Sprint to the finish: Northwest's Dylan Easterling wins PAC-7 400-meter title at the wire

SHREVE — One of the best races of the night at the PAC-7 Track and Field Championships came down to the wire.

Early in his high school career, Northwest's Dylan Easterling probably never thought he would have to outsprint opponents to win conference titles.

Easterling ran the 1,600 at the PAC-7 meet when he was a freshman. A 10th-place finish put him on track toward a promising future.

Fast forward to Thursday night at Triway where Easterling became a back-to-back PAC-7 champion in the 400. He overcame a gutsy challenge from Tuslaw's Manny Strong and won by one one-hundredth of a second.

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"Once we got past the line we hugged each other," Easterling said. "We've been rivals for a couple of years now."

Easterling and Strong finished sixth and seventh, respectively, when they ran the 400 at last month's Stark County Championships. The margin between the two that day was just over two-tenths of a second.

"He's such a better starter than me," Easterling said. "I know if I'm with him in that start, I'm doing pretty well."

The latest matchup saw Easterling squeak out a win in 52.05 seconds. He and Strong will go there separate ways next week when the postseason starts. Their battles have still prepared them for what lies ahead.

"That's necessary to me," Easterling said. "You need to have someone you can stick to and key off them. It really pushes you."

Easterling never pushed distance races totally aside. He ran cross country all four seasons at Northwest and was a three-time regional qualifier.

In track, Easterling gradually shifted toward sprints his sophomore year. He recovered from a rough off-season prior to this year and even ran some 200s.

"I broke my ankle before the season," Easterling said. "The experience has been a little more painful, but I enjoy this more."

The only thing missing for Easterling this season is the presence of a Northwest icon.

Longtime Northwest track and cross country coach Brian Armstrong passed away in November after battling ALS. Armstrong coached at the school for over 40 years.

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Easterling pays tribute to Armstrong by wearing his "Army's Army" rubber bracelet at every meet.

"Outside of my dad, he's probably the biggest influence on me as a man," Easterling said. "He coached me for six years since seventh grade. He influenced I think and how I perceive things. He always taught me that everything is a matter of perspective. If you look at things positively, you'll finish positively. He was really important to me growing up and developing.

"I always keep him in the back of my mind when I run."

Reach Mike at mike.popovich@cantonrep.com

On X: @mpopovichREP

This article originally appeared on The Repository: Dylan Easterling sprinting to the finish of Northwest running career