With eyes on state gold, Perisa, Davis, Leon win regional crowns

By Joe Scalzo

NAVARRE — Following his victory in the 800-meter dash at Friday’s Division III regional, Warren JFK senior Michael Perisa shrugged his shoulders and said, “I just wanted to qualify.”

On the list of lies that competitors tell you, this is just ahead of “I’m just happy to be nominated” and just behind “If I can’t win, I hope [any name] is the one who beats me.”

Perisa, of course, did want to qualify. But after losing an 800 race last week for just the second time this spring, Perisa ran Friday like someone trying to send a message. He covered the first lap in 55 seconds — “I didn’t think too many people could sit on that,” he said — and essentially drained the drama out of the race by the middle of that first lap. The front-running strategy resulted from his state meet experience last year, when he ran the first lap too slowly and couldn’t make up the ground in time, finishing fifth.

His time on Friday was 1:56.16 — less than a second off his personal best.

“I know I can go faster,” said Perisa, who also helped the Eagles finish second in the 4x400 relay. “I didn’t have anyone pushing me.

“I think I can make some noise next week and hopefully get to the top of the podium.”

Mathews senior Mike Davis has the same goal. One week after breaking the district record in the 100, he ran a personal-best 10.86 to edge Garfield Heights Trinity’s Jonathan Bobak (10.88).

“I stumbled out of the blocks and had a bad start,” said Davis, who also placed second in the 200. “I was just trying to keep my technique.”

When was the last time he’d been challenged like that?

“Uh, a long time,” he said. “It’s probably going to be me and him competing for a state title.”

Crestview senior Jakob Leon is the favorite for next week’s high jump title — he won the regional crown Friday with a leap of 6 feet, 8 inches — but he’s got a more familiar competitor for the state title: himself. Leon has jumped 6-11 in recent weeks and knows he’s capable of jumping 7 feet, but he’s never put it all together in Columbus.

He jumped 6-5 last year to finish fifth at the state meet. (He was sixth as a sophomore and qualified but didn’t place as a freshman.)

“This is what you look forward to all season,” he said. “This what you prepare for, to get there.”

Leon, who will jump at the University of Akron next year, said he is focused first on winning, then getting a personal-best height. Unlike, say, a distance runner, he can’t taper his training to peak at the state meet. Next week’s performance will depend more on his mental state.

“You’ve got to get your mind ready,” he said. “To clear 7 feet at state would be awesome. I know I can do it, it’s just a matter of when it’s going to happen.

“Hopefully next week it will.”

McDonald’s Devon Colburn finished second in the 300 hurdles and helped the Blue Devils qualify for state in the 4x100 and 4x400 relays as the district champions finished an area-best third in the team standings behind Trinity and St. Thomas Aquinas.

East Palestine’s 4x100 relay team of Jeff Farkas, Shane Peterson, Dalton Cope and Trevor Patterson edged a strong Garfield Heights Trinity team with a near-regional record time of 43.65. (The meet record is 43.26).

Maplewood’s Eric Rupe won the 1600 and placed fourth in the 800. The top four in each event qualify for the state meet.

On the girls side, Columbiana senior Steph Case won the 1600 and placed fourth in the 3200.

Jackson-Milton senior Samantha Hamilton dropped the mile to focus on the 3200, despite having the best qualifying time in the 1600. She thinks the 3200 gives her the best chance for a good finish next weekend.

“I think it’s my better event,” she said. “I just wanted to come in today and run a good time for state next week.”

Two days after winning the shot put, McDonald junior Joh’Vonnie Mosley added the discus title for the district-champion Blue Devils, who placed an area-best fourth this weekend.

scalzo@vindy.com