Worthington Kilbourne senior tennis player Kevin Metka has been playing very well this season.
Well, he has to. He's not likely to sneak onto a court unnoticed, especially after he won a Division I state tournament doubles championship in 2009 with now-graduated Jonny Price.
The target on Metka's back was well-displayed last week, as the Wolves took on three state-ranked opponents in a row.
On a chilly, windy April 27, Dublin Coffman's Hiromi Nakayama, an '09 state singles qualifier, did his best to return the visiting Metka's blasts at No. 1 singles.
"Hiromi is a real good scrapper, a really good tennis player," said Kilbourne coach Steve Metzmaier. "He just plays a totally different style than a lot of players do. He's kind of a grinder; he runs everything down and he's still able to get a lot on the ball.
"I think Kevin wasn't used to as many balls coming back to him."
Metka bounced back from an opening-set loss and pulled it out in three sets - 4-6, 6-2, 6-2.
"Kevin usually plays really good in the wind," the coach said. "So I think he kind of figured things out in the last two sets, obviously, and came through."
Olentangy Liberty's Arren Carter, another state qualifier from a year ago, did succeed in toppling Metka, 6-2, 6-4, Wednesday, April 28.
The Wolf rebounded with a vengeance Thursday, April 29, against Upper Arlington's Benni Benalcazar, winning 6-0, 6-1.
Metka had defeated Carter in a semifinal and Benalcazar in the singles final of the Worthington Cup April 24 at Thomas Worthington - his third Cup title.
Kilbourne placed second as a team at the eight-team Cup.
Needless to say, there are high hopes for Metka in regard to this year's postseason.
"I think he's capable of doing it all," Metzmaier said. "There are a lot of good players out there, so whether he will or he won't may depend on the day.
"But he's definitely capable of taking it all the way (for the state singles championship)."
The Wolves' team results didn't go as well last week, as it fell 4-1 to Coffman, Liberty and UA. WKHS junior Brian Aguirre pulled out a second singles win in the Patriots match.
"We're kind of up and down," the coach said. "We're still just a little bit young. (After Metka), I don't think they all have quite figured the game out yet. Some of them aren't as passionate about it as Kevin is, and it's hard to get them to work hard at getting better in the offseason. That's what Kevin does all the time.
"We have to get them all going."
The Kilbourne lineup vs. Coffman, Liberty and UA after Metka and Aguirre consisted of freshman Jack Klein at No. 3 singles, junior Sam Lazaroff and sophomore Ryan Wiet at first doubles, and juniors Roger Juang and Andrew Zuk at second doubles.
"I think (Klein) has a lot of potential," said Metzmaier. "I think he's finding kind of a new love for the game this year and enjoying it.
"When he was younger, he played a lot. He took some time off from tournaments, and hopefully, he'll get the bug again
"He's probably actually a little bit better than Kevin was when Kevin was a freshman."
Other team members include sophomore Adith Balaji and seniors David Melvin and Jonathan Ringel.
Gearing toward the Ohio Capital Conference Central Division tournament Saturday, May 8, the Wolves were 4-2 in league play after the losses to Coffman and UA.
Kilbourne was to wrap the league dual-match part of the season by hosting Thomas Worthington Tuesday, May 4.
Worthington Kilbourne High School baseball coach Jeff Boulware didn't shy away from acknowledging his team's success in capturing an OCC-Central Division championship last Monday.
But he wasn't about to let the celebration linger following the 9-1 victory over Dublin Coffman.
"The boys should be proud of themselves because we've had a great season so far, but we've got a long way to go," said Boulware, whose team was 15-5 overall and 12-1 in the league before playing Thomas Worthington last Wednesday. "We know when the next season begins it's one and you're done."
The last time Kilbourne won a Division I district title was 2006 when it defeated Dublin Scioto 6-5 and finished the season 25-5.
As the 10th seed, the Wolves host Westerville North on Monday. The winner plays host to Westerville South or Logan on Wednesday in a second-round game.
Kilbourne defeated North 5-1 on April 1 when junior Alio Gasbarro struck out 11 batters in the complete-game victory.
