Perkins' Mason takes 3rd in Div. III discus

COLUMBUS — Addison Mason wanted to start fast. The Perkins sophomore heaved a personal-best throw on the first attempt of the Division III discus competition Saturday. That throw allowed Mason to take third place and get on the podium at the state track & field meet at Jesse Owens Memorial Stadium on the campus of Ohio State University. Mason pointed to coaches Jeremy Blakely and Kaylyn Barnette as helpful influences. "Everything I do is for the glory of God and I'm only here because of Him," Mason said. "I have honestly the best coach in the entire state and he's awesome. Something he's been saying all week is 'bombs away.' It was really fitting that my first throw was my farthest. He's been getting in that mindset of hitting it from the start." Mason's toss of 134 feet, 11 inches bested her previous top throw by almost three feet. Mason is hoping this is the start of an ascension up the podium ladder over the next two years. "I would like to be on top of the podium next year," Mason said. "This pushes me because it's exciting I got here. Now that I have a taste, I want to keep building." Bellevue's Lilly Sosa ended tied for sixth in the Division III pole vault. She cleared 11 feet before fouling out at 11-6. Her grandpa, Shawn Beamer, was a big help during not only her senior year, but her entire career. "I made it to state my sophomore year, but struggled a little bit last year," said Sosa, who will pole vault collegiately at Tiffin University. "I didn't make it to state. This year, I did. To get on the podium was a goal of mine. It meant a lot to me. "I had a terrible regional meet last year. My grandpa is my coach and he's put a lot of time into me and pole vault." In the Division III 400 final, Bellevue's Amerie Wagner was sixth in 57.29 seconds. "I went into it super happy," Wagner said. "This was my last race. Finished off in the 4x2 ninth, not what we wanted. But I was genuinely so excited. It was my last high school race ever. Why not go in nerve-free and ready to have fun? "I felt pretty good. I tried pushing my first 100 in my race and did pretty good with that. Then at the 200 mark, giving it everything you've got." Wagner was able to race one more time against Vermilion's Brooke Whisenant, who finished ninth in the final in a time of 57.79 seconds. "It was amazing. We were talking right before this about how sad it is that it's our last time racing together," Wagner said. "I love her like she's my own teammate... We help each other with nerves. She's a great, great person and a great athlete." Wagner anchored Bellevue's 4x200 that finished ninth. Joined by Payton Taylor, Natalie Littlejohn and Hallie McCarthy, the group crossed the line in 1:44.23. Elsewhere in field event finals Saturday, Littlejohn was 10th in the long jump. Her best jump was 17-0.25, just a half-inch short of moving on to the finals and getting three more attempts. Clyde's Braylee Laughlin finished 12th in the pole vault, clearing 10-6. Sandusky's Maekhiya Rameau took 15th in the Division II shot put. She fouled on her first two throws before a heave of 36-2.5. Division II running prelims were washed out by rain Saturday. The runners in the two heats were reseeded and ran back-to-back Sunday. That led to Norwalk's Xavia Immel taking sixth in the girls 800 meters in 2:15.07. In another finals-only race, Sandusky's Taliyah Farris finished 17th in the 300 hurdles. She crossed the line in 46.47 seconds. In field event finals Sunday, Norwalk's Adyson Lepley finished tied for 10th in the pole vault (11-0) and Norwalk's Kinleigh Lesch was 15th in the discus (107-9).