Hart girls track makes it back-to-back state titles, boys place third

By Brendan Samuels
LocalSportsJournal.com

KENT CITY – For the second year in a row, Hart’s girls track team climbed the podium – necks heavy with individual medals – and hoisted the Division 3 championship trophy into the sky.

The Pirates were dominant all day, never slipping out of contention for the top spot. Without heavy hitters from last year’s graduating class to help carry them, Hart called on their youthful core of talented sophomores.

They responded in a big way.

It started with sophomore Addi Hovey, a basketball phenom turned track star. Hovey churned out a win in the high jump, posting a mark of 5-4. Two other competitors posted the same mark, but because Hovey stuck her first attempt and earned her first All-State honor of the day.

Addison Hovey won the high jump state title (Photo Brendan Samuels)

Hovey then snagged third place in the 100-meter dash, took part in Hart’s seventh-place 800 relay team and capped off the day with a third-place finish alongside teammates in the 400 relay. That made her a four-time All-Stater and helped compile 24 points to her team’s final of 64.

“This year, I’ve improved a lot,”Hovey said. “Taking the time off travel basketball to focus on track has really helped and I’m proud of myself and my teammates. It’s been a blessing. Last year, I took second in high jump and this year I focused on winning and that’s been the goal the whole year.”

Hovey’s road to first place in the high jump was marked with stellar outings over the year. That included setting a mark of 5-11, something she noted as a highlight for her. Her placement also had a bit of extra sweetness added as she took down Heidi Newhouse of Lawton, who beat her a season ago.

Even after that, the Pirates were still in a tight race with Olivet. The Eagles swapped first place with Hart at multiple points on the day. That is, until sophomore Jessica Jazwinski hit the track for the distance events.

Jazwinski, an individual state champion for Hart in cross country in 2022, started the day off in the 1,600 relay with a fourth-place finish (9:35.92). Then, Jazwinski took second in the 1,600, third in the 800 and first in the 3,200 – making her a two-time individual state champion and a four-time All-State honoree this year. Even then, she wasn’t satisfied.

Hart sophomore Jessica Jazwinski took home a state title in the 3200 meters. (Photo/Brendan Samuels)

“I was a little disappointed,” she said. “I really wanted to take home the mile today, but it didn’t turn out how I wanted. But I’m a sophomore and I’ll definitely be going for it next year. Overall, I’m happy and super excited for our team.”

Jazwinski’s performance, along with nice finishes from junior Alyson Enns in the same races, vaulted Hart right to the top. All the Pirates had to do was earn placement points in the 1,600 relay and hope Olivet didn’t post big numbers in the pole vault. Both of those worked out in their favor and they were champions once again.

“This one was nerve wracking because there were expectations there,” said Hart coach Calvin Ackley. “Last year was more of a surprise. They knew how to be champions because they were here last year. Addi Hovey was great and Jessie Jazwinski was the lynch pin with those long-distance races.”

Hart’s boys enjoyed plenty of impressive performances themselves. Unlike the girls, however, the distance events put them firmly behind the competition. In their defense, anyone not from Benzie Central was behind the eight ball in those events thanks to the talent of Hunter Jones.

Jones dominated, adding 30 points with three first-place finishes to his team’s total and sliding them into the top spot. Senior Clayton Ackley struggled in the 1,600, falling into ninth place and missing out on placement points. Ackley did rebound with a third- place finish in the 3,200, but that wasn’t enough to rebound.

Add to that a shocking second-place finish for Kellen Kimes in the shot put and Hart’s scores stayed relatively stagnant. Kimes placed first in discus (174-3), but thanks to a personal record throw from a Pewamo-Westphalia athlete, was surpassed in shot put. Kimes wasn’t shocked, noting that inconsistency in that event has plagued him all season long.

Hart senior Kellen Kimes took home the discus state title (Photo/Brendan Samuels)

“It’s hard to go into a state meet and think you’re going to PR in both of your events,” Kimes said. “I had a great day in discus, but when I got up to shot put, nothing was clicking. That’s something that I’ve had a lot of this year. Inconsistencies in shot put are something I struggled with.”

Missing out on the trophy wasn’t where Hart’s boys wanted to end up, but they still finished All-State in five events.

“We’re going to miss a lot of boys, just like we missed some of the girls we lost from last year,” Ackley said.