Those types of outings have become routine for Gasbarro and junior Cody Strayer, whose brother, Jared, helped the Wolves win the title in 2006.
In 29 innings, Gasbarro was 6-0 with a 0.72 ERA with 36 strikeouts. Strayer, who earned a complete-game victory last Monday, was 7-1 with a 2.19 ERA and 36 strikeouts in 55 innings.
"They've been pretty amazing, and they've been very consistent against our league opponents," Boulware said. "They work fast, and they don't walk people."
Kilbourne will need strong pitching in a tournament bracket featuring second-seeded Dublin Jerome and fourth-seeded Dublin Scioto. Grove City is the No. 1 seed. The Wolves play Scioto on Saturday in a regular-season matchup.
"We've taken it one inning at a time throughout the season, and we've got to be the same way in the tournament," Strayer said. "What's really been different for us this year compared to last has been our hitting."
The Wolves are batting .347 through 19 games and have earned plenty of victories with timely hitting.
That was evident in the 6-3 victory over Upper Arlington on April 26 when Rocky Gasbarro hit a bases-clearing double with two outs. The Golden Bears entered the game atop the OCC standings.
"We've really been a more patient team at the plate this year and I give our hitting coach a lot of credit for that," Boulware said. "We've learned to not be afraid to hit with two strikes."
Three players were batting better than .400 in Will Meador (.477, 2 doubles, 9 RBI), John Jacob (.429, 9 doubles, 11 RBI) and Dan Eurich (.419, 7 doubles, 2 home runs, 17 RBI).
Jack Lawson was the top run-producer with 19 RBI.
Strayer was hitting .407 in 27 at bats.
"We've got to go into the tournament with the same offensive philosophy and not worry about the finality that comes with the postseason," Boulware said.
ven though a tribute to the seniors on the Upper Arlington High School boys and girls track and field teams will take place at the conclusion of the Larkin-Crosten Classic on Friday, senior pole vaulter Erica Thorson doesn't plan on saying farewell for several weeks.
"The Larkin Invitational is always one of my favorite events," said Thorson, who placed second at the meet last year by clearing 9 feet, 6 inches. "The dedication is a chance for the seniors to say goodbye. I imagine it'll be really emotional. I'm just glad the dedication will be held after the meet is over."
The meet will have a postseason feel to it. Dublin Coffman, Dublin Scioto, Lancaster, Northland, Pickerington North, Reynoldsburg and Watterson are among the teams expected to compete, and last year Reynoldsburg (first in district 3), Scioto (second in district 1) and Northland (third in district 3) were among the top finishers in the Division I girls district meets and North and Reynoldsburg were the runner-up in the district 2 and district 3 boys meets, respectively.
At the Larkin-Crosten Classic last season, the UA girls team finished second with 96 points, behind Reynoldsburg (176), and the boys team was fourth (67), behind North (116), Reynoldsburg (110.33) and Coffman (107).
Thorson, who will be attending Ohio State but does not plan on pole vaulting, wants to stretch out her senior season as long as possible. Last year, she captured the district 3 championship by clearing 9-6, with teammate Nuala McSweeney placing third (9-0). Neither advanced to the state meet, as Thorson placed seventh (9-6) and McSweeney tied for 10th (9-0) at regional. The cutoff for state was 10-6, with Thomas Worthington's Allie Wood (11-6) winning the regional title.
While Wood graduated, three of the top four vaulters from regional a year ago - Westerville Central senior Amara Whaley (second, 11-6), North senior Christina Gagliardo (third, 10-9) and Dresden Tri-Valley junior Macie Warner (10-6) - are expected to be at regional.
To help UA's pole vaulters advance to the next level, first-year coach Joel Cutler added Sam Jacobson to the coaching staff. Jacobson is a former all-Pacific 10 Conference pole vaulter from the University of Arizona.
"Sam's really helped (our vaulters) out with their techniques and development," Cutler said. "Erica's invested a lot of time in the weight room and is focused on improvement."
Thorson and McSweeney could be in for a real battle at the OCC-Central meet, which is May 13 and 15 at Hilliard Bradley.
