SR, GC athletes earn gold
With all three being seniors, Slippery Rock High School’s Brady Kadlubek and Josh Jones and Grove City’s Aaron Benka wanted to make the most of their final appearance at the District 10 Track and Field Championships.
Mission accomplished.
On Saturday, Kadlubek (800-meter run), Jones (1,600 run) and Benka (3,200 run) each returned from the Spire Institute in Geneva, Ohio, with Class AAA gold around their neck.
It was the second straight 800 title for Kadlubek.
“It’s been an awesome experience,” he said. “I love track and field. It’s been good to me and I’ve enjoyed it.”
Ironically, Jones was Kadlubek’s nearest competitor. The latter won the event with a time of 2:01.98, or .16 seconds ahead of his teammate. The top eight finishers were all within 3.31 seconds of each other.
“I thought the race would be very competitive, but really felt we had a shot to finish 1-2,” said Kadlubek. “Josh worked very hard and he gave it his best.
“In dual meets, I usually like to set the pace. This was obviously more difficult than that, but I was able to get out fast at the start. I had the lead within 200 meters.”
Kadlubek missed reaching his best time for the Rockets (1:59.9), but Slippery Rock coach Tom Meling thought it was a great performance considering his workload.
“He ran four events for us, including anchoring our 4x800 team to a win,” Meling said. “He really took control of that 800.”
The 2015 season began as an unknown for Jones.
“I dislocated my left shoulder playing soccer last fall,” he said. “I missed almost the entire indoor season over the winter and I wasn’t sure how I’d do.”
Jones was soon back to form, setting his personal record in the 1,600 just a few weeks ago at 4:27. He won on Saturday with a time of 4:28.94.
“It feels good to walk away from my senior season knowing I accomplished something I wanted to do,” he said.
But before he does that, he will run at the state meet at Shippensburg University Friday and Saturday. It’s a fitting place to close out a strong career, according to Meling.
“From the get-go in Saturday’s race, he was by himself,” Meling said. “He finished when most of the guys were hitting the front straightaway. He’s one of the best 1,600 runners we’ve had here.”
Kadlubek and Jones joined Mark Cessar and Will Henry in winning the 4x800 relay with a time of 8:10.76.
By Benka’s own admission, he choked during his previous trips to the District 10 Championships.
He medaled his sophomore and junior year, but posted times well over 10 minutes. He won Saturday’s event with a finish of 9:42.03.
“I let the pressure get to me,” he said of his prior runs. “I’d go out way too fast and then just die later in the race. This year I stayed relaxed and it showed. I wasn’t going to let it slip through my fingers.”
Benka’s hard work led to an unforgettable moment atop the awards stand.
“When I got that first-place medal, everything seemed so surreal. This was my senior year and I wanted to go out with a bang.”
