BY YANEEK SMITH

COLUMBUS — With just two relays and two individuals placing at the Division II boys state track and field meet, the Oak Harbor Rockets finished 16th with 14 points.

The 4×100 meter relay team of Hayden Buhro, Isiah Miller, Jaqui Hayward and Hayden Hower finished second in 42.15 seconds and broke the school record while the 4×200 quartet of Power, Buhro, Owen Miller and Judson Overmyer took eighth in 1:29.39.

“I was very, very pleased. It was a really good experience. We qualified in three events for the finals. The 4×100 had reached the podium in 2018 and 2019, finishing fourth both times,” said Oak Harbor coach Andy Augsburger. “The 4×200 was eighth, and they were the first team in that relay to make the podium.”

All of those runners are coming back, except for Hayden Hower.

Isiah Miller reached the podium after finishing fourth in the 300 hurdles in 39.05. Last year, he was seventh at state. Owen Miller finished 10th in the 400 in 50.72 and Buhro, like Miller, just missed out on qualifying for the finals in the 100 and the 200.

Miller ran a 10.93 in the 100, good for 13th, which is second in school history to Cole Weirich, an All-American at John Carroll University, and finished at 22.35 in the 200 in 15th, also second in school history to Kremer.

“In my career, Isiah is the only athlete that has placed in back-to-back years in an individual event at state,” said Augsburger. “Miller was 10th, and that should drive him for next time. He finished second all-time in school history in the 400.

“Hayden Buhro was second of all-time in Oak Harbor history in the 100, and the only person that is above him right now is Cole Weiric, the school record holder. Hayden also ran a 22.35 in the 200, and Marc Kremer set the school record in 1999.”

Augsburger credited his assistant coaches for their efforts.

“Obviously there a lot of things that go into coaching. We have Gina Warnke, Steve Weirich, John McKitrick, Cole Heffernan, Beth Hubans and Cole Weirich, who has been working with the 4×100 team and the relays and our entire team, trying to get them prepared,” said Augsburger. “He brings his wealth of knowledge and has been amazing. Some of the things he brought the last two years have helped us out a lot.”

Augsburger thanked the community for supporting the athletes.

“We had a lot of community support, and it was awesome. We had second and third graders that wrote personalized notes, we had people donate Gatorade and water,” he said. “The outpouring from Oak Harbor and B-C-S has been phenomenal. I am so thankful for the community.”

The Oak Harbor girls track team had two individuals and one relay team compete at the state tournament, but they just missed qualifying for the finals in their respective events. The 4×100 relay team of Effie Schulte, Rylee McKitrick, Ally Garner and Amelia Mizelle finished 10th in 50.56. McKitrick was 15th in the 100 in 12.64 and Mizelle was 15th in the 300 hurdles in 48.83.

Port Clinton’s 4×100 relay team of Gracie Rohrer, Rebekah Nehls, Jade Mitchell and Alexis Shelton had an exchange infraction in their first heat and unfortunately were disqualified.