According to the area honor roll, Thorson, McSweeney, Thomas' Rachel Erb and Hilliard Davidson's Taylor Brown all have cleared the 9-6 mark this spring. Thorson, who placed third at the league meet last year, cleared 9-6 for the first time this season at the Gary Smith Invitational last Saturday at Thomas to place second, behind Dublin Scioto's Nicole White (10-4).
Thorson has cleared 10-0 in practice but never in a meet. That's a barrier she will have to get over if she is to advance to state.
"I feel like that's mental," she said. "If I can visualize myself making it, I can make it. I've been attending the state meet since I was in seventh grade. To make it to the state meet would make my career complete. I wouldn't even care where I placed. I just want to make it there."
Five days before last Sunday's district tournament draw meeting, the Grove City High School baseball team had a six-game winning streak snapped.
The Greyhounds lost a conference game to Lancaster 5-4 on April 27. After the game, coach Ryan Alexander told his players the loss may have cost Grove City the Central District's top seed.
"At the same time, a lot of other teams who were also in contention for that seed also lost," Alexander said. "We went in (to last Sunday's meeting) thinking we'd be the one, two or three seed."
Grove City earned the top seed and a first-round bye. The Greyhounds play at 5 p.m. Wednesday at home against either Hilliard Davidson or Groveport.
"We're happy with the way it went," Alexander said. "Whoever makes it out of our region of the bracket will get the Kettering winner. Whoever comes out of our bracket will have to play somebody good from either the Dayton or Cincinnati area."
Grove City is not expecting an easy road to a district title. In the second round, the Greyhounds will see a familiar opponent.
Grove City swept its OCC-Ohio Division series with Groveport winning 13-1 on April 7 and 11-1 on April 23. The Greyhounds also beat Hilliard Davidson 8-3 on April 24 in the championship game of the Newark Tournament.
Davidson improved to 11-11 overall with a 17-11 win over Dublin Coffman last Friday.
"We know Grove City is a good team," Davidson coach Jim Dougherty said. "We've played them before and wanted a chance to play them before they got some momentum going in the tournament."
Groveport fell to 2-21 overall after losing to Reynoldsburg 8-7 last Friday. Groveport may not be the only conference opponent Grove City plays this postseason. Also in the Greyhounds' bracket is sixth-seeded Gahanna and 14th-seeded Reynoldsburg.
"Those are two great teams from our own division," Alexander said. "More than likely, we'll have to be one, if not both, of them. We've got our hands full but, at the same time, it's a position we wanted to be in."
Meanwhile, another of Grove City's OCC-Ohio opponents, third-seeded Pickerington Central, chose another bracket. On April 16, Central led Grove City 12-7 in the top of the 11th inning before the game was suspended because of darkness. The game was concluded last Monday. Last season, Central beat Grove City 8-0 and 1-0 in the regular season, as well as 7-2 in a district semifinal.
"We've struggled with Pickerington Central in the past," Alexander said. "They went away from our bracket this year. For us, that's not always a bad thing."
Grove City concludes its regular-season schedule today at Westerville South. Through 21 games, the Greyhounds lost three games and Alexander has pinpointed why.
"Usually we have a lot of clutch hits," Alexander said. "In those losses, we left a lot of guys on base. What has really helped us this year is clutch hitting and our pitching staff has been unreal."
Entering last Monday, Grove City's pitchers allowed less than three earned runs a game and opponents were hitting .185. Offensively, Grove City had five players batting above.400 - Tyler Raymond (.492), Chad Helsel (.477), Korey Ayers (.438) and Joey Ford (.419). Ryan Mullins had a team-high three home runs.
Dublin Jerome High School baseball coach Chris Huesman had a basic message for his team.
Although the Celtics are the No. 2 seed in the Division I district tournament and are in position for a long postseason run, Huesman planned on stressing that central Ohio is loaded with parity.
"This is one of those years that any team in the 41 teams can pick anybody off," Huesman said. "I'm probably more confident than the kids, but I'm just trying to get the kids to understand that this is anybody's tournament."
