Willard's Clark, Western's Keith earn All-Ohio honors

COLUMBUS — Willard's Cora Clark cleared 5 feet, 2 inches without a miss, taking sixth place in the Division II high jump competition Friday at the state track and field championships at Jesse Owens Memorial Stadium at Ohio State University. "Coming into this, I knew I was going against really great girls," Clark said. "I thought to myself that you really never know what kind of day they're going to have. You never know if they're coming out nervous or coming out and not having the greatest day. "Just because of what they're seeded, doesn't mean they're always going to jump that. I knew what I had to do to place." Clark couldn't clear 5-4, finishing on the podium for the Crimson Flashes. "I knew if I could get over 5-2, the starting height on my first jump, I knew I could get on the podium," Clark said. "That's all I knew I needed to do. After I got it, I felt accomplished. Everything else would've been great. To be on the podium was great." Clark got an at-large bid from the regional meet with a best mark of 5-3. Clark struggled early in the season. The boys were practicing with the bar at 4-9 and Clark wanted to try it for fun. Her jump was so good, it would've cleared 5-3, her coach said. That was the confidence boost she needed to get to this point. "At the beginning of the season, I could barely get over 4-6," Clark said. "I did not start off the season good. Honestly, I never really thought I'd see this moment this year. Our coach said if I got 5-0, I'd get a T-shirt. I never expected that." In Div. III, Western Reserve's Hayden Keith took seventh in the finals of the shot put, making him a two-time All-Ohioan entering his senior year. The junior finished with a top throw of 54-feet-4.75 inches. "I felt pretty good all day. I was pretty consistent," Keith said. "I was hoping to stay where I was seeded and not get bumped down. I wanted to compete with a really good field." His first toss went 54-1.75 before fouling on the second. He added throws of 53-3, 54-1.25 and 54-1.5 before his best throw on his last attempt. "I'm happy with what I threw," said Keith, who placed sixth in 2024 in the same event. "I wish I would have thrown a little farther, but I'm very happy with my improvement throughout the season. I've gotten progressively better." South Central's Autumn Fry wasn't far behind eighth place in the Div. III discus throw with a personal best mark of 123-feet-3 inches. She had throws of 120-10 and 119-11 while fouling on her other three throws. St. Paul senir Kristin Matlack took 14th in the high jump with a best of 4-feet-10. She got over that on the first try before missing on all three attempts on 5-0. New London's Kelsey Paul finished 15th in the shot put with a top mark of 36-11.75. She added a throw of 35-0.75 before fouling on her final throw in the semifinals.