Leading off today: A girl hurling the discus 126 feet is a respectable accomplishment in high school track and field. In fact, it typically puts the competitor in the conversation for a New York state championship.
That was the second-place effort Thursday in the Section 11 Class 4B Championships at Mount Sinai.
The winning mark, however, was at a whole different level, figuratively and literally. Miller Place senior Jillian Scully unleashed a throw of 178 feet, 10 inches to shatter her own state record and extend her national season lead in the event.
Scully, an LSU recruit and the defending state champion, previously threw 174-2 at the Loucks Games at White Plains on May 10 to break the 1992 state record of Grand Island great Stacy Schroeder.
"It's the most satisfying feeling you could imagine," Scully told Newsday. "Just knowing that all of your hard work and your patience paid off. It's like the stars aligned, and it just happens. It's the best feeling ever, and I'm so happy that it happens over and over. It never stops."
Scully capped her day at sectionals by also winning the shot put competition, throwing 46-6.25.
That's the way to do it
We're at the juncture on the calendar when sectional and state competitions dominate the high school sports scene, relegating a lot of stuff -- including quite a bit of the minor-league professional sports scene -- to after-thought status.
That's why a Section 2 story reported this week by The Times Union is so cool. The paper wrote about the Unified Basketball Championships, a collaboration with the Special Olympics, being played on the biggest local stage available: the court at MVP Arena.
Friday afternoon's tripleheader, free to the public, caps 15 games over four days for the Unified teams from 30 Capital Region schools.
"I think it's amazing, because there's so many schools now in the area that participate in Unified sport, and it's going to be a wonderful way to bring the community together," said longtime Shaker coach Christina Kelly. "The kids are so amped up."
Transgender athletes issue flares up again
With championship season in full swing across the country, the issue of transgender athletes in girls sports has flared up again, with two developments capturing the majority of the headlines.
On Thursday in Minnesota, Champlin Park posted a 1-0 softball win over Rogers High behind the pitching of Marissa Rothenberger to capture the Class 4A Section 5 championship.
The lanky junior (that's the Star-Tribune's description, not mine) scattered eight hits to advance Champlin Park (21-2) to its first appearance in the state tournament.
Last week, a group calling itself Female Athletes United
filed a lawsuit on behalf of three players accusing the school district, the Minnesota State High School League, and the Minnesota Department of Education of violating Title IX by allowing Rothenberger to play.
The MSHSL's policy is to allow athletes to participate based on their gender identity. The state's attorney general issued an opinion that schools must allow transgender athletes to compete under state law and sued the Trump administration over threats to pull funding from Minnesota schools.
Meanwhile, the California Interscholastic Federation has made an abrupt change to its track and field championships that begin Friday outside Fresno by expanding medal presentations to including a class for transgender athletes when applicable.
That policy stems from high jump and triple jump standout AD Hernandez qualifying for the state meet last week. The CIF also opened the entry list to one additional girl who would have qualified in each affected event had Hernandez tot participated.