Jerome received a first-round bye and will play host Wednesday to Watkins Memorial or Marion-Franklin.
The Celtics' bracket also includes No. 8 seed Dublin Coffman and Olentangy Orange, and Huesman's team has its sights set on a spot in a district semifinal slated for May 17 at Scioto.
On the other side of the bracket is fourth-seeded Scioto.
Grove City is the top seed followed by Jerome, Pickerington Central, Scioto, Mount Vernon, Gahanna, Olentangy Liberty, Coffman, Pickerington North and Worthington Kilbourne.
Huesman expects to field a team near full-strength for the tournament. Senior shortstop Tyler Williams, who broke his thumb during a 7-1 win against Westerville North on April 5, is expected to be ready for the tournament.
Junior catcher Kevin Lydic, who has been out with a hand injury, also is expected to return.
The Celtics have enjoyed successful runs in the tournament, highlighted by the 2007 season when they reached the regional final before losing to Cincinnati Elder 5-0.
Last season, Jerome lost to eventual district champion Hilliard Davidson 5-2 in a district semifinal.
"We're starting to mesh a little bit," senior Alex Schillig said. "Once everyone gets on the same page then I feel like we can be like the 2007 team where we just start rolling in the tournament. All it takes is few guys to start hitting, then everyone else will tag along."
The Celtics entered the week in the hunt for an OCC-Cardinal Division title.
The Celtics defeated the Irish 13-3 in six innings last Monday. Both teams were 9-4 in league play before the league finales last Wednesday, as was Olentangy Liberty.
"We'd like to win the division, but what we're looking at is the state tournament," Schillig said. "That's the biggest thing. OCC is nice, but we have a tough road ahead of us once we get in the tournament."
Through 22 games, senior Jared King, a Kansas State recruit, was batting a team-high .563 (based on 25 at-bats) followed by Schillig (.446), Aaron Huesman (.341), Drew Whitson (.339) and Tim Noe (.326).
On the mound, Huesman was 3-0 with a 0.82 ERA. Ryan Longbrake was 3-1 with a 2.10 ERA. Nick Sobel, who was 2-2, led the team in strikeouts with 39.
Christian Briggs and Garrett Couche were each 2-0.
"We played a very tough schedule, probably the toughest schedule we've played to date," coach Huesman said.
"We've only played two Division II schools twice (Olentangy and Willard) and I think our schedule has prepared us for what we're about to go through."
There might not have been a more dramatic contrast in central Ohio high school boys lacrosse results this season than when Thomas Worthington beat perennial state-power Upper Arlington 5-4 on April 17 and then lost to Dublin Coffman 8-2 four days later.
When also figuring in that the Shamrocks lost to UA 15-6 on April 14, Jerome coach A.J. Auld sees a perfect example of why comparing results doesn't necessarily provide an accurate picture regarding how good Coffman really is.
Which Shamrocks team shows up Wednesday should go a long way toward determining who captures this year's Emerald Cup.
The host Celtics have won the trophy each of the last five seasons over Coffman and Scioto, including last year when they beat the Irish 6-5 and the Shamrocks 12-10.
"You look at Coffman's comparative scores and throw them in the trash," Auld said. "Coffman beat Thomas Worthington by six goals and they lost to UA by nine, so it's hard to look into comparative scores too much. You never know which teams are banged up or battling some sickness."
Coffman followed a 2-3 start by winning four of five, but a 12-11 loss on April 28 to Hilliard Davidson was an example according to coach Mark Forsythe of some of its inconsistencies this season.
The Shamrocks have struggled with turnovers and a lack of communication - a pair of issues they hope are straightened out by the time they play Jerome.
"The kids feel we can make a run, but we are demanding that they quit making the same mistakes we've been making," Forsythe said.
Coffman has a pair of senior defenders in Jacob Gilbert and Michael Brusadin but also has been using a sophomore, Tyler Mack, as a regular in the back.
That trio, along with senior Chris Fannin and junior Drew Meyers, will be in charge of holding an experienced Jerome offense in check.
Celtics senior attacker Landon DelPrince, who will play for Wheeling Jesuit, has stepped up to provide support on offense along with senior Eric Ruhl, who has signed with Johns Hopkins, and junior Leo Horine.
