Four Marble Falls athletes advance to regional track meet
The day before the District 25 and 26-5A area track and field meet, pole vaulting coach Justin Doiron and throwing coach Richard Scales of Marble Falls High School held a 30-minute practice with their athletes and kept emphasizing the fundamentals of their events: footwork, technique, motion and, most importantly, having fun.
The two knew senior thrower Logan Barnes and pole vaulters Anne McCary, a junior, and Meredith Cormier and Django Segovia, both seniors, had the best chances to advance to the Class 5A Region IV meet.
On April 20, the foursome proved their coaches correct as Segovia won the boys gold medal by clearing 15-0 feet, Cormier took the girls silver medal with a vault of 10-6 and McCary secured the bronze with a leap of 10-0, and Barnes seized the bronze with a throw of 151-11. The top four finishers at the area meet advance to the regional meet, which is April 29-30 at Heroes Stadium, 4799 Thousand Oaks in San Antonio.
“The kids did awesome today,” Doiron said. “Anytime you see them succeed, it’s one of the best feelings. You can tell how awesome of an experience it is and how bought in they are.”
To his credit, Segovia made it no secret his goal was to advance to regionals, win the area gold medal, and break the school record. His 15-0 was just short of the school record.
“He’s a very confident kid, and it works well for him,” Doiron said. “He does a fantastic job of putting his mind to something and getting it. It’s an impressive thing for a young athlete. It suits him well.”
Cormier, the daughter of 1992 Marble Falls High School graduates Rob and Charla Cormier, also vaulted 10-6 at the district meet, while McCary was six inches shorter than what she cleared at district. Still, Doiron noted it’s all about advancing and was equally proud of the Lady Mustangs.
“The kids’ work speaks for themselves,” he said. “They always do a great job of representing Marble Falls. I’m glad all their hard work is paying off. I’m proud as their coach.”
Barnes set the standard immediately, Scales said. The Mustang earned his regional meet berth on his first throw.
“His very first throw was nice and fluid and relaxed,” the coach said. “He didn’t know he threw that. I thought he threw it that far by just the way it came out of his hand. He came in fluid, relaxed and attacked and put himself in a good spot at the beginning of the meet. I saw it leave his hand and I knew that’s where it’s at and that’s where it needs to be.”
Each thrower had six attempts, and Barnes was the leader for several throws until the two athletes who were the favorites to advance took advantage of their last couple of attempts. Connor Warzecha of Boerne Champion won the event with a mark of 161-07, while Kevin Adams of Cedar Park took silver with a toss of 158-02.
Barnes’ other marks were in the 140s, which are throws he consistently made throughout the season.
Kylie Roberts, who was one of 10 true freshmen competing in field events at the meet, finished seventh in the discus with a mark of 97-03 and senior Forest Swan no heighted in the high jump.
“Kylie was building momentum the whole meet,” Scales said. “All she needs is more experience. She has the tools and she has the ability, she just needs more experience. She told me she wants to get stronger and get quicker and wants to improve.”
Coaches noted the depth of District 25-5A was on full display. In the girls pole vault and boys discus, District 25 is sending three athletes in each event.
“Our district was so impressive,” Doiron said. “That tells you the level of competition.”
Scales summed up the feelings of many of the track and field coaches.
“I’m extremely proud of the throwers,” he said. “We were a small group of kids. But we showed up every day ready to work and put in the extra work.”
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