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Nutter, Jobes track meets set for today

Williamstown’s Tim Wickham will compete in his final Ryan Jobes Spring Special today at the Jack Jones Track and Field Facility. Last spring, the junior took second in the 110 high hurdles and third in the 300 hurdles in this meet. Photo by Jay W. Bennett.

PARKERSBURG — A pair of local track meets set for today will give area programs an early look at how things might stack up this spring in the Mountain State.

Beginning at 10 a.m. today with the field events, the annual Kim Nutter Invitational will take place at Parkersburg High School with the running events starting 30 minutes later.

The PHS girls are the defending meet champions after posting a 137 to 78.5 victory last spring against Parkersburg South. A new boys champion will be crowned since last year’s winner Cabell Midland, which handed the host Big Reds a 149-105 setback, is not in the field.

“It should be a very good meet for us as every team attending has competitive athletes,” stated Big Red head boys coach Rod O’Donnell, who will watch the Big Reds compete against Parkersburg South, Belpre, John Marshall, Roane County, Ripley, Tyler Consolidated and Wheeling Park.

“The weather looks good and this should allow for some great early season times and distances. Kim was a great athlete at Parkersburg High School and I had the opportunity to coach him at Marshall. It is very fitting that we honor him with this meet.”

The Ryan Jobes Spring Special, which is set to get underway at 10 a.m. with the running events and 11 a.m. for the field events, once again will be held at the Jack Jones Track and Field Facility at Williamstown High School.

“Right now, we are just excited to compete,” admitted first-year WHS boys track coach Jill Bryant, who took over for now retired former head man Doak Markley. “We have a lot of returning athletes and a few new faces. Lots of these guys can excel in several events.”

The WHS boys, who won the Class A state title last spring by a 60-59 score against runner-up St. Marys, is back to defend its Ryan Jobes title. Last spring, the Yellowjackets had a winning total of 134 while Ritchie County was runner-up with 119.

Expected to join the Yellowjackets today are area programs Gilmer County, Magnolia, Ritchie County, St. Marys and Wirt County along with Madonna, River, University and Wheeling Central.

“These first few meets we will experiment with lots of different personnel combinations, both in open evens and relays, to see which combinations yield the biggest returns,” Bryant added.

“We won the state championship last year with a true team effort. I expect the same concept to bring us success throughout this season as well.”

The Yellowjacket girls are vying for a four-peat. Wheeling Central’s girls amassed 81 points last spring, but WHS won the title with 105. Williamstown’s girls had winning scores of 109 in 2015 and 137.3 in 2014. The last time the ‘Jackets didn’t win the Ryan Jobes Spring Special was back in 2013 when Hurricane nipped WHS, 122-115.

Williamstown girls head coach Zach Hall is excited to get the season underway.

“This is the first year for our new timing system of our own,” Hall noted. “We had countless donations come in from all over town and greatly appreciate the donations. This year we are looking to challenge to be on top of that podium me May 20th (at state).”

Coach Hall is amped to see the continued progression of defending state pole vault champion Ellie Gardner, who last year as a junior went 11-3 to establish a new Class A state meet record for the Yellowjackets.

Also of note, fans will get an early season look at some solid throwers. WHS returns defending state champion Bethany Arnold in the shot put, who won it all as a ninth-grader. She will be challenged in the shot by Whitney Jemison of St. Marys and Gilmer County’s Sada Wright, who finished third and fourth, respectively, at state last spring. Wright (third) and Jemison (fourth) are also the top returning Class A discus throwers.

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