Sunday, May 25, 2008
By Jane Bos
The Grand Rapids Press
JENISON -- Both Brandon VanDriel of Sparta and Kevin Jackson of East Kentwood raced across the finish line of the 100-meter dash at the team state championships Saturday, and both won, while setting meet records.
Before you go, "huh?" understand that two Michigan Interscholastic Track Coaches Association meets were held simultaneously, but scored separately.
So VanDriel, who crossed the finish line first in 10.81 seconds, was the best in Division 2. Jackson (10.83) won the race in Division 1. Both did it in spectacular MITCA team state record times.
"It was a great race, and he's so fast," said Jackson, who also set a meet record in winning the 110 hurdles (14.18) "I'm glad I got to race him. He won. I race a race to race it. I don't think of it as 'I won.' He was faster."
Still, MITCA is all about team. And it was Jackson who helped lead his team repeat as Division 1 team state champs, totaling 392 points to edge Grand Ledge with 336.
"Winning this is the A-1, No. 1 goal on our schedule all year," Kentwood coach Dave Emeott said. "This is the team state championship. There was some really good competition here, and to win it means a lot to us."
An O-K Red Conference team, Rockford, also won the state title in the girls Division 1 meet. The Rams totaled 389 points, edging East Kentwood in what was almost a dual-meet with 369.
"This means we have good team depth," Rockford coach Randy VanderVeen said. "It means we have first-place power, but our twos and threes also did well. This is a good measure of team."
The Rams had first-place power, winning 10 events, including all four relays. Junior Emma Breen anchored the winning 1,600 relay and was on the winning 400 and 800 relays.
"This is just really great, and we have been working really hard all season," Breen said. "I am just so proud of the whole team."
Rockford's other winners were Rachel Herald (high jump), Sarah Birkmeier (pole vault), Katie Haines (1,600), Becky Caywood (400), Sarah Neideck (800), Kristen Fischer (200) and Catie Rietsema (3,200).
East Kentwood won four events. Tia Brooks accounted for two of them, winning the discus and the shot put. Chanese Mendenhall won the 100 and Aubree Suor won the long jump.
Girls Division 2
Local teams also did well in the Division 2 girls meet, but could not better Williamston with a score of 710.5. Grand Rapids Christian was second with a score of 692.5.
Jamillya Hardley won the shot put, while anchoring the winning 400 relay. Teammate Alyssa Penning won the 3,200, and Kelly Veldkamp won the pole vault.
"This is unbelievable for us to do this," Christian coach Mark Vogel said. "After what happened at regionals, we came back and did this. That says a lot about our girls."
South Christian's Katie Guikema repeated as champ in the long jump, and Sparta's Allison Scheidel won the 1,600. Middleville had two winners: Alesha Ward in the discus and Emma Ordway in the 400.
Boys Division 1
East Kentwood won the boys team state title impressively, but what Jackson did might be the most impressive. He won three consecutive events, first the 110 hurdles, then the 100 and then anchored the winning 800 relay.
He also ran in the 200 -- an event he does not do often, just like the 100 -- and he set his sixth school record with a winning time of 21.66. The former record (21.69) was set by Brad Fields in 1991.
Joe Applewhite was also a double winner for Kentwood, winning the long jump and the high jump, and Brian Akers won the pole vault.
Teammate Deonte Hurst won the 300 hurdles, and he anchored the winning 400 relay. The Falcons also won the final 1,600 relay.
Boys Division 2
Zeeland West also won the final event, the 1,600 relay, to help the Dux capture fourth-place in the meet with a score of 855. Williamston (942) and Adrian (914.5) took the top two spots, and Sparta was fifth (688).
The Dux' Nate Oppenhuizen also won an event, the long jump, with a leap of 21 feet, 9 inches.
But the most impressive area feat in this division was VanDriel's meet-record setting dash in the 100.
VanDriel, a junior, is getting used to setting records. On May 17, he tied the area record for fastest 100 ever. His time of 10.4 matched that set by Mike Ball (Wyoming Park, 1976) and Mike Burt (East Kentwood, 1995).
A year ago, he won the Michigan High School Athletic Association state meet in the 100. This year's meet is set for Saturday, and Division 2 will be held at Zeeland.
"It is just a matter of who gets out of the blocks fastest, and I did it today," VanDriel said, referring to his race against Jackson. "This is a good meet to help me stay in shape for next week's state meet. There is some pressure on me to repeat, I have a bulls-eye on my back, but I am just going to stay focused and keep running."