Seniors Cowger, Ambuehl win SCC championships

GILLESPIE – Seniors Ryan Ambuehl and Wade Cowger set school records to each earn a South Central Conference individual track championship, and both finished second in another event.

Racing at Gillespie High School, Cowger took an easy win in the 800-meter run (2:01.22), and Ambuehl won a 100-meter sprint at the end of the 400-meter dash (:51.36) to get the win.

“Those guys worked hard and reaped the benefits,” said coach Jane Bell. “It’s always great to have conference champions.”

The Vandals finished seventh as a team, falling just two points behind sixth-place Hillsboro.

In the 800, Cowger had little competition in his heat, but still was able to put himself on a record-setting pace.

Starting in lane eight, Cowger lead the entire heat, and he beat the second-place finisher by more than four seconds in breaking the school record for the second time this season.

Ambuehl didn’t have quite as easy of a run in the 400.

He and Southwestern’s J.P Mueller were virtually tied going to the final 100 meters, but Ambuehl’s kick was just a bit stronger as he edged Mueller by a second at the finish to break his own school record.

Both Cowger and Ambuehl will be looking to return to the state meet by qualifying at next Friday’s sectional meet in Lawrenceville. The Vandals are at home this Thursday.

Cowger also picked up a second-place finish in the 1,600-meter run, teaming with sophomore Ben Strobel to give Vandalia a pair of top-four finishers.

Both were near the middle of the pack for the first half of the race, with Strobel entering the third lap in fifth and Cowger being two spots behind.

They moved up to third and fourth going to the final 400 meters, and Cowger moved up to second after the first 100 meters of the last lap, but couldn’t quite run down Carlinville’s Cory Landon.

Strobel tried his hardest to beat Greenville’s Reid Rinella for third place, but Rinella edged him by just .01 seconds.

“Ben was a little disappointed,” Bell said. “He got second (in the 3,200-meter run) and fourth, which is awesome for a sophomore, but now he knows what he needs to do going forward.”

Strobel led the 3,200-meter run for most of the second half of the race.

He had been as low as fourth place in the first mile, but took the lead on lap five and held steady until lap seven, being trailed by Landon for that stretch.

Landon seemed content with following Strobel until the final lap, where he ran 2.5 seconds faster than Strobel to take the conference title.

“We had talked that if Ben did not stretch the lead in lap two or three, the other kid would have a faster kick,” Bell said. “He now knows he’s going to have to bury people in the middle.”

Ambuehl picked up a second-place finish in 110-meter hurdles, losing to Greenville’s Devon Leitchuh by just .05 seconds.

Sophomore Luke Hollinshead was Vandalia’s only other placer, taking fourth in the shot put with a throw of 42 feet, which was just 4½ feet off of the winner’s throw.

Tuesday, May 7
at SCC Meet in Gillespie
First-place finishers
•Ambuehl, 400-meter dash, :51.36
•Cowger, 800-meter run, 2:01.22
Second-place finishers
•Cowger, 1,600-meter run, 4:46.03
•Ambueuhl, 110-meter hurdles, :15.71
•Strobel, 3,200-meter run, 10:10.58
Fourth-place finishers
•Hollinshead, shot put, 42 feet
•Strobel, 1,600-meter run, 4:47.39