Oak Harbor hurdler Augsburger on the way up as sophomore
Wyatt Augsburger advanced to the state track meet in two events as a freshman.
The Oak Harbor sophomore was thrust under the lights of football Friday and collected a few catches late in the season when the games mattered most. Augsburger is on the rise and he always looks forward to the next hurdle.
“I worked hard all season to be in that position,” he said. “Some people went down and I knew from track on the big stage, I had what it takes. My coaches helped with my confidence and I got a chance on the big field.”
Boys track Margaretta returns majority of spots from two state relays
Augsburger qualified to the state meet in the 300 hurdles and 4x400 relay. He ran at regional in the 110 hurdles and on the 4x100.
“I was nervous,” he said of state. “My dad helped me with the nerves, my friends in track. They showed me what I could do. This year, it’s a little different. People are expecting more. I’ve matured a lot.”
Girls coach John McKitrick helped train Augsburger to fourth in the 60-meter hurdles at Ohio’s indoor meet. Augsburger, Tyler Thompson, Garry Brooks and Jaqui Hayward were fifth in the 4x200.
Blake Nickel returns on the 4x400, joined by newcomers Bodee Miller and Carson Ridener. Thompson was injured on the 4x100 and Brooks earned a spot late in the season.
“Whenever we make a great time in a relay, we always get super excited,” Augsburger said. “Our team is like a family and we work every day to create a better connection and be better as a team. I just like to spend a great time with friends.”
Nickel, Ridener, Brooks and Thompson won the 4x200 at the Clyde Invitational in a scorching 1:29.78 early in the season.
Augsburger, Thompson, Brooks and either Ridener or Nickel comprise the 4x100 this season.
Oak Harbor’s program record in the 110 hurdles is 14.4 seconds and the 300 mark is 38.7 (Brandon Elmes). Augsburger’s bests are 15.1 and 39.8, the latter from state preliminaries.
“I want to show everyone hand times can come down,” he said of the 110. “I’d like to break both. Bo Harkelroad (Huron) will push me. The 4x100 they broke in 2022, with Hayden Buhro and Hayden Hower and Jaqui and Isiah Miller.
“The No. 1 goal is to get nobody hurt. Make it to state with as many as we can, as many events.”
Assistant coach Cole Weirich challenges Augsburger.
“All season I do mid-distance training,” he said. “Cole has helped to create a good race for me. We train for the 400. It’s made my 300 better; an extra kick at the end of the race.”
There’s always work to be done. Augsburger doesn’t force it and goes over each hurdle with whichever leg makes sense at the time.
He’d like to be more comfortable when it’s his right leg. There’s always work to be done with every race and it’s probably his favorite.
“The 300 hurdles is where I was able to show people what I’ve got,” he said.
The Rockets focus less on their times and places early in the season and more on coach Andy Augsburger’s weight lifting program. They want their bodies to be ready to respond and endure later in the year.
Not a hurdler, the elder Augsburger qualified to regional on a 4x100 at Pandora-Gilboa.
“Having my dad as coach he’s helped with my work ethic,” Wyatt Augsburger said. “He’s shown us that team bond; he brings us together as a team.”
Augsburger wants to continue his career in college. His ascent suggests he can hurdle that.
“What drives me to be better in all my sports is to make the community proud and help my friends,” he said. “No matter how good you do as an individual, the most fun you’ll have is with your friends. I appreciate every sport I get to be with my friends.
"I want to make a name for myself in the community so when people think about Oak Harbor, I’m in the (conversation) and my team and the relay or whatever it is always gets remembered.”
mhorn@gannett.com
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This article originally appeared on Fremont News-Messenger: Oak Harbor Rockets OHSAA boys track Wyatt Augsburger
