Correspondent photo / Robert Hayes. Howland senior Courtney Clark tosses the shot during the second flight of the Division I girl’s shot put on Saturday at the OHSAA state meet in Columbus. She took second with a mark of 42-3.50 on her final toss of the finals.

COLUMBUS — Second place wasn’t the result Courtney Clark was aiming for, since she already has a silver medal to her name in the Division I girls shot put.

But, in consecutive seasons, the Howland senior ends the spring with the runner-up title at the OHSAA state track and field meet, this time tossing a mark of 42-3.50 on her final attempt.

She endured a long afternoon on Saturday that included a lengthy weather delay during the finals, which was followed by a second stop in action before she finally had the opportunity to take the podium.

Flooded with emotions, Clark admitted that the postponement mid-event was more of a gift than a hindrance, especially after fouling on her first throw of the meet.

“That kind of freaked me out a bit going into finals still really worked up, but I think the rain was the best thing for me. I kinda took a power nap and regrouped, and got refocused again,” Clark said. “Changing that mindset really helped me going into finals for my final two throws. Really proud of how I came back from that, I just told myself you have to put it all out here.

“(It was) my last time in my Howland jersey, so I wanted it to be one I could remember and be memorable. It wasn’t what I wanted, but it’s something I could be proud of. It’s going to hurt for a while, but I’ll get over it, and it’ll be something I can look back on and be proud of.”

In fourth place following the weather delay, Clark knew the opportunities in the ring were becoming increasingly finite, even more so when she posted a second foul to start the finals.

It had been a long spring. Clark won the indoor state shot put title, but she moved through the outdoor campaign with less than desirable results.

When the going got tough — during the season and at Jesse Owens Memorial Stadium — talking to fellow Tigers seniors Lexus Solarz and Connor Durig played a pivotal role for Clark while the meet was delayed.

“They’re great people, Lexus is one of my best friends and helps me through so much, and Connor is so quiet, but he does a lot more than he realizes to help calm my nerves,” Clark said. “I’m just really proud and thankful I can spend the weekend and the past two years coming down here (to Columbus) with them.”

Clark’s mother, Kim Lazor-Clark was a prolific thrower at Howland, as well. Kim set both the shot put and discus records during her own time with the Tigers. Those levels were always something that Courtney aspired to reach, and now as her time at Howland comes to a close, she feels that her own legacy is carved out.

Making the state meet three straight years is no easy feat, especially when her freshman season was eliminated due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

“Growing up through Howland, I always said I wanted to be like my mom, and that transitioned into making a name for myself and I think I have now,” Clark said. “I’m no longer just Kim Lazor-Clark’s daughter, I’m Courtney Clark. That’s what I’m happy about. I can leave my mark and I can leave all of my teachers that were rooting for me, and all of those younger kids looking up to me, like I made them proud today. That’s the best thing I can take away from all my years of track throughout Howland.”

Now, with the University of Cincinnati in sights, Clark does possess motivation after taking the state runner-up spot twice.

“Coach (Zakrajsek) gave me such a good pep talk afterwards — he said a lot of coaches recruit more the runners-up, because they still have that hunger of not reaching something that they worked really hard for, rather than recruiting a state champ,” Clark said. “I think I’m going to take that to heart because I think at the beginning of the year, that was kind of my mentality coming in from indoor.

“I was kind of just like, oh, I got this, and I got lazy with it. Now, I think this is a great start to go into college, having that hunger and wanting to do my best and to prove not only to myself, but also being that I can roll with these top dogs in college. So I’m really excited for that, and I think this is the best. I’m a firm believer everything happens for a reason, so I think this is the best situation God could have put me in.”