McCluggage, Durkin: Two of kind at finish line

Both plan on running cross country in college.
By JOE SCALZO
VINDICATOR SPORTS STAFF
After playing freshman football at Jackson-Milton three years ago, Luke McCluggage stood in front of his bedroom mirror and came to an unmistakable conclusion.
He wasn't a football player.
"I wasn't really any good at any other sports, but I knew I was kinda fast," McCluggage said. "I looked in the mirror and said, 'Yeah, I'm a distance runner.' "
It may have been the last time he accepted his physical limitations.
But he still needed to learn patience.
"Right at the beginning, I was frustrated," he said. "In my first race, I tried to go out with the leader and I ended up running a 20:10."
But, slowly, he began to improve. As a sophomore, he finished 34th in Division III at the Boardman regional. As a junior, he took sixth at the regional meet and fifth at the state meet.
Stepped up pace
"I started wanting to beat everybody," he said. "I went from running 10 miles a week my sophomore year, to running 65 a week during my junior year."
And after finishing third in the mile at last spring's state track meet, he said he had one goal for this year's state cross country meet.
"I want to win it," he said.
Boardman senior Brittany Durkin, meanwhile, burst onto the area running scene as a sophomore by qualifying for the state meet in Div. I -- the only area girl to do so.
But after a disappointing junior season -- she finished 50th at the regional meet -- Durkin decided to make some changes. She cut back on her summer basketball practices and started training earlier for cross country season.
She also wrote down four goals for this season: Win the county meet, win the Suburban League Championship, win the Federal League meet and make it to the state meet.
She did all four.
"Nobody believed I could do it," she said. "But you have to say them, so you can get them."
And while neither ran well at this year's state meet, Durkin and McCluggage proved convincingly they were the best runners in the area. For their accomplishments, they were named Vindicator runners of the year.
"When I was at our banquet [after the season], I just remembered being a freshman and how the seniors told me it goes by so fast," Durkin said. "At the time, I was like, 'No way.' But it really does.
"I can't believe it's done."
McCluggage fell short of winning a state title after injuring his foot during the Div. III race. He did not finish and finished the season 13-1 after winning Mahoning County, Inter-County League, district and regional titles.
"I was happy with the whole season," said McCluggage.
Even the state meet?
"Oh, I was over that the next day," he said.
"The Mideast Meet of Champions (where he finished 28th) made up for that."
127th
Durkin finished 127th at this year's state meet, but still holds the distinction of being the only area girl to advance to the state meet in Div. I since Canfield's Kristen Piersante made it in 2000.
Both of them plan on running in college, although neither knows where.
Durkin has already started basketball season -- she's a four-year starter for the Spartans at point guard -- and McCluggage is already thinking about this year's track season.
And beyond.
"I didn't even take a day off after [the state meet]," he said. "I'm looking forward to college. I'd like to make nationals if possible, and hopefully run a sub-four-minute mile."
A lofty goal, but it's hard to doubt him.
After all, he's a Bluejay -- and the sky's the limit.
scalzo@vindy.com