"I am extremely excited to play Jerome," Forsythe said. "Jerome has established themselves as one of the elite programs in the state. It's a big game which will have a lot of emotion and it's going to be a great atmosphere."
The Coffman game is one in the midst of a tough stretch for the Celtics, who will play in the MSLCA tournament for the first time Friday and Saturday at Western Reserve Academy in Hudson.
Jerome likely will be in the "A" bracket along with Bloomfield Hills (Mich.) Brother Rice and the host Pioneers. UA and defending Division I state-champion Worthington Kilbourne, which played last Tuesday, are two other strong candidates to be in the "A" bracket.
The Celtics viewed their loss to UA as a learning experience, particularly on defense where sophomores Austin Duncan and Chris Kendall have led the way.
Seniors Evan Bowdy (attacker) and Steve Carpenter and junior Ryan Borcherding (midfielder) head the Shamrocks' offense.
"I give UA a lot of credit," Auld said. "They played a very good game and looked very sharp against us. It's a learning process with this team.
"I'm not sure people recognize how young we are on defense. Nearly every guy on our defense was not on the varsity last year and they just keep getting better, and it's exciting."
•After having the first losing season in program history last year, Scioto was winless before playing Coffman last Wednesday.
The Irish likely will be in the "D" bracket of the MSLCA tournament Friday and Saturday. They then close the regular season Wednesday at home against Olentangy Liberty and May 14 against visiting Mason.
Scioto's closest loss during an 0-13 start came April 23 when it scored five goals over the final five minutes but fell to Westerville Central 12-10.
"The record doesn't always tell the full story," coach Brian Zuercher said. "Seventy percent of the guys on (junior varsity) are freshmen, and they're winning around half their games. We've whittled down our varsity so that we're putting our young guys down on j.v., and we're still starting two sophomores on varsity. The other thing is that we've been plagued with injuries."
Junior Steven Richardson began the season as the starting goalkeeper but missed several games with a broken clavicle. After sophomore Grant Noppenberger was among those who filled in during his absence, Richardson returned last week.
According to Zuercher, standouts for the Irish have included seniors Michael Dilenschneider (defender), Brendan Gray (attacker) and Shane Hasty (attacker). Sophomores Roco Duco and Tyler Smoot have started at times on defense.
"A lot of it is confidence and continuity," Zuercher said. "We really need to generate more offense and find our offensive groove."
Led by 2009 graduate Ron Burgess, the Pickerington High School Central boys track and field team knew it could put together one of the area's best 800-meter relays each of the past two seasons.
Although their lineups have yet to be solidified in any of the sprinting events, the Tigers' biggest hope for relay success during the coming postseason could be with their 400 relay.
Senior Tyler W. Hammond has been doing his part to make sure of that, as his team has dealt with some adverse situations.
"We've had some injuries and we also had a few guys quit the team this year, but our (400 relay), I think, is our best race," Hammond said. "We're pretty good in that event. With OCC coming up, we're focusing on our relays and we'd like to try to win the (400 and 800 relays)."
Central, which will compete in the OCC-Ohio Division championships May 13 and 15 at Pickerington North, is sifting through a slew of sprinters as it heads into the postseason.
After winning a district title last year, the Tigers' 800 relay of Hammond, 2009 graduates Evan Betts and Burgess and senior Malcolm Pannell took fifth (1 minute, 29.93 seconds) at the regional as the top four finishers moved on to state. Pannell is not with the team this spring.
Last Friday in the Milt Will Relays at Canal Winchester, the Tigers finished second (77) of eight teams behind the host Indians (113), as the 400 relay of Hammond, juniors Tamani Carter and Mesha Barjona and sophomore Vince Pritchard was first (43.8).
Juniors Tyler B. Hammond and Ben Little and sophomores Billy Eakins and Devone Penick are others who are competing for time on the sprint relays.
In the Wildcat Invitational on April 23 at Westerville South, the 400 relay of Barjona, Carter, Eakins and Tyler W. Hammond was second (43.94). Barjona is a transfer from Harvest Prep.
