Gonzalez second in pole vault for Blair Oaks boys

Tomas Gonzalez of Blair Oaks competes in the boys pole vault Saturday during the Class 3 track and field state championships at Adkins Stadium. (Greg Jackson/News Tribune)
Tomas Gonzalez of Blair Oaks competes in the boys pole vault Saturday during the Class 3 track and field state championships at Adkins Stadium. (Greg Jackson/News Tribune)

Tomas Gonzalez may be a freshman, but he looked like he belonged among the best in the state.

Gonzalez came in second place in the boys pole vault Saturday, becoming the first all-state medalist for the Blair Oaks Falcons since the 2019 season during the second day of the Class 3 track and field state championships at Adkins Stadium.

“It was definitely a little bit scary to be the only freshman (in the pole vault),” Gonzalez said. “I honestly wasn’t expecting to get this high as a freshman.”

Finishing second in the state definitely exceeded Gonzalez’s expectations from a few months ago.

“At the beginning of the year, I was just hoping to at least make it to sectionals, and if I got lucky, make it to state,” he said. “I never would’ve thought I’d be vaulting over 14 feet by the end of my freshman year.”


 Gallery: Blair Oaks at Day 2 of 2023 Class 3 Track and Field State Championships


Gonzalez had nine successful vaults, the last going for 14 feet, 7¼ inches. He missed all three attempts at 14-10 to end his day.

Macon’s Caelan Harland opened at 14-1¾, then passed all the way to 15-0¾. Harland cleared that height on his third and final attempt, otherwise the state title would have gone to Gonzalez.

Harland then missed three tries at 16-0¾.

“It was definitely intimidating, seeing the Macon kid try for 16 feet,” Gonzalez said.

Gonzalez will be adjusting his expectations heading into his sophomore season.

“I’ve got a lot of room to improve,” he said. “Next year, I’m hoping to get a lot higher, maybe get first place at state, if I’m lucky.”

Gonzalez’s teammate, Luke LePage, was making his second state appearance in the pole vault. He earned his first all-state medal, tying for eighth place with a height of 12-5½.

“Sophomore year, I got ninth place, just one place shy of the podium,” said LePage, a senior. “I didn’t vault exactly what I wanted to vault, but just being on the podium is still an accomplishment that I’ve been looking forward to since my freshman year.”

LePage was seeded first heading into state after clearing a height of 14-4 last weekend at sectionals, breaking the Blair Oaks school record in the pole vault.

His record lasted for one week, as Gonzalez broke it with his top mark at state.

The Blair Oaks teammates performed well all season in the pole vault and into the postseason, often trading places. They went 1-2 at both districts and sectionals, with Gonzalez winning the district title and LePage winning the sectional title.

“We definitely do push each other a lot,” Gonzalez said. “He pushed me a ton, getting way higher. He’s a great teammate.”

The two combined for 8.5 team points in the pole vault at state, which put Blair Oaks in 34th place in the Class 3 team standings.

Blair Oaks had a third first-time state medalist Saturday.

Zoe Caviness, a junior, came in sixth place in the girls 100-meter hurdles final with a time of 15.93 seconds.

Caviness broke her own school record in the event, which was 16.02 seconds at sectionals. When she looked at the leaderboard after crossing the finish line Saturday, she was more concerned about checking her time than checking her spot on the podium.

“I started the season with a (personal record) of 16.8 (seconds),” Caviness said. “When I got down to 16.5 and 16.3, I wanted to get under 16.”

Caviness ran the 100 hurdles in 16.06 seconds in Friday’s preliminaries, also finishing in sixth place to seal her spot in the final. With an all-state medal secured as long as she finished Saturday’s race, she focused more on herself than her competition.

“I just try to beat myself, try to beat the clock,” Caviness said. “I don’t really try to focus on anyone else. It’s just rewarding for me.”

The goal now is to improve her school record next year as a senior.

“I’d like to get to the low 15s, hopefully,” Caviness said.

The Lady Falcons’ other Day 2 state competitor, Clara Lackman, finished 12th in the girls 800-meter run with a time of 2:29.43, missing the cut for all-state honors by six seconds.

Caviness added three points to the Lady Falcons’ team total. Blair Oaks scored eight points at the state championships, tying Potosi, Hollister, Seneca, Normandy Collaborative and Vashon for 36th place.

Lutheran: St. Charles won the Class 3 girls state title with 51 points. Eldon was runner-up with 37 points, followed by Centralia with 36 points and Palmyra with 35.

Bowling Green cruised to a Class 3 boys state title with 74.5 points. East Newton was runner-up with 37 points and Lutheran North and Herculaneum tied for third place with 30 points.