Sports & Recreation
Ocean City Today Jan. 28, 2022
Page 44
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PHOTOS COURTESY BRENDA HOMMEL
(Left) Stephen Decatur senior Owen Mielnik became the Bayside champion in the pole vault event during last Wednesday’s indoor track conference meet at the Worcester County Recreation Center in Snow Hill. (Center) The 3,200-meter relay team of sophomore Macy Woroniecki, freshman Clarice Piela and juniors Breanne Ferguson and Carolina Novelli placed third, and Ethan Justice, right, came in second in the 800-meter and 1,600-meter events and fourth in the 3,200-meter run.
Mielnik Bayside Conf. pole vault champion Decatur senior confident he can earn spot at state meet and be successful By Lisa Capitelli Managing Editor (Jan. 28, 2022) Stephen Decatur senior Owen Mielnik became the Bayside champion in the pole vault event during last Wednesday’s indoor track conference championship meet at the Worcester County Recreation Center in Snow Hill. “Owen is jumping very smart this year, coming in at a height that he is confident he will make. He continues to train in Philadelphia, which is helping him to improve in technique and strength,” Decatur Coach Brenda Hommel said. “I expect him to make it to the state meet, but he will face some competition there and will need to perform at his season best in order to medal, which I expect he will.” Mielnik, who placed third in the pole vault at the 3A state championship outdoor track meet in June and is also a regional champion in the event, continues to dominate in the Bayside Conference indoors this winter. The rest of the field’s competitors – who Mielnik said he has been working with and coaching during meets – best vaults ranged from 7 feet to 9 feet 6 inches. Since Mielnik is so ad-
vanced in the event, he didn’t take his first vault until 12 feet, which he cleared on the first attempt, earning him the conference title. He then soared over the bar at 12 feet 6 inches. At 13 feet, he was high enough to get over the bar, but just lightly tapped it with his arm and it fell over on all three attempts. “I know my misBrenda Hommel take. My standards were too far forward, so every time I soared over the 13 feet bar my elbows clipped it on the way down. It bummed me out [not to accomplish 13 feet] but I should have move it back an inch or two,” Mielnik said, who added that he’s consistently made 13 feet this season. “You’re constantly moving your standards – up, down, front, back … [The pole vault area] was on a basketball court so it was tricky to line up everything.” Mielnik said he plans to go to a bigger pole and is confident he can make it to the state meet this year for indoor track. He will continue to train twice a week at the Philadelphia Jump Club and is shooting for 14 feet, 14 feet 6 inches at the championship meet. The Decatur boys’ team came in fifth place overall and the girls’ squad finished in seventh during the 12-
school conference championship. “I wish we could have performed better as teams at Baysides, but given that we were missing nearly half of our team from the beginning of the year due to either injuries or covid it was expected,” Hommel said. “The snow and cold weather has also made it difficult to practice, since our track has been covered in ice and snow on several days. I was, however, impressed with the improvement that some of our athletes showed.” Kent Island won the boys’ competition, scoring 82 points. James M. Bennett was runner-up (73) followed by Easton (58.5), Parkside (56) and Decatur (55.5). Decatur athletes who scored points for placing eighth or better were: Mielnik (pole vault, first, 12 feet 6 inches), seniors Tristan Dutton (1,600-meter run, fourth, 4:55.49; 3,200-meter run, fifth, 11:31.87) and Gavin McCabe (800-meter run, sixth, 2:20.49), junior Xavier Arnold (shot put, fifth, 33 feet 3 inches), sophomore Ethan Justice (800-meter run, second, 2:10.93; 1,600-meter run, second, 4:49.92; 3,200-meter run, fourth, 11:08.73) and freshman Brandon Fitzgerald (high jump, sixth (tie), 5 feet). Senior Jay McCarter, juniors Riley Calloway and Conner Herr and freshman Ethan Cowder placed sixth in the 800-meter relay race (1:46.44).
The 1,600-meter relay team of Calloway, Dutton, Fitzgerald and Cowder took sixth (4:10.65). “The 1,600-meter boys’ [individual] race was a thriller to watch. Tristan Dutton went out hard early on testing his speed and endurance against phenom Timmy Synowiec from Bennett. Even though he gassed himself out and was not able to keep up the pace, it was a learning experience for him as a runner to run the pace you have trained for,” Hommel said. “Ethan Justice ended up turning it on late in the race and finished in second with an impressive PR time of 4:49.92. Ethan also ran well in the 800m run, placing second. He will be one to watch in the future as he still has two years of high school competition left and is training hard and running smart.” Parkside won the girls’ competition, scoring 109 points. Kent Island was second (101), followed by North Caroline (64.5), Bennett (60), Easton (51), Cambridge (38) and Decatur (24). Decatur athletes who scored points for placing eighth or better were: junior Carolina Novelli (3,200meter run, fourth, 14:14.90), sophomores Tiara McDonald (300-meter dash, sixth, 47.53 seconds) and Macy Woroniecki (3,200-meter run, fifth, 14:23.47) and freshman Clarice Piela See COACH Page 45