Another competitor expected to battle for OCC and district championships for the Tigers boys team is junior Grant Hammond, who has cleared 14 feet, 6 inches in the pole vault. He also has run on sprint relays.
"It just depends on the health of (Eakins and Penick)," Tyler W. Hammond said. "Our (400 relay) has been doing pretty well and our (1,600 relay) is pretty good, too."
The Central boys and girls teams close the regular season Saturday in the Jesse Owens Invitational at Ohio State. Last season, the boys team finished fourth (82.5) in the OCC-Ohio, behind champion Reynoldsburg (144), and the girls were second (138) behind the eventual state-champion Raiders (177).
The girls team's sprint corps has been coming together as a postseason approaches.
Jasmine Greene had the third-best time in the area honor roll released last Monday in the 300 hurdles (47.2). She ran that time while winning the Wildcat Invitational, a meet in which she also was first in the 100 hurdles (17.46) and ran on the runner-up 400 relay (50.51).
Tionne Goodson (100), Jalisa Jarrett (200) and Jordon Robinson (400) are other key members of the Tigers' sprint corps.
Christina Gagliardo and Allison Hammond give Central a pair of pole vaulters who also could come up big in the coming weeks. Gagliardo has gone 11-0 in the event, which placed her among the area honor roll as well.
•Bria Booker, Zena Kolliesuah, Emily Shevelow give the North girls team a trio of sprinters who should score significant points over the coming weeks.
Kolliesuah's times of 25.35 in the 200 and 57.44 in the 400 rank her in the area honor roll in both events.
Last Friday at the Gahanna Invitational, Kolliesuah didn't compete in an open event but ran on the 400, 800 and 1,600 relays. The 800 relay, which also included Booker, Shevelow and junior Terrica Leonard, was fourth (1:51.6).
Booker, who also competes in hurdles events, was third in the long jump (16-1/4) last Friday.
Last season, Kolliesuah was fourth at state in the 100 (12.34) and joined Booker, Shevelow and 2009 graduate Shiara Robinson on the 800 relay, which was fourth (1:41.38).
Also in the mix in the sprinting relays and open events is sophomore Kierra Igwebuike.
"Zena is a little banged up right now," coach Jim Langenderfer said. "I think Zena's best race is probably the 400, and her 200 is probably her second-best. She's very out-of-the-block fast. We don't have that drop-dead 100 girl, but Zena is very fast."
Junior Lindsay White and freshmen Alicia Meyer and Shurelle Stewart could make an impact in the hurdles events, while Kim Black, Kristen Eisenhauer, Fayth Greegor and Katie Klopp are leading the distance corps.
The top athletes in the field events, according to Langenderfer, have been Julianne Ballog and Rachel Barstow in the pole vault, Maria Hall, Jenny Jue and Lindsey Logsdon in the high jump, Neah Gray, Emily Loudermilk and Jasmine Simmons in the shot put and discus and Jordan Householder in the long jump.
"With what we started with, we've got a much better team than we had last year," Langenderfer said. "We haven't gotten everything to hit as sharp as we want, but when we get up to the conference meet, they'll be ready."
Last season in the OCC-Ohio meet, both the girls (99) and boys (125.5) teams were third.
On the area honor roll released last Monday for the boys team were Michael Ballentine in the high jump (6-6), Daniel Garleb in the 1,600 (4:19.92), Devin Lomax in the high jump (6-6) and Justin Young in the long jump (20-10 1/4).
When Olentangy Liberty High School plays host to a middle school lacrosse tournament Saturday, Patriots boys coach Eric O'Brien hopes to convince future players to stick around to see where his program is headed.
Liberty is offering all of the tournament participants free admission to its showdown with visiting Orange later that day.
"It's going to be a good little event for us," O'Brien said. "Hopefully, we can have a big turnout for our game with Orange."
The game, which marks the first meeting between the two programs, will be one of two games Liberty plays within the district in the next eight days. The Patriots close out the Honor Roll Cup competition by playing host to Olentangy on May 14.
Senior defender Rob Gouhin can't wait to face Orange and Olentangy.
