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Hernando Today

The (Nature) Coast with the Most

Photo by ROBERT CAMPBELL

Hernando High senior Tyler Maier was tabbed as Hernando Today’s County Player of the Year in Boys Track and Field as he was the lone athlete to medal in either the Class 2A or 3A State Championships at Winter Park.

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By CHRIS BERNHARDT JR.

Hernando Today

Published: August 3, 2008

For the first four years of its existence, the Nature Coast Technical boys' track and field program had a state champion jumper (Mike Kursteiner) and another jumper (Kyle Keene) come in second in the state.

But beyond the event those two competed in - the high jump - the Sharks had done little of note.

Then came this season, when Nature Coast not only reached significance, but prominence winning both the county and Class 2A, District 9 championship, and sending three athletes to states.

"I think the kids saw how good they can be," Nature Coast Head Coach Ryan Wilson said. "They saw kids they were beating, kids they were expecting to lose to and they were beating them. The team thrived on knowing they could win.

"I think what it does, it opens people's eyes. Now they can say at Nature Coast, they won the district championship."

Nature Coast paced the county in 10 events, placing 10 athletes on the Hernando Today All County Boys Track and Field team. Wilson was a unanimous choice as Coach of the Year.

"The credit belongs to the coaches beneath me and the kids' hard work," Wilson said. "I accept it with open arms, but the credit really goes to the coaches and kids."

One postseason honor the Sharks did not collect was Player of the Year, which went to Hernando High distance runner Tyler Maier, the only male in the county to earn a state medal.

Howie hops to it

Though Maier had the medal, no male athlete in the county won more events than junior Howie Williams, who burst onto the scene in his first year on the team.

Williams dominated the leaping events, with bests of 20'11" in the long jump, 43'5" in the triple jump and 6'4" in the high jump.

It was in the high jump that he reached the Class 3A Florida High School Athletic Association Finals at Showalter Field in Winter Park, coming in ninth at 6'4".

He won county championships in the triple and high jump and the district crown in the high jump.

"I think it comes down to the will to win, work ethic and attitude all the way around," Wilson said of Williams. "From here, the sky's the limit.

"He came in as a first-year jumper. I think it's all about him mentally. If he can stay focused and knowing winning districts is one thing, but you want to be the top dog, be the state champ. If he uses that as his goal, I think he'll be fine."

Nature Coast's other two state competitors included junior Antwan Story, who finished 11th in the 200 (22.52) and sophomore Tony Roberts, who came in 16th in the 300 hurdles (49.99).

Both won those events at the county meet, and Story added a district championship. Roberts had a county-best time of 40.27 in the 300 hurdles and Story led everyone in the 200 (22.35) and 100 (11.26).

"Tony Roberts, we got lucky with him there and saw he had natural talent," Wilson said. "From there he just went with it and took it all the way to states. Now he knows he can win. It drives him even more.

"Antwan, I can only say good things. He's a silent leader. He worked the hardest consistently out of all the kids. He knew every time he stepped on the track he had a chance to win and that's what he did just about every time."

Junior Michael Fields earned an individual All-County nod for his county-best 52.80 time in the 400. He was also part of two All-County relays, including the district champion 4x100 with Britt Langley, Daniel Murray and Story (43.18), and the regional-qualifying 4x400 with Story, Murray and Roberts (3:33.64).

Nature Coast had the best 4x800 relay, as well, featuring Alex Mason, Tyler Harrison, Matt Lambert and P.J. Orgass (8:23). That time placed the quartet third at districts, good enough to advance to regionals.

Best of the rest

As usual, Hernando High had the best distance runners in the county, with Maier running the top time in the 800 (2:01.25) and 3,200 (9:52.48). The senior medaled in the latter.

Junior Joe Wright, a regional qualifier in the 800 and 3,200, ran a 4:30.75 to pace the county in the 1,600. Maier, however, collected the county championship in that event as well as the 3,200.

Also from the Leopards, senior Justin Braswell topped the county in the discus at 131'0". He was the county champion in that event, and advanced to regionals in it and in the 200.

"He's raw talent," Hernando coach Shawn Bigham said. "He's been in districts and regionals the past three or four years. He's always been up there."

The other top thrower in the county was Central High junior Travis Tyson. The county champion had a season-best toss of 46'0".

"He's very dominant in shot and disc. He's one of those guys," Central Head Coach Eric Milholland said. "He's just got brute strength. He throws and throws and throws and he has good form."

Central junior Thomas Adams was tops in the pole vault at 11'0".

"He's just over there practicing like crazy," Milholland said. "He worked on rope swings, working on swinging upside down on those. He did a lot of work on those."

The lone representative from Springstead High is Glenn Clarke. The junior ran a season-best of 16.29 at the Class 3A, District 7 meet in the 110 hurdles, won a county title and advanced to regionals.

"Glenn is one of those kids that's a good athlete," Springstead Head Coach Josh Criner said. "He's one of the captains on the team. He worked really hard. The kid won at a lot of meets. I think it's because of determination more than anything else."

2008 Hernando Today All-County Boys Track and Field Team
Name                                      Yr            School                    Event
Thomas Adams                    Jr             Central                   Pole vault
Justin Braswell                     Sr            Hernando              Discus
Glenn Clarke                          Jr             Springstead           110 hurdles
Mike Fields                           Jr             Nature Coast         400, 4x100, 4x400
Tyler Harrison                      So           Nature Coast         4x800
Matt Lambert                        Jr             Nature Coast         4x800
Britt Langley*                       Jr             Nature Coast         4x100
Tyler Maier                           Sr            Hernando              3,200, 800
Alex Mason                          Sr            Nature Coast         4x800
Daniel Murray*                    Jr             Nature Coast         4x100, 4x400
P.J. Orgass                            Sr            Nature Coast         4x800
Tony Roberts*                     So           Nature Coast         300 hurdles, 4x400
Antwan Story                       Jr             Nature Coast         100, 200, 4x100, 4x400
Travis Tyson                        Jr             Central                   Shot put
Howie Williams                    Jr             Nature Coast         Long jump, high jump, triple jump    
Joe Wright*                          Jr             Hernando              1,600
Player of the Year: Tyler Maier, Hernando
Coach of the Year: Ryan Wilson, Nature Coast
* Denotes repeat selection

Sports writer Chris Bernhardt Jr. can be reached at (352) 544-5288 or cbernhardt@hernandotoday.com.

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