Sam Ogden Article (NE)

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http://www.omaha.com/index.php?u_pg=38& ... nd=9624855

GINW's Ogden vaults to gold

BY STU POSPISIL


The way Sam Ogden's season went, the bar should have fallen off.


Grand Island Northwest's Sam Ogden celebrates after clearing 15 feet, 8 inches in the Class B pole vault. He later cleared 16 feet to win the all-class gold.

Somehow, it stayed up. And Ogden was a repeat gold medalist in the boys pole vault at the Nebraska high school track and field championships. The senior from Grand Island Northwest tied the state meet record of 16 feet set in 2003 by Grand Island Central Catholic's Gable Baldwin.

Ogden was a side note in the pre-meet buildup. All the attention was on Seth Burney, the Beatrice junior who cleared 16 feet, 1/4 inch last month and was coming off another 16-foot vault in the Class B districts. Ogden hadn't cleared 16 feet since last year, when he went 15-6 at state for the gold.

"I hadn't had a very good season," Ogden said. "At the beginning of the season, I didn't overcome all of the pressure and I choked the first couple of meets. Then I started doing OK. I told myself if I was going to win I was going to have to go over 16 feet."

Ogden's gold came on his final attempt at 16-0, after he backed off twice during his approach as winds gusted at his back. The bar wobbled on the edge of the brackets, but didn't fall.

"Usually I never get lucky. It usually falls on me," he said. "I got lucky on that one."

Burney then missed his final attempt. He switched poles after his first two misses at 16-0. He finished second at 15-8.

"I don't know if I was bending it more than usual," he said, "but I felt awkward at the top."

Ogden, who has signed with Nebraska for his specialty, had the bar raised to 16-41/4 for a try at bettering Baldwin's state-record 16-4.

"This was my first chance to go 16-4," he said. "Those weren't as good as I needed to get. I could have broken the record, but I'll save it for Burney next year."