"It's going to be a dogfight, no matter what," he said. "It's going to be more intense than a normal game. We have a chance to do something new by playing Orange. In my three years, we've never beaten Olentangy, so it's definitely a goal to beat them my senior year."
The Patriots, who won a combined eight games in the 2008 and '09 seasons, were 5-4 overall after losing to defending Division I state champion Worthington Kilbourne 18-9 last Friday. Liberty pushed Dublin Jerome, the top-ranked team in Division II, before falling 11-10 on April 20.
O'Brien said the team's season turned after a 10-9 loss to New Albany on April 10.
"We started the season 3-0 and the guys got pretty big heads and then we lost to a decent Division II team," he said. "I said, 'Guys, we can't have that happen again.' The guys know what they can accomplish if they work together."
"The biggest difference this year is we've come together as a team," Gouhin said. "Things have been a lot more positive, we've got a solid work ethic and we feel more like a family around here."
•Olentangy girls coach Alicia Linden and Liberty girls coach Abby Stierman have a lot to talk about every time they see each other, but the showdown between their teams on Tuesday isn't one of the topics open for discussion.
"To be honest, I haven't heard a lot about Liberty," Linden said. "I talk with Abby all the time. Neither of us are going to divulge anything about our teams."
Both coaches believe their teams need a victory to head into the postseason in the right frame of mind.
Liberty has lost to the Braves six consecutive times, including a 10-9 overtime loss last year. Olentangy, however, is struggling through a 4-6 season, losing two of its last three games before playing Westerville South last Tuesday.
"A win over Liberty would be huge for our team," Linden said.
"The Liberty game is the one that means the most to the girls and it would send us into the tournament with a little bit of confidence and energy on our side."
One of the keys for the game, according to Linden, is going to be playing under control.
The Braves know how quickly the tide can change in a game involving two teams from the district. In its 13-12 loss to Orange on April 6, Olentangy led 6-0.
"Hopefully, we learned from the mistakes we made and corrected the things we needed to go forward," Linden said. "All of our team knows how much it hurts to lose a game like that. Hopefully, they won't want to have that feeling again."
It's been a lifelong dream for Michael Burton to run track in college.
Then, the senior on the New Albany High School boys track and field team suffered one of the most devastating athletic injuries.
He tore an anterior cruciate ligament playing for the football team. Suddenly running fast enough to get noticed seemed like a long shot.
Or was it?
When Burton competed in a dual meet with Watkins Memorial on April 13, Burton put up a personal-best time of 42.7 seconds in the 300-meter hurdles. His previous best was 43.5. The goal of running a sub-40 second time by season's end now seems like a possibility.
"My plan always has been to run at Ohio State University," said Burton, a regional qualifier in the 110 hurdles last year. "That's always been my goal. I knew I had to get back because I love track. It's my favorite sport. As much as I love football, track is what I'm best at."
Burton was injured on an onside kick by Watkins Memorial on Sept. 25. He was pinned in the middle of a scrum when a Watkins Memorial player dove onto the pile and hit Burton in the knee.
"A lot of it was a blur actually from the time they kicked it until I got hit," Burton said.
Once the area cleared, Burton was among those on his feet walking to the sidelines. His stride was a little ginger and he spent the next few moments testing his knee on the sidelines. It was sore enough that he thought he'd miss some time, but he had no idea how long.
"Of course my knee was a little loose, but I thought that was temporary," Burton said. "It was the Monday after, I went to the doctor and he gave me the news that I actually tore my ACL and I'll be out for the season and I needed surgery."
The doctors told Burton his recovery time would be anywhere from six to nine months. For some people it can take as long as a year.
"When I heard that he tore his ACL I got sick to my stomach," track coach Chad Olinger said. "I knew how long the process could be."
Few know as well as Olinger what it takes to come back from an ACL injury. He's had two ACL injuries. He first tore one playing basketball his freshman year at Capital. Six years ago, during his first year as a teacher, he suffered another ACL injury.
