Very impressive. He does look pretty mature and jacked though. I would've guessed he's a sophomore or junior based on the picture. Most 8th graders don't have that kind of definition. We'll see if he improves...
I'm not sure if this has been discussed, but I'm incredibly disappointed to see that Marlington's Cernansky is going to Ohio State. They've been poop at distance running for years now and they have not developed really any Ohio great that has attended since 2011 on the men's side. I hope he turns that program around and performs better than anyone has in the last 10-12 years, but I have my doubts.
I saw a video of Ben beating Connor with a 4:08 1600m.
Are these the top 2 in the state?
I would say Ben is tops in the state and should win the 1600m in Columbus on June 1st.
It's wild to think that he is also the best 3200m runner in the state and may not even appear in that event on June 1st. I could see him running both at the regional meet and qualifying for the state meet in both and then scratching the 3200m in Columbus as Ackley did during his junior year.
Gabelman definitely has range: sub 51 in the 400? 1:53-plus in the 800? 4:08 in the 1600 and sub-9:10 in the 3200. Gabelman is the top distance runner in the state--he ran that 9:08 this past weekend at Granville on his own, basically just a pacing exercise. Get him to Eastern Relays with real competition and watch him run in the 8:50s.
1 Benjamin Gabelman Westerville North 9:08.22 Yr: 122 Charles Putnam Marietta 9:50.96 Yr: 123 Eli Baxter Olentangy Berlin 10:01.81 Yr: 114 Casey Carlos West...
Is Connor Long the number two 1600 runner for outdoor track in DI? Perhaps. It will be interesting to see how he finishes the season. Ditto with Jake Sebaugh in the 3200m. How will Jake finish the season? I think Sebaugh will have a strong showing in Columbus on June 1st.
This post was edited 4 minutes after it was posted.