Saint Xavier High School Track & Field

Track & Field Through the Years

• In 1925 Saint Xavier began its track program under the direction of Brother Sylvanus.
• The Tigers won their first KHSAA state championship in track in 1950 under the direction of Coach Johnny Meihaus. The Tigers defeated the 20-team field behind the performances of runners Jerry Denny, Bill Stoops, Joe Schmitt and Harlan Silliman, who set a record for individual points (12) in posting two new hurdle records at the meet.
• John Parker set a season individual-point-total record and joined a host of teammates who helped bring the championship back to Broadway in 1957. Parker, Jerry Cambron, Tom Westmeier, Jim Vanderhaar and Dick Mueller were just a few of the Tigers who ran away from the field at the state meet and set many school records during the season.
• Coach Jerry Denny, a former St. X track star, guided a talented group to a first-place finish at the 1963 state meet. Joe Conti, Mike Kelly, Mo Moorman, Blaine Better and Don Meyer were some of the stars as the Tigers tied Lexington Lafayette for first place in the state meet without a single first-place finish. This was the first and last time two schools tied for the state track & field championship.
• In 1966 the KHSAA divided the state's track-participating schools by enrollment data to join football as the second classified championship sport. Saint Xavier was placed in AAA, the largest of Kentucky's three classes.
• Coach Joe Heitzman led the Tigers to the 1974 AAA State Championship, their first in the KHSAA's classified alignment. David Buechler established a state record in the mile and won the 880-yard run as the Tigers took first place over 25 other teams at the state meet. Other top performers from that year included John Perciful, Tim Langford, David Johnson and Mike Nix. Olympian Jesse Owens helped celebrate the title as the special guest speaker at the championship rally.
• In 1977 Coach Heitzman passed the baton to the new coach, Frank Cooper.
• The Tigers brought home another championship in 1991, the first for Coach Cooper. Senior Chris Sedoris earned the individual shot put championship, and sophomore Jeremy Petter burst onto the track scene by winning the 110 high hurdles at the state meet. The Tigers set four new school records: Sedoris in the discus, Kevin Hope in the 400 meters, and Petter in the 110 high and the 300 low hurdles.
• The Tigers won their fifth consecutive regional title in 1993 and returned to Poplar Level Road as AAA State Champions for the second time in three seasons, following a motivating runner-up finish in 1992.
• Coach Chuck Medley took over the reins of the Saint Xavier Track & Field program in 1999 and immediately had the Tigers back in the championship hunt.
• Coach Medley's Tigers set their sights on their first state title in eight years as soon as the season ended in 2000. Led by sophomore sensations Bobby Curtis and Chip Heuser, the Tigers began a three-year championship run. Individual winners at the state meet were Heuser in the pole vault, Drew Traub in the shot put, and Curtis in the 1600- and 3200-meter runs. Curtis set a record in the 3200.
• The Tigers dominated the competition in winning the 2002 Kentucky Indoor State Championship at the Mason Dixon games. Their dominance continued at the KHSAA state meet as they swept the top two places in both the discus and pole vault and won the 4x800-meter relay. Bobby Curtis and Chip Heuser achieved their season-long goals by breaking the individual state records in the 1600-meter run and the pole vault, respectively.
• The Tigers won a record-tying third-consecutive title in 2003. Bobby Curtis capped off a great career with individual titles in the 800- and 1600-meter races and by breaking his own state record in the 3200 meters. Chip Heuser won the pole vault, Joe Tronzo won the shot put, and the relay teams won both the 4 x 200- and the 4 x 800-meter runs. Both Bobby Curtis and Chip Heuser were named High School All-Americans after three-year reigns on the Kentucky track scenes,
• The Saint Xavier Track & Field team finished as state runner-up five times in an eight-year period (2004, 2006, 2009, 2010 and 2011).
• In 2006 Shawn Spalding, Will Simmons, Matthew Montano and Paul Thomas won state championships in both the 4 x 100 and 4 x 200, setting a meet record in the 4 x 200 with a time of 1:28.60.
