McDonald girls make history with title

June 8, 2014 at 12:10a.m.

COLUMBUS

It was the closing seconds of Saturday’s Division III 4x400-meter relay and Mary Domitrovich, McDonald’s gray-haired, media-shy, attention-deflecting girls track7 coach, may have been the only person in the stadium still watching her athletes.

“They announced it [the race results] and I was still kind of watching our girls,” she said, “so I didn’t really hear what everyone was screaming about.”

The Blue Devils entered the day’s final event clinging to a one-point lead, 45-44, over Defiance Tinora. The good news was, Tinora didn’t have a 4x400 relay. The bad news was, St. Thomas Aquinas did.

Aquinas, which had clinched last week’s regional title by beating McDonald in the 4x400, entered the race with 38 points and had the second-fastest qualifying time. To pass McDonald, the Knights either needed to win (10 points) or finish second (eight) and have McDonald finish ninth (zero points).

“We knew exactly where we were” in the standings, McDonald senior Joya Humphries said. “We were counting points.

“We knew it was going to be close.”

Aquinas led midway through the race, then fell back to third behind Archbold and Minster. Aquinas’ anchor, Molly Pusateri, had already won a state title in the 4x800 and was plenty capable of making up the distance.

But not Saturday. Archbold took first and Minster second, dropping Aquinas into third. When Domitrovich realized what happened, “I did get a little verklempt,” she said.

Verklempt is Yiddish for choked up. Since McDonald’s relay placed ninth, the New Testament seems more appropriate. Matthew 20:16, for instance: “The last shall be first.”

“That’s pretty good,” Domitrovich said, laughing. “I didn’t think of that.”

McDonald’s 45-44 victory marked its first state girls championship — in any sport, ever — and it allowed the Blue Devils to step out of the boys’ considerable shadow. McDonald won boys track titles in 2011 and 1999 and has won seven boys cross country titles, including one last fall.

“It’s a great feeling to get the monkey off their back and really prove they’re an elite program in the state,” said senior Bobby Johnson.

Trumbull County had not won a girls track title since 1980. Liberty’s girls won it in 1978. That’s where the list ends.

“There’s so many variables that can happen, so many talented athletes that come here,” Domitrovich said. “You just hope your kids can compete to the best of their abilities and whatever else happens is icing on the cake.”

That happened all weekend, as senior Jai’Lyn Mosley won the shot and discus titles on Friday, both with personal-best distances, and Tory Ross set a personal-best in the discus (finishing fourth) to go with her fifth in the shot put. And while McDonald is known for its distance runners, sprinters Joya and Frankie Humphries, Sara Joseph and Iva Domitrovich came through Saturday with school records in the 4x100 and 4x200 relays, finishing second in both.

“It’s been a very good day,” said John “Blade” Fields, McDonald’s jorts-wearing sprint coach whose nickname comes from his Wesley Snipes-esque sunglasses. “It feels good to do this as a team. Every team needs throwers, sprinters, distance, jumps and fortunately we have that.

“By the grade of God, we were able to win this for the girls of McDonald.”

The slogan on the back of McDonald’s track T-shirts reads “Eight girls, one goal, we got your back” and it showed when injured sprinter Iva Domitrovich was replaced in the 4x400 by freshman Vanessa Perry, making sure all eight got a chance to run.

And as the eight athletes walked to the awards stand to get the championship trophy, they clasped hands and walked as one.

“They lived up to their slogan,” Mary Domitrovich said. “It’s a very special day.”