ONTARIO — Bodpegn Miller’s aching hamstring may have been a blessing in disguise.
Normally a 400 meter dash specialist, Miller claimed a Division II district championship in the 200 on a steamy Saturday afternoon on his home track.
The Ontario junior won in 22.14 seconds, nearly four-tenths of a second faster than runner-up Trayvon Williams of Edison (22.51).
What’s more, Miller was running the 200 for the first time since his freshman year. A nagging hamstring injury forced him out of the 400.
“I do the 400 usually and every time I would get to the 250 mark my hamstring would tighten up,” said Miller, a major college football recruit who recently has drawn interest from Ohio State. “Coach said we should try the 200 instead of the 400.”
The 6-foot-4 Miller was surprisingly fast out of the blocks. Running out of lane six, he already made up the stagger on the outside runners before coming out of the turn.
“A lot of people are surprised how fast I can get out,” said Miller, who also anchored Ontario’s district runner-up 4×200 and third-place 4×100 relay teams. “I use my long legs to my advantage.”
Miller was one of three individual district titlists for the Warriors, who claimed the boys team title with 102 points. Jace Young broke a meet record in winning the 800 in 1:56.69, while Dean Morrison won the 3,200 in 10:03.78.
“That’s really close to our school record, so I’m really excited about that,” said Young, who topped the previous mark of 1:57.45 set by Upper Sandusky’s Troy Mawer in 2021. “We’ve worked hard and this is where we are now.”
Morrison led virtually from start to finish in the 3,200.
“Honestly I was planning on someone else going harder and taking the lead,” Morrison said. “I feel like when I have someone else to chase I run faster. I definitely wanted someone in front of me, but I’m happy to lead it to the finish.”
Ontario’s 4×800 team of Morrison, Xavier Trent, Landon Foltz and Young won a district title Thursday in a meet-record 8:04.88. The 4×400 team of Aiden Fox, Trent, Foltz and Young won in 3:26.83.
Galion’s Jacob Chambers claimed a district title in the 100. The sophomore won in 10.88.
“I’m running decent. It wasn’t a PR, but it was still a really good run for me,” Chambers said. “My start needs to improve.”
Shelby’s Marshall Moore won the 1,600 in a meet-record 4:26.77. He placed a disappointing fifth at the Mid-Ohio Athletic Conference meet last week.
“I really wanted to get out hard because my last couple of mile races I haven’t got out hard and been in a position to win it,” Moore said. “This is a PR for me.”
Clear Fork’s Mills Julian was the area’s lone boys winner in the field events. The sophomore won a shot put title Thursday with a throw of 49-4.
Huron was second to Ontario in the final boys team standings 86 points, while Liberty-Benton (85.75) was third. Galion (66) was fourth, while Clear Fork (41) was eighth and Shelby (37) was ninth.
On the girls side, Lexington ran away with the team title. Lady Lex piled up 123 points, well ahead of runner-up Huron (94.5). Shelby (75) tied for fourth with Liberty-Benton, while Ontario (54) was sixth and Galion (45) was seventh. Clear Fork (16) was ninth.
Emily Thomas led Lexington with a pair of individual wins. She took the 200 in 26.06 and won the 300 hurdles in a meet-record 45.88.
“I didn’t do hurdles last year,” Thomas said. “It’s really exciting because it’s my first year.
“I’ve got some of the rhythm down now.”
Thomas also ran the anchor leg of Madison’s winning 4×200 relay team. She teamed with Allison Laury, Olyvia Stoots and Makenna Arnholt to win in 1:44.29.
Shelby’s Princess Timko won the 100 in 12.62. Timko joined forces with Jaleeza Zehner, Madison Henkel and Ava Bowman to win the 4×100 relay in a meet-record 49.49.
Three area champs were crowned in the girls field events. Lexington’s Elyana Weaver won the high jump Thursday with a leap of 5-2, while Galion’s Miranda Stone won the discus Thursday with a meet-record throw of 146-6.
Shelby’s Henkel won the long jump competition Saturday with a leap of 17-5.
The top four finishers in each event earned bids to next week’s Lexington regional meet.