with a 172-7). Javion Westfield likewise accounted for the Bruins’ total with a runner-up finish in the 110-meter hurdles in 14.24 and third place in the 300-meter hurdles in 38.67.
The only Z-Land participant, Heritage shot putter Logan Teichman, did not qualify for the finals, but his 49-4.5 effort was good for 18th place.Â
Wet, windy conditions prevailed all day, affecting some events—and some athletes—more than others. The long jump, high jump, and pole vault were all moved to Indiana University’s indoor facility, but the throwers and runners braved the elements.
The throwers were perhaps affected more than any other athletes, and there were more fouls than usual as the rain caused lots of slips. Top-seeded shot putter Luke Himes of Heritage Christian, for instance, fouled three times in his six throws and could muster only a 56-10.75, far short of his regional effort of 67-5, which was over five feet better than the regional mark of the #2 seed. Himes, the defending state champ, had to settle for seventh place while Ben Davis’s Nylan Brown, the #4 seed, was apparently unfazed by the conditions and grabbed first with a 63-1.5 throw, nearly three feet farther than he threw in the regional.
Churubusco sophomore Westen Ott didn’t let the rain or his inexperience at the state level hinder him in the least. He placed third in the shot put with a toss of 59-4.75.
Bluffton’s Johnny Cruz finished 15th at 51-2.75.
Norwell sprinters Devon Dale (30th in the 100 meters, 21st in the 200 meters) and Trevon Stoppenhagen (23rd in the 100, 14th in the 200) did not qualify for the finals.
The Knights’ 4X100 relay placed 19th.
Martinsville’s Martin Barco dominated the middle distance events. He won the 1600-meter run in 4:06.34 and the 800-meter run in 1:50.97.
Three runners broke 9:00 in the 3200-meter run, led by champion Tony Provenzano of Carmel, who ran 8:51.40, just a quarter of a second from Futsum Zelnasellassie’s 2012 state record.
The IHSAA Unified Track and Field State Meet was held in the morning on the I.U. track, and the Elkhart Lions won the championship over Fishers, 124-112. Homestead, eighth with 82 points, claimed the top area finish.