Photo by Brian Dulik
Vibushan Sivakumaran (left) sprints to the finish line as Woodridge's boys 4x800-meter relay wins the OHSAA state Division II championship in an all-time Ohio record of 7:37.43. The Bulldogs' girls 4x8 team cheers him on from the infield.
COLUMBUS, Ohio -- One year after Wadsworth ran the fastest 4x800-meter relay race in Ohio track history, Woodridge’s boys went out and broke the mark on Friday afternoon.
The Bulldogs’ quartet of seniors Vibushan Sivakumaran, Jimmy Charles and Jacob Onifer, and junior Drake Sulzer won the OHSAA state Division II championship in an all-time record clocking of 7:37.43.
The previous Buckeye State mark was 7:39.72 set by the Grizzlies’ Jacob Sussman, Aaron Tipton, Russell McCune and Jake Hiltner in the D-I final on June 4, 2010. The former D-II record was established by St. Vincent-St. Mary’s Sean Poholski, Patrick O’Brien, Ian Walsh and Jacob Swords just two weeks ago at the district meet.
“We worked our tails off all winter for this moment,” said Sivakumaran, who ran the anchor leg. “But as a senior, it’s just amazing to have it happen here. To take the baton with a five-second lead was awesome, knowing I could bring us home.
“We honestly didn’t worry about St. V today. We just went out and ran our race because we knew this was the last time we’d ever run together.”
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Woodridge had been defeated by the Fighting Irish in its last two meets, but led from wire to wire on the 79-degree day at Ohio State’s Jesse Owens Stadium.
St. V-M (7:47.30) also eclipsed the D-II state meet record set by Genoa in 1991, but wasn’t within striking range in the final two legs as Onifer and Sivakumaran blew past their foes.
“We were not going to lose to St. V three times in a row,” Sulzer said. “It’s terribly frustrating to run as well as we did the last two weeks, but finish behind somebody.
“Today, we wanted to beat them and take Wadsworth’s record off the board. It’s incredible the way it worked out.”
The girls 4x800 final also saw the Bulldogs finish ahead of the Irish, but finish second behind Kettering Alter’s D-II record run of 9:10.22.
Woodridge’s all-senior squad of Maria Moore, Miranda Stockton, Emelie Moeller and Morgan Willis ran a school-record time of 9:12.42, while St. V-M was third in a season-best 9:13.63. CVCA placed sixth in 9:24.65.
It was a bittersweet moment for Moore, Stockton, Moeller and Willis, who had been running together since sixth grade and broke the Woodridge Middle School record in the same relay race.
Moore and Willis will continue their careers at the University of Akron, while Stockton will compete for Mount Union. Moeller plans on starting her marathon career while attending Ohio State.
“Our goals were to make it on the podium, break the school record, and finish ahead of St. V -- and we did all three,” Moore said. “It was tough, though, because we all were all crying before the race knowing it was our final time in this relay.”
Willis echoed those sentiments, saying, “I told the girls not to look at me when we got on the track because I was going to break down in tears. I’ve been bawling all day, but knowing we gave it our all and went out this way makes it all so much better. We’ve had a lot of great times as a group.”
The Irish went out of their way to congratulate Woodridge following the race, as did CVCA. It was a classy way for the three Summit County powers to salute each other after a long spring going head to head.
St. V-M’s relay consisted of seniors Maria Arnone and Anna Mion, junior Tessa Weigand, and sophomore Marissa Rossetti, while the Royals ran senior Christina Blair, junior Taylor Myers, and sophomores Alexandra Blair and Mallory Myers.
“We couldn’t have run a better race, but Elder was just awesome and so was Woodridge,” Arnone said. “They deserved everything they got today.”
Manchester senior Christina Matheny also grabbed a high spot on the podium, tying for second in the girls high jump at 5-foot-5. Washington Court House Washington junior Logan Rowe was first at 5-6.
St. V-M junior Megan Tomei added a fourth in the girls discus with a top effort of 127-1, while Southeast senior Damian Pennington was eighth in the boys long jump at 21-6 3/4.
In Division III, Rootstown junior Ashleigh Pickens was second in the girls high jump at 5-5. Cortland Maplewood senior Jordan Moxley won with a 5-6.
COMPLETE DIVISION II DAY ONE BOYS RESULTS, Click HERE
COMPLETE DIVISION II DAY ONE GIRLS RESULTS, Click HERE
+++ DIVISION II STATE PLACERS +++
GIRLS
4x800: 2. Woodridge (Maria Moore, Miranda Stockton, Emelie Moeller, Morgan Willis), 9:12.42; 3. St. Vincent-St. Mary (Tessa Weigand, Anna Mion, Marissa Rossetti, Maria Arnone), 9:13.63; 6. CVCA (Taylor Myers, Christina Blair, Alexandra Blair, Mallory Myers), 9:24.65.
Discus: 4. Megan Tomei (St. Vincent-St. Mary), 127-1
High jump: 2. Christina Matheny (Manchester), 5-5.
BOYS
4x800: 1. Woodridge (Jimmy Charles, Drake Sulzer, Jacob Onifer, Vibushan Sivakumaran), 7:37.43 (Ohio all-division record); 2. St. Vincent-St. Mary (Sean Poholski, Patrick O’Brien, Ian Walsh, Jacob Swords), 7:47.30.
Long jump: 8. Damian Pennington (Southeast), 21-6 3/4.
+++ DIVISION III STATE PLACERS +++
GIRLS
High jump: 2. Ashleigh Pickens (Rootstown), 5-5.