Portagers hope to build on success
By DYLAN SAVELA
Manistee News Advocate Sports Writer
Published: Friday, June 3, 2011
ONEKAMA — The ironic part of
Onekama’s end-of-the-year track and field banquet Tuesday night
was that the Portagers’ season isn’t quite over yet.
But with certain closure looming, girls coach Bonnie Brown can’t
help but wish there could be more.
“Our banquet was very emotional,” she said. “Sometimes you’re
kind of counting the days until the season is over and summer
starts, but I’m just having such a hard time letting this one
end. This season has been just great.”
For 12 Portagers, there's
potential to make it greater. Onekama will send seven girls and
five boys to Saturday's Division 4 track and field finals held
at Jenison, where the Portagers hope to garner some All-State
medals for the trip back home.
Tyler Fogarty will make
his third straight appearance in the finals for pole vault after
medaling in the event as a sophomore last season. Also competing
for the boys will be the 3,200-meter relay team of Shane
Peterson, Tyler Groenwald, Ryan Pienta and Fogarty as well as
senior Raul Torres in shot put.
For the girls, junior Jaylee Brown will be competing in the pole
vault for the third straight season after two straight
fourth-place medals, Yumi Babinec will run both the 100- and
300-meter hurdles, freshman Nisha Collins will compete in the
long jump and Tobi Schoedel in the 1,600-meter run. The
400-meter relay team of Brown, Danielle Ward, Babinec and
Breanna Fink and the 1,600-meter team of Babinec, Schoedel, Ward
and Taylor Anderson will also be competing.
“I’m excited just about how many girls we’re taking down in as
many events as they’re in,” Brown said. “That’s our goal every
year is to take as many as we can.
“I’d like to see them all place and come home with medals, but
you get to the state meet and you just never know what’s going
to happen,” she added. “Sometimes our girls shine, but other
girls from other schools can shine too, so we’re just hoping for
the best.”
The Onekama girls have seen nothing but success this season,
which included a West Michigan D League championship, a team
regional title and a seventh-place finish at the Michigan
Interscholastic Track Coaches Association’s Division 4 team
state meet at Gobles High School this past Saturday.
Pacing the Portagers along the way has been Babinec, a Bear Lake
senior, who this season set Onekama school records in both the
100- and 300-meter hurdles and has a second-place seeding in the
latter heading into Saturday.
“I’m really focused on the 300 because that’s my best chance (at
a title). I’d really love a state championship,” she said of
capping off her prep career. “The last few weeks I’ve kind of
been looking at the times and I only have to take a little off,
but you never know because everyone runs a bit faster in the
state meet.
“I’m just excited for that really good competition and to be
able to experience it.”
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Babinec competed in the state
finals in both her freshman and junior years, so being seasoned to the
large event should prove beneficial. “I’m really glad it’s not my first
year participating,” she said. “I ran my freshman year and that was just
a huge experience. Last year wasn’t so bad, and this year I’m just
excited and ready to go. I’m so glad more than a couple of us are
going this year and that more than one relay is going. I’m just proud of
the entire team and what we’ve done this year.”
Babinec was the D4 regional champion in both hurdle events this season
while teammates Brown and Collins won their first regional titles in the
pole vault and long jump, respectively. Brown is seeded fourth heading
into Saturday and Collins sixth. Schoedel, a senior, is seeded sixth in
the 1,600-meter run.
Onekama’s Tyler Fogarty will
compete in the pole vault in the Division 4 state finals on Saturday
at Jenison. (Dylan Savela/News Advocate file photo)
Three of the five Onekama boys
heading into Saturday have finals experience, including Fogarty, who
last season won his first state medal with a vault of 12-8.
“We’re really looking for another All-State medal for Tyler Fogarty,”
boys coach Anthony Torres said. “I’m hoping to see him in the top five,
top three.”
Fogarty will also join state-tested teammates, Groenwald and Pienta, in
the 3,200-meter relay along with freshman Shane Peterson.
Torres said experience at the state level shouldn’t go overlooked. “It’s
huge,” he said. “Tyler (Groenwald), Ryan and (Fogarty) have been there
before. It’s great with those guys on the team. Especially for a
freshman like Shane Peterson and his first time in a big event like
that. Ryan’s been there all four years in his track career. That’s just
a huge plus.”
Raul Torres, who in his senior year punched his ticket with a
second-place regional distance in the shot put, will also be competing
in state for the first time. “It’s Raul’s first time ever there, so you
never really know what you’re able to do at state,” Anthony Torres said.
“You can sometimes surprise even yourself. It would great to see him get
a medal. I’d be very happy with that and I know he would too.” |