Bryant trio shines at Meet
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HOT SPRINGS — Bryant Hornets seniors Blake Zuber and Steven Bright capped off their high school careers at the annual Meet of Champs on Wednesday, May 25, at Hot Springs High School.
Zuber, the Bryant High School record holder in the pole vault before sophomore sensation Spencer McCorkel arrived on the scene, narrowly missed victory at the meet. He cleared 15 feet but had to settle for second because Lake Hamilton’s Jeremy Willis, who also topped out at 15 feet, had fewer misses at the height.
Bright, running the 800 meters, ran a 2:00.5 to finish fifth.
In addition, sophomore Ethan Blakley, plagued all season by injury and illness, finished on a high note with a 10:24 in the 3200 meter run, good for seventh.
“Blake and Steven will certainly be missed here next year,” declared Hornets coach Steve Oury. “I know they both would have preferred to go out on a winning note, but they have had outstanding careers at Bryant.
“Blake had a shot to win the event right up until the end, so that’s all you can ask for,” Oury noted. “Steven did not run as well as he did the week before, but that happens in running. Sometimes, you just don’t have it. He also got off to a poor start when the assistant starter told him and some other athletes to back away from the starting line just as the starter was firing the pistol.
“Ethan has been battling the effects of a sinus and ear infection and the antibiotics he’s been taking finally took a toll on him. As a runner, I know that some medications can zap your energy, and that seemed to be the case with Ethan.
“Next year should be fun with both Ethan and McCorkel coming back for their junior years,” he concluded.
