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Junior Morgan Kelly (left) and sophomore Morgan Estes combined for 18 points Saturday in pole vault to help Green's girls track team to win the 31st Optimist in Austintown.
NORTH CANTON, Ohio – The Green girls track & field program has gained a reputation as the region’s best when it comes to pole vault.
Who can argue with Division I champions in 2005 (Carrie Kayes), 2007 (Kelsie Ahbe), 2008 (Kelsie Ahbe) and a state runner-up (Morgan Estes) in 2010?
Well, an outstanding tradition just got a little bit better, if that’s possible.
Estes, a sophomore this season, now runs in tandem with Cuyahoga Valley Christian Academy transfer and 2009 state qualifier Morgan Kelly.
That’s not a misprint: Morgan Estes and Morgan Kelly. Any track team would be lucky to have one returning state qualifier in pole vault. Green has two.
“She helps me push myself,” said Estes, having welcomed Kelly to share what last season was her pole vaulting pit. “Last year, I could win at 9 (feet).”
Kelly, a junior, competed at the 2009 state meet when CVCA shared the OHSAA Division II championship with Columbus Bishop Hartley.
“I like the team here. I like the competition having a teammate right up there with me,” Kelly said.
Her career best is 10-9 and on Saturday, at the North Canton Relays, she cleared 10-6.
The transition from CVCA to Green hasn’t been easy for Kelly. She wears a royal blue head band and has written a bible verse on her track shoes “just to keep (CVCA) in mind.”
The Royals took a double hit last year when state runner-up Sarah Rasnick graduated and Kelly transferred.
“It’s a little rough, but it’s been good,” she said.
Certainly Green’s tradition in pole vault was not lost on Kelly or her father, a Green graduate.
“It’s definitely something to be motivated that you can stand out with them. Green is known for pole vaulting,” she said.
Brian Kelly still remains the Bulldogs’ record holder in pole vault (16-1.50) and was a member of Green's 1986 state championship track team along with future Olympian Mark Croghan. Brian Kelly now volunteers his knowledge to coaches Maedene Pfouts and Eric Allan.
“He is helping me with my run,” said Estes. “My run can always improve.”
Estes placed seventh at the state gymnastics meet in the uneven bars after tying Alex Wasik of Medina for second at last year’s state track meet. They both cleared 11-8.
On Saturday, Estes topped out at 11-0.
Together, Morgan and Morgan hope to score big for Green at the OHSAA state meet June 3 & 4.
Another Green athlete with her eye on Columbus is senior thrower Lyndsey Bates, who placed second at the Suburban League Championships (37-01.50) and fifth at the North Canton Division I District (38-04.00) meet last May.
“I’m not where I wanted to be this early, but I’m definitely getting there,” said Bates on Saturday morning at Hoover High School. She was the top in shot (36-2) at the North Canton Relays.
“My best so far has been 38 and I want to get to where I can beat my personal best," she said.
Bates threw 40-9 late last season at Tallmadge.
“I usually kind of slacked off in the offseason, but this year I was really dedicated and I lifted during school and after school, and I went running,” she said.
Bates anticipates being a member of the University of Akron women’s track & field team next year.
“That’s where I saw myself in the future,” she said. Bates has met the throws coach and likes the tradition, the facilities and the environment offered by UA.
The Suburban League has three clear-cut favorites in shot, with Wadsworth senior Hannah Gospodinsky as defending champion and Tallmadge senior Megan Pitz, a Division II state qualifier.
“Lyndsey’s looking to go another four or five feet,” Green girls throws coach Matt Ohlson said. “She’s been weight lifting and she’s lost quite a bit of weight and right now we have to regain her energy and strength. Once that comes back we’re going to be in great shape. She is much, much faster than she was last year.”
The Green boys won the North Canton Relays over Hoover and Louisville. The Green girls placed second.