Boys state track notes: Football star with creative mind wins back-to-back titles
Federico Harvey is not an average state champion track star.
Harvey won his second straight Class 6A triple jump title on Friday with a 47-foot leap, but track is not his main interest. He has signed to play defensive back at Butler County Community College, but most unexpectedly, he is an artist.
Harvey is an amateur photographer and drawer. He said his creative side allows him to fully express himself.
"It just helps me relax and get out," he said. "It builds up for me and could be a career for me."
His first experiences with photography came about two years ago at a birthday party. Someone handed him a camera, and he bonded with it instantly. There was something aesthetic about it that appealed to him.
"Then for my birthday, I got one as a surprise gift," he said. "I've always been drawing on the side, but portrait photography is my passion."
Harvey said he enjoys whatever he is doing. Football is the sport he loves the most and fully intends to make it to a Division-I program after his time at Butler, but he enjoys track and basketball, too. There is just something about photography.
"I love seeing people smile and capturing that moment," Harvey said. "I love going back to a photo and reliving that moment."
Golden podium
Carroll has put together the most complete boys track team in Class 5A, but nothing represents it more than its pole vaulting squad.
The Golden Eagles went No. 1 and 2 on Friday. Junior Ethan Hull won the event after vaulting 15 feet, 1 inch. His teammate, junior Augustine McCormick finished as runner-up after a 13-6 vault.
Nick Meyer set the 5A record in 2012 for the Eagles at 16-7, so Carroll has had its share of special vaulters. They said they recognize the dynasty they are part of.
"Even though we aren't getting that high yet," McCormick said. "The combined group that we have right now is just amazing."
With the top two finishers, Carroll earned 18 team points, and that was almost considered a letdown. Sophomore Brian Simon finished off the podium.
Simon vaulted 13-6 at last year's state meet but missed his marks at that height this year. Still, he has proven capable.
Hull took a shot at 15-6 after all competitors had been eliminated but came up short.
"The 15-1, I was really pushing myself because I was already getting pretty tired," Hull said. "That was really just a mentality there."
Quite the comeback
Two athletes from Northwest were considered the favorites heading into the Class 6A shot put, just not from Shawnee Mission.
Wichita Northwest's Marcus Hicks and Josh Carter came into the state meet with the top two regional throws at 53 feet, 8 inches and 52-9. Shawnee Mission Northwest senior Travis Morrison had the second-worst regional throw of the state qualifiers.
He threw 45-6.5, but Friday, he won the 6A shot put, going 9 feet farther at 54-4.5. Carter and Hicks finished second and fifth respectively.
Morrison finished runner-up at last year's state meet at 52 feet.
A balancing act
Lakelin Conrad has had a busy spring.
Conrad finished fifth in 4A boys singles tennis this year. Less than two weeks later, he won his second 3,200-meter state championship on the track.
Conrad said there have been times when the work has caught up to him, but he has worked with his coaches feverishly to make sure he isn't overworked.
"My tennis coach (Dave Hawley) was always able to hit with me late if I wasn't able to make a practice," he said. "I was so thankful for that."
The TCU track commit finished fourth at last year's meet in the 3,200 meters. The year before, he took fifth. But as a freshman, he won it in Class 3A. This year's field was far more challenging.
Conrad won as a freshman with a time of 9 minutes, 58.88 seconds. This year, he ran it in 9:35.15.
"This was a big (personal record) by about 11 seconds, so I'm really excited about that," he said. "The biggest (challenge) was staying positive when a guy blasted out and just playing it smart."
When Conrad gets to TCU in the fall, he said he plans to major in pre-medicine and mechanical engineering.
On his first try
Samuel Macklin wasn't in the sand last year.
Macklin, a Shawnee Mission South sophomore, won the Class 6A long jump after failing to qualify for the state meet as a freshman. Macklin jumped 22-feet-9.25, holding off triple jump champ Harvey, a senior at Campus, by more than a foot.
At his regional meet, Macklin went more than a foot farther (23-10.75) than he did on Friday.
Macklin has loads of potential and will be one of the most promising athletes in the Kansas City area going forward after his title.
Following through
Jack Durst had 4 inches on the next-highest regional mark and finished the job.
Durst, a Shawnee Mission West senior, won the Class 6A high jump with a 6-feet-8 leap, beating Gardner-Edgerton's Dayton Williams by 2 inches.
Durst seemed next in line in the 6A high jump after finishing runner-up to Topeka senior Richard Newman at last year's state meet. He followed through.
Sumner's star
Sumner's Nahshon Houston has been climbing since he got in high school.
As a freshman, Houston finished third in the long jump two years ago. Last year, he came in as runner-up. Friday, he won it.
Houston won the Class 4A long jump with a leap of 22-1.5. He topped Miege's Daniel Jackson by less than 6 inches.
Quick learner
Kapaun junior Jacob Schmitz picked up a discus for the first time last year.
Schmitz failed to qualify for state in 2017, but this year, he won the 5A shot put with a toss of 165 feet, 9 inches. He said his regional meet was motivation enough to get it done Friday.
"I was just relaxed, threw my best and got what I got," he said.
Schmitz came into his first state meet with the third-best 5A regional mark of 155-06. He said topping his regional mark by 10 feet was something he is proud of.
"I was stoked just to get to state this year," he said. "The fact that I got first made it even better."
This story was originally published May 25, 2018 at 8:22 PM with the headline "Boys state track notes: Football star with creative mind wins back-to-back titles."