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Devils dominate district (again)
By Joe Scalzo
NEW MIDDLETOWN
A few minutes before the start of Friday’s 1600-meter run, McDonald senior Bobby Johnson crouched down in the stadium infield, bowed his head and prayed.
It didn’t take long to see the other runners didn’t have a prayer.
The other teams, either.
Behind Johnson’s meet-record performance in the mile, Christian Smith’s dominating performance in the throws and the Blue Devils’ unsurpassed depth, McDonald cruised to its seventh straight Division III district track title, rolling up 149 points to best Warren JFK, 149-86, at Springfield High.
McDonald’s girls were even better, winning their fifth title in seven years by a 164-74.5 margin over Kennedy.
“We always know when we get to this point, we want to be district champs,” said McDonald senior Frankie Humphries, who ran on the winning 4x100 and 4x200 relays and advanced to next week’s regional meet in two other events. “We work all year for this.”
Johnson, the reigning Division III state cross country champion, ran the mile in 4:21.07, breaking the previous record of 4:23.50 set by Maplewood’s Andy Morgan seven years ago. Johnson also won the 3200, ran on the winning 4x800 relay and even pinch-hit on the 4x400 relay, which placed second without standout senior Jonah Walp (injured quadriceps).
“That’s the thing,” McDonald boys coach Lou Domitrovich said. “There’s so many selfless people on this team that are willing to step up if we need something.”
While JFK’s boys are better equipped to challenge for a state title in two weeks, McDonald’s depth dominates district meets. The Blue Devils scored at least five points in 14 of the 17 boys events, while McDonald’s girls scored in 14 of 16 events. (There was no girls pole vault competition.)
Senior Joya Humphries said Friday’s success was built months ago.
“The training is the hardest part,” she said. “Early on in the season we train the most. By this point, we’re just running meets and showing what we worked hard for all year.”
Are district titles expected now?
“It’s not expected,” she said. “I think every year the workouts get harder and the training gets harder and the meets get harder.”
Domitrovich praised his coaches, particularly Mary Domitrovich (his sister, who is the head girls coach and coaches the throwers), John Fields (sprinters) and Chris Rupe (distance).
When asked what he does, Domitrovich laughed and said, “I’m a facilitator.”
Friday’s meet ended with a familiar scene — McDonald parents snapping photos of their kids holding the district trophies — and it’s a testament to the school’s track culture that it manages to replace (and develop) so many elite athletes each year.
“We’re just really dedicated to what we do,” said Smith, who won the shot and discus. “Everyone wants to do as good as the leaders in the school, which just makes new leaders. It creates a chain reaction and just all explodes and never stops.”
And while track is an individual sport, Smith said McDonald’s main focus is on trophies, not medals.
“Success is better when it’s shared,” he said.