Marion County teams earn 58 all-state medals, three state championships
May 21—FAIRMONT — After two days in Charleston for the state track and field championships, one Marion County individual and a relay team returned as state champions in three events.
Several more came back with finishes in the Top 8 to medal.
East Fairmont senior Dakota Dammeyer acquired the most hardware of the state meet. He won gold in discus with a throw of 171-07 feet and shot put with a throw of 54-02.00 feet. His discus throw was nine feet, seven inches farther than second place.
"It feels amazing to finally accomplish a goal that I set out to achieve three years ago when I first started throwing," Dammeyer said via text message. "To achieve distances that you never thought were possible for you to achieve and realize that there is more to come is absolutely a blessing. I couldn't be more proud of myself for performing at the level that I did, and I hope to keep pushing the envelope and improving as it gets time for nationals to roll around."
Fairmont Senior won the girls 4x200 meter relay with an all-sophomore team of Sophie Starn, Ashlyn Awbrey, Tillie Cinalli and Charlee Beresford. The team finished in a time of 1:48.15 minutes, 0.33 minutes ahead of second place.
"I could not be more proud of that group of athletes," Fairmont Senior coach Dayton McVicker said via text message. "The most impressive part of their title run is the fact that they're all only sophomores. This past weekend will hopefully be the first of many state accolades they can earn together."
State qualifiers earned all-state medals by placing in the Top 8 in each event. In total, Marion County had 58 all-state medals, including the medals given to individual members of relay events.
East Fairmont had the most with 26 all-state medals, including the medals for relay team members. It's a huge jump for the school's track program, which brought back fewer than 10 just a few years ago, according to coach Shane Eakle.
"That's a testament to our kids going down there really well and competing, so we were excited about that," Eakle said. "Just a couple years ago, I think we got six or eight. That's a good showing for our kids."
Fairmont Senior also had 26 all-state medals. Many of them came from relay races, and the members of the state-champion girls relay team also earned at least two more all-state medals, according to McVicker.
North Marion rounded out the medal count with a respectable six medals. All the medals came from either junior Maylie Bland or seniors Cierra Parker or Taylor Hess from the girls team.
While none of the North Marion boys managed to medal, they all ended the season on high notes with personal records, according to coach Kevin Masters.
"We did pretty good," Masters said. "My pole vaulters all PR'd. Jumped the best they had all season... Our 4x100 relay finally had everyone healthy, and that made a big difference. We came out with a Top 10 finish, and I can't ask for anything more out of that.
"My two seniors, I'm really proud of them, Eli Scott and Elijah Armour, they really got to finish out how we had hoped for both of them, and I was really happy for them."
While seniors played big parts in the performances for all the Marion County teams, there's a bright future around the bend too. Masters says the younger members of his team are "already chomping at the bit," and Eakle hopes the experience at state gives the returners motivation to go further next year.
Every all-state medal earned by Marion County athletes based on where they placed in their events can be found below. Full results of the state meet are available on ncwvtf.com and athletic.net.
All-State Medals
First place
* Dakota Dammeyer, East Fairmont, shot put, 54-02.00 feet; discus, 171-07 feet
* Fairmont Senior girls 4x200 meter relay, 1:48.15 minutes, Sophie Starn, Ashlyn Awbrey, Tillie Cinalli, Charlee Beresford
Second place
* Tayvion Thornton, Fairmont Senior, boys 110 meter hurdles, 15.40 seconds
* Maylie Bland, North Marion, girls pole vault, 8-06.00 feet
Third place
* East Fairmont girls 4x102.5 meter shuttle hurdles, 1:09.68 minutes, Abreonna Parilak, Hailey Hauser, Sara Noechel, Emma Moore
* Taylor Hess, North Marion, girls 3200 meter run, 12:06.37 minutes
* Tayvion Thornton, Fairmont Senior, boys 100 meter dash, 11.33 seconds
* Fairmont Senior girls 4x400 meter relay, 4:20.06 minutes, Ashlyn Awbrey, Tillie Cinalli, Kanayia Mahaney, Charlee Beresford
Fourth place
* Sara Noechel, East Fairmont, girls high jump, 5 feet
* Mason Blauvelt, East Fairmont, boys pole vault, 12 feet
* Cierra Parker, North Marion, girls 400 meter dash, 1:01.81 minutes; girls long jump, 16-02.00 feet
* Jaden Dawson, East Fairmont, boys 110 meter hurdles, 15.58 seconds
* East Fairmont girls 4x200 meter relay, 1:49.88 minutes, Breeona Pheasant, Torunn Radclife, Taylor Nicholas, Kyra Hamilton
* Fairmont Senior girls 4x100 meter relay, 52.04 seconds, Sophie Starn, Charlee Beresford, Sydney Longwell, Ashlyn Awbrey
Fifth place
* Landon Jones, Fairmont Senior, boys 3200 run, 9:49.81 minutes
* Charlee Beresford, Fairmont Senior, girls 400 meter dash, 1:01.84 minutes
* Sophie Starn, Fairmont Senior, girls 300 meter hurdles, 49.19 seconds
* Jaden Dawson, East Fairmont, boys 300 meter hurdles, 41.42
* Maylie Bland, North Marion, girls 100 meter hurdles, 16.81 seconds
* Taylor Nicholas, East Fairmont, girls 200 meter dash, 27.16 seconds
* East Fairmont girls 4x400 meter relay, 4:25.41 minutes, Torunn Radclife, Danika Plum, Taylor Nicholas, Sara Noechel
Sixth place
* Tillie Cinalli, Fairmont Senior, girls 400 meter dash, 1:02.23 minutes
* Breeona Pheasant, East Fairmont, girls 100 meter dash, 13.21
* Josiah Brannen, Fairmont Senior, boys 800 meter run, 2:03.27 minutes
* Cierra Parker, North Marion, girls 400 meter dash, 27.67 seconds
Seventh place
* East Fairmont boys 4x800 meter relay, 8:50.56, Drew Moore, Dominic Rinehart, Nathaniel Stuck, Donovan Childs
* Fairmont Senior boys 4x110 meter shuttle hurdles, Jordan Wagner, Cannon Dinger, David Heston, Tayvion Thornton
* Trevor Bigelow, Fairmont Senior, boys shot put, 46-08.00 feet
* Landon Jones, Fairmont Senior, boys 1600 meter run, 4:33.58 minutes
* Kanayia Mahaney, Fairmont Senior, girls 100 meter hurdles, 17.65 seconds
* Gavin Murphy, East Fairmont, boys 200 meter dash, 23.38 seconds
Eighth place
* East Fairmont boys 4x200 meter relay, 1:35.35 minutes, Lucas Messenger, Jaden Dawson, Gavin Murphy, Mason Blauvelt
Reach Colin C. Rhodes at 304-367-2548
