A Year to Remember: Area athletes shine in 2019

MANSFIELD — Here at Richland Source, we like to zig when everyone else zags.

That’s why we’ve always steered clear of the cookie-cutter year in review stories media outlets tend to roll out this time of year.

Occasionally you have to swim with the rest of the school, though, and this is one of those times. We would be doing our readers a great disservice if we didn’t take a look back at what was a remarkable 2019 for high school athletes in north central Ohio.

So without further ado, here are the top 19 high school sports stories of 2019.

• The Lexington boys swimming team got the ball rolling in 2019 with a third-place finish at the Division II state meet at C.T. Branin Natatorium in Canton. The Minutemen piled up 133 points for the program’s best-ever showing at state. Wilson Cannon reached the podium in two individual events and was a member of a pair of All-Ohio relay teams. Not to be outdone, the Lex girls placed 10th.

• Ashland’s Josh Bever won a Division I state wrestling championship at 220 pounds and he did it in dramatic fashion. The top-ranked Bever scored a takedown of No. 2 Seamus O’Malley of Lakewood St. Edward with 12 seconds left in the final period for a 7-6 victory.

• Mapleton senior Beau Lefever reached the Division III championship match at 152 pounds before falling to Genoa’s Kevin Contos 9-2. Lefever was 0-2 at state as a junior before racing all the way to the finals.

• The Shelby boys captured the Division II track team title and did so in resounding fashion. The Whippets had 57 points, thanks largely to a wildly talented distance crew headlined by Caleb Brown. It was Sheby’s first team title since going back-to-back in 2003 and 2004. Brown won both the 1,600 and 3,200 meter runs and was a member of the winning 4×800 relay team. Blake Lucius won the 800, while Sam Logan was third in the 1,600 and fourth in the 3,200. Uriah Schwemley was third in the high jump.

• Galion’s Kerrigan Myers won a Division II state title in the 100 meter hurdles and beat the two-time defending state champ and state meet record holder to do it. The Nebraska-bound Myers won in 14.10 seconds, just six-hundredths of a second in front of two-time champ Leah King of Perry.

• Lexington’s Alex Green staked his claim as one of the fastest sprinters in Ohio. The junior was Division I runner-up in both the 100 and 200 meter dashes, finishing behind Pickerington Central’s Denzell Feagin in both events. Green should be in contention for state titles in both events this spring.

• Mansfield Senior’s Angelo Grose continued to move up the podium in the Division I long jump competition. Grose took third at the state meet with a leap of 23 feet, 7.25 inches as a junior last spring. Grose was sixth at state as a sophomore and would have been a heavy favorite to win the elusive state title had he not opted to graduate early to begin his collegiate football career at Michigan State.

• Mapleton’s Drew Roberts struck gold in the Division III 3,200 meter run at the state track meet, coming from behind to win in 9 minutes, 25.74 seconds. Roberts was nearly two seconds behind when the eighth and final lap started, but overcame the deficit.

• The Hillsdale baseball team reached the Division IV state championship game before falling to Toronto 3-1 in the finals. The Falcons reached the final for the first time in program history with a thrilling 1-0 win over Minster. Wright State recruit Jay Luikart fired a two-hit complete game shutout, striking out nine.

• The Hillsdale softball team reached the Final Four for the 16th time, falling to Mechanicsburg 7-3 in the Division IV state semifinals. The Falcons were in search of their eighth state title and second in a row after winning it all in 2018.

• Shelby’s Nicole Jones led the Whippets to a fourth straight appearance in the Division II state golf tournament. The sophomore shot a two-day total of 146 to earn All-Ohio status.

• Galion’s boys golf team reached the Division II state tournament for a third straight year, finishing sixth. Juniors Spencer Keller and Matthew McMullen tied for 10th to earn All-Ohio honors.

• Lexington’s Mandy Ruminski placed sixth at the Division I state golf tournament after leading Shelby to the state tournament as a freshman and sophomore. Ruminski shot a two-day total of 144. Lex classmate Trevor Dials became the first boys player to qualify for state in more than 30 years.

• Shelby’s Caleb Brown capped one of the greatest calendar years in distance running history with a Division II title at the cross country state championships at National Trail Raceway. The Wisconsin-bound Brown won in 15 minutes, 5.1 seconds after winning state titles in both the 1,600 and 3,200 runs at the Division II state meet in the spring. Brown then took third at the Nike Cross Country Nationals in Portland, Oregon.

• The Lexington girls cross country team won its third straight Division II team title in overwhelming fashion. Lady Lex had a team score of 83, well ahead of runner-up Granville (170). Halle Hamilton and Lily Weeks both landed on the All-Ohio podium. Hamilton finished third overall in 18:10, while Weeks was seventh in 18:34.9. They were joined on the All-Ohio podium by Ontario’s Grace Maurer, who was 11th overall in 18:45.1.

• The Madison girls soccer team reached the Division II state championship match before falling to Kettering Alter 2-0 at MAPFRE Stadium in Columbus. Taylor Huff was the state’s Division II Player of the Year and her father, Madison coach Zac Huff, was selected the Division II Coach of the Year. A University of Tennessee recruit, Huff was selected to the United Soccer Coaches All-America team for a third straight year.

• The Lexington boys soccer team reached the Division II Final Four for the third time in program history and first time since 2011. The Minutemen stunned Ohio Scholastic Soccer Coaches Association Division II poll champ Bay 2-1 in overtime in the regional semifinals after falling to the Rockets 8-0 in the regular season. Junior Ryan Parker was selected to the United Soccer Coaches All-America team and was an All-Ohio first-team selection in Division II.

• The Lucas football team reached the Division VII state championship game a year after losing one of the greatest rushers in state history to graduation in Jeb Grover. The Cubs opened the playoffs with a thrilling 21-20 overtime win over McDonald before knocking off St. Thomas Aquinas in the regional semifinals. Lucas needed a last-second fumble recovery by Ethan Wallace to secure a 21-13 win over Cuyahoga Heights in the regional final, then scored the game-winning touchdown in the final minute on a pass from quarterback Logan Niswander to Riley Mounts in a 15-12 win over Harvest Prep in the state semifinals. The Cubs fell to Marion Local 28-6 in the state finals.

• The Mansfield Senior football team reached the Division III state championship game with a remarkable run through the postseason. The Tygers beat Sandusky 15-9 in overtime in the regional final and knocked off Aurora 27-21 in double overtime in the state semifinals. Senior High’s luck ran out in the finals, falling to Trotwood-Madison 14-7 in overtime. Angelo Grose was selected Ohio’s Division III Defensive Player of the Year. Grose, defensive lineman Anthony Hawkins and tight end Clay Caudill all signed Division I scholarships after the season. Grose is headed to Michigan State, while Hawkins will suit up for Bowling Green and Caudill will play for Toledo.