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Salem’s Caitlyn Marx among the favorites to win
Salem senior among favorites to win Division II discus title
By Brian Dzenis
AUSTINTOWN
Not everything is perfect for Caitlyn Marx, but with some extra support, she’s going to make it work.
The senior discus thrower from Salem returns to Columbus this weekend for the OHSAA State Track and Field Championships with a nagging hip injury, but she won’t let it get in her head this time around.
“I think I’ve learned how to be tougher,” Marx said. “I’ve learned to cope better.”
Just like her junior season, Marx walks in to Jesse Owens Memorial Stadium as a favorite to win the Division II girls discus and she’s looking to put in a performance that lives up to her high seed.
Last year, she was one of two Division II throwers with a seed mark beyond 140 feet, but nagging hip pain psyched her out. She fouled her first two throws and the third wasn’t enough to get her through to the finals.
“I came off as season that was tough on me towards the end. It was low confidence,” Marx said. “I didn’t have any teammates throwing with me and that wasn’t the easiest thing for me.
“Injuries can be tough on an athlete and it can affect how they see the competition.”
Salem throws coach Bill Neapolitan said Marx isn’t the most vocal of athletes and Marx said she typically says little to coaches or teammates during her events, but that doesn’t mean she prefers to be left alone.
Neapolitan is confident that Marx can bounce back despite dealing with the same injuries that bothered her the previous year because this time, she’s not alone.
“She has a teammate going with her and I’m so happy for both of them, because that’s what they needed,” Neapolitan said. “They’re good for each other.”
Junior Abbie Antram threw a personal-best 133 feet, 2 inches to take third place at last Saturday’s regional meet at Austintown Fitch and earn her first bid to the state tournament.
“It’s really cool. Caitlyn and I have grown really close this past year. We feed off of how each other do. It’s cool that we’re going to be able to go [to state] and support each other to do as well as we can.”
Antram’s PR should allow her to get on the podium on Friday and be with Marx for the duration of the event.
“When she threw that 133, I was almost in tears,” Marx said. “I was really emotional over it because she is my teammate and I wanted to see her do well. I wanted to be with her at state.”
Marx a serious favorite for first place. She won at Fitch with a throw of 142-09, making her the only Div. II thrower with a seed mark more than 140 feet. On the season, her best mark is a school-record 155-10. That’s the best in Div. II and the second-best in Ohio when combining all the divisions.
Marx is headed to Oregon State on a track scholarship, with the Beavers winning out over Ohio State, Michigan State, Colorado and Akron.
“It wasn’t about wanting to move away or staying home. It was about the coach and who I felt comfortable with. I liked Oregon. It’s pretty out there,” Marx said. “You have to move away after college, so you might as well do it now.
“The athletes at Ohio State told me I wouldn’t get to go home that much anyway, so it was all the same to me.”
Marx and Antram will be among the first Mahoning Valley athletes to compete Friday at 9:30 a.m.