• In 2012 Coach Mike Brockman took over as the head coach. The Saint Xavier 4 x 800-meter relay team of Zach Beavin, Thomas Cave, Nick Reader and Vincent Stephen set the state record with a time of 7:52.18.
• In 2013 the Tigers finished as the state runner-up for the sixth time in 11 seasons. Connor Sheryak won the 3200-meter run and Derrick Muench, Thomas Cave, William Mulloy and Eli George combined to win the 4 x 800-meter relay.
• In the fall of 2014, Stephanie Dierig was appointed Head Track & Field Coach to replace Mike Brockman. Coach Dierig made history as the first female head coach for a KHSAA-sponsored sport at St. X.
• In 2014, the Tigers placed 3rd in the KHSAA State Meet, William Mulloy was an individual state champion in the 1600 meter run.
• In 2015 the Tigers 4 x 800-meter relay team of Eli George, Ben Kleine-Kracht, Matthew Thomas and William Mulloy won the state championship and set a new school and state meet record of 7:51.09. Senior Jake Glass also claimed an individual state championship in the shot put with a throw of 59'11.5".
• In 2018, the Tiger Track team finished as the state runner-up and was led by the state champion 4x400 relay team of Eoin Corbett, Zack Martinez, Grady Shiflet, and Beck O'Daniel, O'Daniel also broke a 25-year-old school record in the 300 hurdles.
• The Tiger Track & Field team had one of its most successful seasons ever in 2019, bringing home a state championship title for the first time in 16 years. During the campaign, the team set five new school records. Anthony Woods II broke the triple jump record at the Regional Championship with a jump of 46' 7.25". At the State Meet, the team broke three school records with Beck O'Daniel winning the 300 hurdles in a time of 38.12 and the relay team of Zack Martinez, Anthony Woods, Tate Ga, and Beck O'Daniel winning the 4x100 (42.15) and the 4x200 (1:28.40) relays. Arguably the most impressive accomplishment of the season was the breaking of the 4x400 school record, which had stood since 1981. Zach Martinez, Eoin Corbett, Grady Shiflet, and Beck O'Daniel broke the record with a time of 3:20.94 to top a fantastic season for the Tigers.
• After eight years as an assistant, David Stewart was named head coach ahead of the 2020 season, replacing Stephanie Tebbe (formerly Dierig). Unfortunately, the season was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
• Competing as a team for the first time in almost two years (June of 2019), the Tigers kicked off the 2021 season by winning the KTCCCA State Indoor Championship. Nolan Hester set a St. X record, and established the #1 time in the nation, in the 1500 with a time of 3:58.27. Anthony Woods won the 60, long jump, and triple jump, and Blake Whiteley captured first place in the 800. The 4x800 relay team of Trae Burns, Liam Rice, Nick Brooks, and Sami Hattab also won their event, as the Tigers won by 61 points and scored in 13 of 14 events.
• The Tigers finished off an amazing 2021 season by capturing the 12th state championship in school history, and back-to-back titles that were awarded by the KHSAA (the 2020 season was canceled). Entering the final event of the day, the 4x400 relay, the Tigers held a narrow two-point lead over Male. The 4x400 team of Trae Burns, Nick Brooks, Nathen Wacker, & Sean Beam brought home a 3rd place finish, just ahead of 4th place Male, wrapping up the title for the Tigers. The Tigers finished the day with 79 points, including wins in the 4x800 (Nate Very, Sami Hattab, Nick Brooks, Roman Schrader), 1600 (Nolan Hester), 4x100 (Anthony Woods II, Noah Royal, Varlee Kamara, Kaleb Jones), long jump (Anthony Woods II), & triple jump (Anthony Woods II).
• The 2022 track team won their third consecutive state championship, outpacing Male by 9 points. It was a true team effort as the Tigers scored in 13 of 18 events, finishing with 81 points. After winning the individual cross country state championship in the fall, junior Sami Hattab added the 1600M and 3200M state titles at the track championships.