"I know what he was going through," Olinger said. "The mental part is even more than the physical part. It can be a depressing issue. He was a high-caliber hurdler. From going from that to rehabbing, he had to do every little thing to be ready as quick as he was."
The doctors released Burton from his rehab assignments after four months. They attributed his strict following of the rehab instructions, including the daily physical therapy homework, to his quick recovery. Burton started with two therapy sessions per week, but it was reduced to one. He was on crutches for six weeks and two months after surgery he was running.
Now he's doing a lot more.
"It was a setback, but in my mind it wasn't a setback," Burton said. "It helped me in the end because now I know what hard work can do for you."
Both the Central Crossing and Grove City High School softball teams were given a measure of respect by Central District coaches at last Sunday's seeding and drawing meeting.
The Greyhounds earned the top seed for the third consecutive year. Central Crossing was seeded fourth behind Grove City, Gahanna and Pickerington Central.
Grove City coach Ted Williams entered his team on the only district tournament bracket that doesn't lead to a regional semifinal against another Central District team.
Instead, the district champion out of Grove City's bracket would play a district champion from the East District.
"When we looked at the teams coming out of (the district tournament in) Barberton, we thought that we'd love to see two Central Ohio teams come out of the regional," Williams said.
The highest-seeded team in Grove City's bracket is sixth-seeded Hilliard Davidson. Those teams wouldn't meet until a district final. Delaware, which was seeded 13th, was the only other team seeded in the top 20 that elected to go into Grove City's region.
The Greyhounds open tournament play Wednesday against the winner of a first-round game between Dublin Jerome and Watkins Memorial. The winner of the second-round game plays at 5 p.m. on May 17 in a district semifinal against Delaware, Westerville North or Whetstone.
Jerome, which was seeded 35th out of 41 teams, lost to Marysville 14-0 last Friday to fall to 2-17. Watkins Memorial, seeded 31st, lost to Mount Vernon 9-2 to fall to 5-11.
Two years ago, Grove City rode the No. 1 seed all the way to a state semifinal appearance, but last year the Greyhounds were stopped by Teays Valley in a district final.
The Greyhounds entered the final week of the regular season looking to wrap up their fourth-consecutive league championship.
At the time of the draw, Grove City had two games left with Pickerington Central (last Monday and Friday) as well as last Wednesday's game against Pickerington North. Grove City also was planning to make up a league game with Groveport.
With those games left to play, Grove City led the OCC-Ohio Division at 10-0, but Gahanna (10-2) and Central (9-2) also were in contention for the league title.
"The kids are very much excited," Williams said last Sunday. "They're looking forward to the opportunity to win their fourth consecutive league title. They don't want to share it. They want to get to keep it for themselves."
•Central Crossing also entered the final week of the regular season in contention for a league title.
The Comets entered last Monday's game against Thomas Worthington trailing Upper Arlington by one-half game in the OCC-Central.
The Comets were tied with Hilliard Davidson at 9-3 in the OCC-Central with both teams trailing UA (9-2). Hilliard Darby, which was fourth at 6-6, has been eliminated from the league race.
Central Crossing opens tournament play on Wednesday in a second-round game against Dresden Tri-Valley or Franklin Heights. The winner will play at 2:30 p.m. on May 17 at Central in a district semifinal against eighth-seeded Teays Valley, Darby, Marion-Franklin or Columbus West.
Central Crossing has never played in a district final and the No. 4 seed is the program's best. According to seed, this is its best shot to reach a district championship, but coach Rona Dorsey has worked to keep the team focused on the next game.
"Anytime you can play for something like the league title it's a good thing," said Dorsey, whose team was a program-best 17-5 overall before last Monday. "But I don't want them to play for that. We need to be looking at the game we're playing and not what's ahead. That's going to be the best way for us to do it."
The Comets lost to Upper Arlington 5-0 last Friday, but when the district tournament seeding was released, they were seeded one spot higher than UA.
Seventh-seeded Marysville entered Central Crossing's district tournament bracket, but elected to go through the higher seeded Central instead of the Comets.
"Being seeded anywhere in the top seven was important," Dorsey said. "We wanted the bye. It gives us a chance to look around and see what happens on the first day."
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