CHARLESTON – East Alton-Wood River freshman Jayden Ulrich made some Oiler history in the IHSA Class 2A Girls Track and Field Championship's state meet at O'Brien Field at Eastern Illinois University Saturday morning.
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Ulrich became the first Oiler female track athlete to medal at the state meet when she finished fourth in the shot put with a toss of 41-4.75 – the same mark she had that got her into the final in Friday's qualifying session.
“It was really exciting,” Ulrich said. “Kind of nerve-racking, but I'm so glad that I did it; I'm just ready for the upcoming years here – hopefully I can place better here.”
Ulrich has been throwing the shot since here her sixth-grade year but didn't expect to be in the position she was in to finish fourth. “I really didn't (expect to finish so high); coming in, I had really low PR (personal record) and then, when I threw the 41, I was like 'oh – OK!' It was very surprising.”
“She's the first Oiler girl athlete to get a medal here at the state meet,” said Oiler coach Russ Colona. “That's awesome.
“For a freshman here, she's already put in a full career; she's got the (Madison) county record, she's (Prairie State Conference) champ, a school record and now a state medal – that's awesome.”
Colona is also happy for Ulrich in many ways. “She's a great kid, she works hard, she's fun to work with – she's just a joy. She smiles all the time and is always happy, but she's super-happy today.
“She's just natural – she's a wonderful athlete, She's got a great career ahead of her; she got beat by three pretty big seniors today. She's awesome, I can't wait to see the next three years.”
Those seniors finishing ahead of Ulrich were Evangelynn Harris of East St. Louis (46-1.25), Nikita Maines of Centralia (45-3) and Tayla Schwarz of Dixon (43-1); Ulrich finished ahead of Triad's Kelly Pottorff, also a senior, who had a put of 41-1 that put her in sixth on the day.
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