Gettin’ Outta’ Trouble
Davies recovers from early-race snag to finish 3rd in 800 to lead EHS at KU Relays
By Michael Ashford
Saturday, April 19, 2008
Emporia High’s Jacob Davies makes his final push down the homestretch during the 800-meter run on Friday at the Kansas Relays in Lawrence. Davies finished third in the event in a time of 1:55.60.
LAWRENCE — Jacob Davies came around the first curve at the start of the 800-meter run on Friday at the 81st Kansas Relays, and immediately, the Emporia High senior knew he was in trouble.
Davies, the defending Class 5A State champion in the event, began the race in the Lane Two, and once the pack got through the first 100 meters, the flow of runners cutting in left Davies in a less-than-desirable position.
He was boxed in.
“(I was thinking) something you can’t print in the paper,” Davies said. “I knew I had to get out of there.”
Davies entered the race seeded second and had hopes of possibly breaking the EHS school record of 1 minute, 53.40 seconds, as his best time this season was a 1:55.76. But with runners surrounding him, Davies was instead on the verge of running an embarrassing race, as the lead pack of runners surged further and further ahead of Davies.
So he did the only thing he could do.
“I made a hard move — I probably cut somebody off — and I just worked my way up to the front,” said Davies, who finally broke loose with about 300 meters to go. “If I hadn’t have made a move right there, I would have been screwed.”
Emporia High’s Brandon Childs clears the bar at 6 feet, 6 inches on Friday during the high jump competition of the Kansas Relays. Childs finished third in the event.
Davies recovered enough to finish third in the event, crossing the finish line in a time of 1:55.60, the best time by a Kansas runner so far this season. Andrew Perkins of Watertown, Wis., won the race in a time of 1:53.76 while Andrew Berberick of Mullen, Colo., was second (1:54.33).
“If I wouldn’t have made that mistake by getting boxed in, I probably would have run a lot faster,” Davies said. “I guess I did OK getting out if it. Despite all that, I think it was a pretty good race.”
Davies’ race was one of several bright spots on the day for the Emporia High contingent. His third-place finish equaled the best showing of the day by an EHS athlete, as senior high jumper Brandon Childs also came away with a third-place finish in his specialty event.
For a while, it appeared Childs was destined for a second-place finish when he cleared 6 feet, 6 inches in fewer attempts than Mike Soap of Sequoia-Tahlequah (Okla.), while Grandview (Mo.) High School’s James White cleared it in one jump. However, Childs missed all three attempts at the next height, 6-8, while Soap cleared it on his final attempt, pushing Childs into third place.
“I wasn’t too happy with my height, but getting third is always nice,” said Childs, who jumped 6-9 at State last year. “I felt good on all three of my jumps at 6-8 today. If I would have gotten any one of those, I think I could have had a few more good jumps in me.”
Emporia got another top-five finish earlier in the day when sophomore Mark Kolmer placed fifth in the javelin thanks to a big throw in the finals.
Kolmer’s best throw in his flight was 176-11 1/4, but after a pep talk from EHS coach Randy Wells, Kolmer busted loose on a throw of 185-5 on his first throw of the finals, which was just four feet off his personal best.
Emporia High’s Mark Kolmer releases a throw during the javelin competition of the Kansas Relays in Lawrence on Friday. Kolmer placed fifth in the event, recording a best throw of 185 feet, 5 inches.
Not everything went so smoothly for the EHS athletes, though.
In particular, senior Michaela Reynolds had a rough outing.
The Class 5A cross country champion with the best time in the State in the 3,200-meter run was expected to challenge for the 3,200 title, but instead had to settle for a 13th-place finish after running into, in her words, “a wall” midway through the race.
“On my fifth lap, my body locked up and it just didn’t want to go anymore.
I completely hit a wall,” Reynolds said. “The first four laps, I hit all my split times and was feeling good, but I locked up, and I didn’t feel good at all.
“Those last three laps were the longest three laps I’ve ever run.”
Emporia High’s Michaela Reynolds competes in the 3,200-meter run on Friday at the Kansas Relays. Reynolds placed 13th in the event.
Other notable performances for EHS were:
F Caydrick Bloomquist, 11th in the boys pole vault with a clearance of 13-5 1/4.
F The EHS boys 4x1 Mile relay team of Asher Delmott, Tyler Anliker, Andrew Wayman and Tyler Tilton, eighth in a time of 19:07.04.
F The EHS boys shuttle hurdle relay team of Cory Obermeyer, Jose Gutierrez, Brock Sheldon and Kyle Goodwin, seventh in a time of 1:11.88.
F Samantha Kraft, 13th in the pole vault with a clearance of 10 feet.
The Kansas Relays conclude today, with EHS athletes competing in the girls long jump, the boys 4x800 relay, the girls 1,600-meter run and the boys 1,600-meter run.
Kansas Relays
Friday at Memorial Stadium, Lawrence
EHS Individual Results
Boys Javelin
5. Mark Kolmer 185-5
Boys 4x1 Mile Relay
8. Emporia (Delmott, Anliker, Wayman, Tilton) 19:07.04
Girls Shuttle Hurdle Relay
13. Emporia (Obermeyer, Gutierrez, Sheldon, Goodwin) 1:12.65
Boys Shuttle Hurdle Relay
7. Emporia (Henry, Wilkerson, Rogers, Waldner) 1:11.88
Girls 3,200-Meter Run
13. Michaela Reynolds 11:33.72
Girls Pole Vault
13. Samantha Kraft 10-0
Boys High Jump
3. Brandon Childs 6-6
Girls Triple Jump
17. Sarah Kolmer 33-11 1/2
Girls 300 Hurdles
36. Angela Finch 53.23
Girls Distance Medley Relay
16. Emporia (Stanbrough, Arndt, Elbe, Reynolds) 13:35.54
Boys Distance Medley Relay
13. Emporia (Anliker, Kolmer, Tilton, Delmott) 11:20.16
Boys Triple Jump
19. Brandon Childs 42-8 3/4
Girls 800-Meter Run
30. Jenna Stanbrough 2:30.38
Boys 800-Meter Run
3. Jacob Davies 1:55.60
Girls 4x400 Relay
43. Emporia (Finch, Arndt, Elbe, Stanbrough) 4:34.39
Boys 4x400 Relay
21. Emporia 3:33.57
Boys Pole Va ult
11. Caydrick Bloomquist 13-5 1/4
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