Fitch pole vaulter Spalding returns from injury at district track meet
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AUSTINTOWN -- Qualifying for regionals during the freshman campaign is one way to set the proverbial bar high. Fast forward three years, and Austintown Fitch senior Harrison Spalding has two outdoor trips to state under his belt, now eyeing a third.
After sustaining an injury during the first outdoor meet of the spring, Spalding returned to form at districts Wednesday night, clearing a height of 13-6 before inclement weather concluded pole vault competition early.
"I was just super excited to be back. There were people asking if I'd be scared or nervous. I guess none of that went through my mind; I was just super excited to be back. It was so boring doing nothing for that long," Spalding said. "I felt really good. I was kind of bummed (about the weather), but I think it was God talking to me to just shut it down on the first meet back, you qualified, you placed first, got 10 points for your team, and that's it."
Falcons pole vault coach Dylan Latone was happy that Spalding was able to ease back into the swing of things Wednesday evening.
"He actually came back a little earlier than we were expecting. He was right at the height that he was going to be, he wasn't 100% at which I knew he wasn't going to be there, but if he wasn't at 95%, then he was very close," Latone said. "There's a reason for everything, we're going to take what we did today, pull it into next week, and just keep pushing him through."
Last June, Spalding placed 7th at Jesse Owens Memorial Stadium during the state meet with a mark of 13-04, improving from his 15th-place finish his sophomore year. His prep career also includes trips to the indoor state meet the past three seasons, with qualifications in events such as the 60-meter hurdles and 4×400 over the past few indoor campaigns.
He also represented Fitch on the soccer pitch for three years before dedicating his time fully to track this year.
Spalding's older brother, Sam, was a pole vaulter himself, along with support of his dad, Harrison gave the difficult event a go with their support. Coming off the regional bid his freshman season, he saw the potential in himself early.
"It gave me more confidence. I made it there, so I'll make it there again," Spalding said. "I honestly don't even think about it. It's just muscle memory, just repetition, I don't really think about it."
Latone, a 2015 Fitch graduate, placed fourth at the state meet his senior year before having a successful career at Youngstown State, wanted to continue some of the vaulting legacy when he returned to his alma mater to coach.
"Honestly when he started, I wasn't sure what I was getting with him, he just showed up and said he wanted to jump, and I said OK," Latone said. "He kept progressing and he was jumping higher than I was grade level to grade level. I saw we had something special here with him.
"You have to be physically tough to do it, you have to have the strength to do it. Your body is working so hard everywhere, your shoulders, your legs, your core, so you have to build all of that muscle. Once you have those muscles built, it comes down to just focusing on what you need to do. Once it clicks in your head, it's more like pulling back and relaxing, it's like riding a bicycle. It's a very mental event -- you see what you're jumping at and you always end on a bad note, you always end on three misses no matter what. It is a very big mental game, but Harry does well putting it behind him and just doing what he's supposed to do."
Like with any sport, a strong working relationship can push an athlete to be just that much better, and Spalding credits Latone for his success thus far.
"It doesn't feel like a coach kind of bond, it's almost like a brother bond. He helps me and mentors me, it's really nice." Spalding said.
Having competed at the 2023 New Balance National Outdoor Meet last June in the 4×110 shuttle hurdle alongside Nick Tibolla, Deonte Stallings, and Josh Cayson, Spalding wanted the opportunity to become a decathlete at the next level. He recently signed his letter of intent with Youngstown State.
With regionals looming, he just wants to represent Austintown Fitch as best he can.
"It's definitely on honor, it's such a good track team (at Fitch), everyone is very involved in it, great coaches and teammates, we all take it really seriously," Spalding said. "(YSU) reached out to me, I'm going to compete as a decathlete, so I'm pretty excited about that.
"I made it to indoor state my junior year in the hurdle, I was on the New Balance national team at nationals for the hurdle relay, so hurdles and pole vault I feel are some of the most difficult events in the (decathlon), so it just became second nature to be a decathlete."
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