OHS Lady Eagles Compete at State Track & Field
May 23, 2016
Mike Peterson
Mikayla Marvin competes in Pole Vault at State TrackStory courtesy Mike Peterson
The O’Neill Lady Eagles were fortunate enough to qualify six girls for the 2016 Nebraska State Track and Field meet held at Omaha Burke on May 20-21.
The 4 x 800 relay team consisting of Lilly Thompson, Briaunna Parks, Claire Morrow and Payton Birkel were the first competitors to run. The Lady Eagle team ran 10:26.38, but did not place. The girls gained some great experience and hope to be back next year as there are two sophomores and two freshmen on the team.
Samantha Eichelberger was the next athlete to compete. Eichelberger qualified in the 300 hurdles by way of the “wild card” as one of the next six fastest times in the state. Samantha ran her personal best time of the year, 48.30 to finish in 11th place.
Sophomore Mikayla Marvin was the last girl to compete. Mikayla finished 2nd in the District pole vault to qualify. Marvin started the day by missing her first attempt at 9-0, but did not let that affect here. She battled back from that miss to clear 10-0 and 10-6. With the bar now set at 11-2, Mikayla was set to attempt the height of the current O’Neill school record. After missing her first attempt, Mikayla skimmed her way over to bar to tie the record. With just two competitors over 11-2, the bar was set to 11-6. Neither vaulter cleared this height and Marvin finished in 2nd place after looking at previous height misses.
“I was super proud of Mikayla. She has been so consistent all year and worked very hard to get to this point. Sam also had a great meet by getting a new personal best in the 300 hurdles, just missing making the finals. Both of these sophomores worked very hard to get better this year and they deserve all of the success they have achieved. We look forward to next year as we return many talented underclassmen and have a good group of 8th graders coming in. The future looks bright for OHS Girls Track and Field.”