College recruiting: Norton state champ Morgan Hallett signs with Ohio State track and field
Norton senior thrower Morgan Hallett signed a national letter of intent on Wednesday to compete in track and field at Ohio State University on scholarship.
Hallett is a four-time Division II state champion in track and field with two titles apiece in the shot put and discus.
"Ohio State is the home state school," Hallett said. "I have looked up to people like [OSU throwers] Adelaide Aquilla and Faith Bender all of my throwing career, so the opportunity to be able to train with people that I have idolized since I was a really little kid seemed unfathomable to me.
"[Buckeyes throws] coach [Travis] Coleman is an amazing coach and person. I can't wait to work with him and the rest of the staff at Ohio State."
Hallett set a Division II state meet record in the discus with a throw of 170-feet, 8-inches as a junior in June 2023 at Jesse Owens Memorial Stadium in Columbus. The throw tied Hallett with Teresa Sherman of South Point for the overall Division II state record. Sherman threw 170-8 in 1989.
Hallett's junior season also included a second-place finish at the state meet in the shot put (41-3¾).
In previous state meets, Hallett won the shot put (43-7½) and was third in the discus (140-10) as a freshman and won both the shot put (46-7) and discus (156-4) as a sophomore.
Hallett had scholarship offers from Ohio State, Kentucky, Louisville and Michigan.
"I plan on majoring in electrical engineering and then hopefully either getting a minor or a masters in nuclear engineering," said Hallett, who has a 4.6 GPA at Norton.
Hallett's parents, Brian and Jennifer, and her siblings, Rebecca and Owen, were in attendance for Morgan's signing .
"This is great that she gets a chance to stay in state," said Brian Hallett, who is Norton's throws coach after a standout career at Norton and Kent State. "She has been very comfortable throwing down there in Columbus in their throwing area because of the state meet being down there.
"... Ohio State has a great team and the throwing talent they have has been amazing. Morgan will have a lot of girls to learn from. Adelaide Aquilla is from Rocky River and went to Magnificat, and she threw in the last Olympics as an Ohio State thrower. They have a couple of other girls on the team that are elite level throwers."
Hallett also started on the Norton girls basketball team that made a run to the 2022 Division II state semifinals during her sophomore year after winning the Metro Athletic Conference title.
Michael Beaven can be reached at mbeaven@thebeaconjournal and is on Twitter at @MBeavenABJ.
This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: Morgan Hallett of Norton signs with Ohio State track and field
