Springfield's Pianka wins state high jump

Springfield junior Elijah Pianka won the boys high jump at the Vermont High School Track & Field Indoor State Championship ​held at Norwich University Saturday.

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2016-01-30 / Sports Springfield's Pianka wins state high jump NORTHFIELD, Vt. - Springfield junior Elijah Pianka won the boys high jump at the Vermont High School Track & Field Indoor State Championship ​held at Norwich University Saturday. Pianka, a junior, won the Division 2 title by clearing 5-6 on his first attempt. He beat out Missisquoi Valley's Peyton Mcallister, who missed on his first try. For full coverage of the state track meet, check out the print edition of the Eagle Times or eagletimes.com on Monday. Windsor’s Comstock, Cosmos’ Pianka capture individual state titles By TIM TAYLOR sports@eagletimes.com Springfield’s Elijah Pianka soars over the high jump bar at the state meet Saturday. — TIM TAYLOR Springfield’s Elijah Pianka soars over the high jump bar at the state meet Saturday. — TIM TAYLOR NORTHFIELD, Vt. — Windsor's Katey Comstock won her second state title and Springfield's Elijah Pianka upset the top seed to win an individual championship at the Vermont High School Track & Field Indoor State Championship Saturday. Pianka and No. 1 seed Peyton McAllister of Missisquoi Valley were the only D-2 competitors to be successful at 5-6, but neither could reach 5-8. The Cosmos junior claimed first place because he made his first attempt at 5-6 and McAllister missed on his first try. Comstock already had one state title under her belt before she even stepped foot in the shot put throwing circle Saturday. The girls Division 2 weight throw was held Jan. 23 and the Yellow Jackets senior won easily with a toss of 33-2, besting the second-place finisher by 3 1/2 feet. In the shot put, she really smoked the competition. Her victorious heave of 38-1 outdistanced the runner-up by more than 6 1/2 feet. “It's good. It feels nice,” Comstock said of her success. “I think I threw pretty good.” “Katey is the most determined person I think I've ever seen in the circle,” said Windsor coach Patrick Gordon. “She really wants to get what she sets her mind to.” Springfield sophomore Chris Gurney placed second in the triple jump, leaping 36-10 1/2. Windsor’s Jacob Curtis, also a sophomore, was third with a jump of 36-1 1/4. Cosmos sophomore Allan Poller was seventh in the high jump at 5-2. In the girls meet, Springfield senior Samantha Metcalf and Bellows Falls freshman Leanna Mager placed fourth and fifth, respectively, in the high jump. Metcalf cleared 4-6 and Mager hit a personal best at 4-4. Field events weren't the only area where local athletes fared well as a handful of runners performed admirably.Windsor’s Katey Comstock dominates the shot put competition at the state championship meet Saturday. — TIM TAYLOR Windsor’s Katey Comstock dominates the shot put competition at the state championship meet Saturday. — TIM TAYLOR The top local runner was Bellows Falls junior Cody Tallent. He placed second in the D-2 3,200 with a time of 11:06.57. Tallent was also seventh in the 1,600, clocking 5:17.73. In the girls 1,000, Hannah Achilles finished fifth. The Windsor junior posted a time of 3:46.36. She was eighth in the 1,600 in 6:21.58. Two Springfield sprinters advanced to the finals in the 55-meter dash. Senior Calista Polidor was ninth in the girls 55-meter dash with a time of 8.17 seconds. Poller was 10th in the boys race, clocking 7.3 seconds. In the boys 600, Windsor senior Zach Doiron placed 10th with a time of 1:43.67. He was 14th in the 1,000 in 3:28.2. Curtis took 15th in the boys 300 in 42.93. Poller and Gurney competed for the Cosmos, placing 16th and 17th, respectively, with times of 42.97 and 43.09. Some athletes will return to Norwich University Feb. 13 to compete in the New England Championship qualifier.