LEXINGTON — Hank Scherer's journey from his freshman season at Trinity High School to Saturday’s Class 3A Track and Field Championships at the University of Kentucky has been long and frustrating, but rewarding.

The junior has battled injuries since beginning high school.

As a freshman, he had a nagging hip injury. In his sophomore year, he dislocated his shoulder playing soccer. At the end of this indoor season, he injured his hamstring and doubt started creeping into his mind about whether he’d be healthy enough to compete in this week’s state meet.

Trinity assistant sprint coach Derek Sepe spent a lot of time researching proper rehab methods for a hamstring injury before the outdoor season.

They came up with a workout plan that consisted of a lot of low-impact, high-intensity training. It also included some functional locomotive work to strengthen his hamstrings, and they decided not to run him in a meet until the Eastern Relays.

On Saturday, Scherer showed he can shift into a different gear when healthy as he recorded a personal best (10.77) on his way to becoming the 100-meter state champion.

He entered the state meet seeded sixth in the 100.

“It definitely made me nervous because I kind of felt like I was repeating the last two years,” said Scherer of the hamstring injury he suffered earlier this season. “I just made sure to take care of it and just sort of trusted my coaches that they'll take care of me and keep me healthy, and it worked out.”

During the indoor season, Scherer placed third at the Class 3A state meet with a personal best of 7.09 in the 60-meter dash.

Early in the outdoor season, he set personal bests in the 200 (21.82) and 100 (10.81).

“Honestly, I wasn't expecting to come in first this year,” Scherer said after Saturday’s win in the 100, “but it feels really good and kind of feels like hard work paid off.”

Scherer finished second in the 200 and was part of the 4x100 and 4x400 relay teams that placed first in the state.

Class 2A track and field: Christian Academy 8th grader propels Centurions to second at state meet

Oldham County senior Tula Fawbush wins first KHSAA state title

Senior Tula Fawbush has been the staple for success for Oldham County's track and field program, but one thing eluded her impressive resume: a state championship.

That is no longer the case. On Saturday, Fawbush won the 1,600 meters in 4:51.58 for her first state title.

"I've just been training really hard running with all my teammates who pushed me every day," Fawbush said. "For this one, I was focusing on kind of maintaining speed and just picking up the last lap. I was feeling a bit nervous because these are the top girls in the state. So they're always going to put up a fight to win. Once I got out there, all the nerves went away."

During last year's Class 3A state meet, Fawbush placed third in the 1,600 and sixth in the 800.

The Tennessee commit holds Oldham County school records in the 800 (2:11.88), 1,600 (4:45.36) and 2K steeplechase (6:45.14).

"It's been an absolute pleasure to watch her grow," Oldham County track and field assistant coach Stacey Whitlock said. "I mean, it's just been great being on the sidelines watching her progress these four years. She's going to do great things at the University of Tennessee next year; they're really getting an amazing athlete. She's very determined and very focused. She always puts her best forward, and her work pays off."

Manual girls and St. Xavier boys win KHSAA titles again

St. Xavier's boys and Manual's girls are on a historical roll. Each program dominated again on its way to team titles Saturday.

The Tigers have won five straight state titles, and this is the first group of seniors in program history to win a state title each year of their careers.

"For these guys to accomplish a mission that they set out, and said that they wanted to do when we finished here last year, means a lot to me, that they were able to accomplish the goal that they wanted," St. Xavier coach David Stewart said.

The Manual girls team has won four consecutive titles. "I loved how hard these girls worked all year long. To come back out here and do it again once again shows a testament to who they are and what they stand for, so I'm just thankful for that," coach Zacharie Brooks said.

Manual senior Zoey Shahid-Scott placed third in shot put this year and was emotional and ecstatic about leaving as a state champion.

"Honestly, this is probably one of the best teams ever to me. It was definitely like a gift from God. Like, I'm very happy with my time at Manual and us being consistent and staying strong all the way through," Shahid-Scott said.

Assumption girls break state record

Breaking records is nothing new to the Assumption girls track team.

The team, built on trust, friendship and belief in each other, overcame mental and physical obstacles to stamp its name in the history books.

Led by senior Reagan Gilmore, a Florida commit, the Rockets' 4x800 relay team broke the state record for the second consecutive year.

In 2023, they ran the relay in 9:12.16; this year, they clocked 9:02.21.

"I told them beforehand that they're not defined by what they do today. However, today, it turns out my thoughts toward them have always been, you know, I love you guys to death," Assumption coach Barry Haworth said. "I wouldn't spend time with a different group. If it turns out that (another) group is faster or slower, it's fine. I'll still take them over anyone else."

Gilmore and junior Leah Penick also broke the state record in the 3,200. Gilmore was first in 10:27.57, and Penick was second in 10:31.71.

"Reagan's legacy with our team is going to be that if you're patient and work hard, good things happen. She has had a rough road at times, and she's been able to bounce back," Haworth said. "At some point in time, your moment will arrive, and today was a great validation of that."

KHSAA state track and field championships: Class 3A results

x-state meet record

GIRLS

Team scores — 1. Manual 79.50; 2. Assumption 45; 3. Bryan Station 41; T-4. Woodford County and West Jessamine 36; 6. Oldham County 35.50; 7. Fern Creek 33; 8. Male 32; 9. Dixie Heights 29; 10. Paul Laurence Dunbar 26; T-14. Central 17; T-21. South Oldham 12; T-23. Eastern 10; 27. North Oldham 9; 29. Bullitt East 7; 37. Sacred Heart 3; 42. Ballard 1.

Shot put — 1. Viktoriya Emelianova, Ryle, 40-2.50; 2. Shelby Valentine, Central, 37-4; 3. Zoey Shahid-Scott, Manual, 36-10.

Discus throw — 1. Ari Carter, Dixie Heights, 122-0; 2. Olivia Dabney, Woodford County, 120-8; 3. Gabby Wilson, Fern Creek, 118-1.

Long jump — 1. Alexis Howard, Simon Kenton,18-0; 2. Aly Doyle, West Jessamine, 18-0; 3. Elle Gilbert, South Oldham, 17-8.

Triple jump — 1. Teigh Yeast, George Rogers Clark, 38-1.75; 2. Alexis Howard, Simon Kenton, 37-9.50; 3. Jala Trent, Scott County, 36-8.50.

High jump — 1. E'Ternity Starks, Manual, 5-2; 2. Hannah Wiles, Greenwood, 5-2; 3. Chloe Quinn, South Oldham, 5-0.

Pole vault —1. Eryn Rataiczak, Eastern, 12-3, 2. Abby Rexford, West Jessamine, 11-6; 3. Morgan Lincoln, Manual, 11-6.

100 hurdles — 1. Aly Doyle, West Jessamine, 14.84; 2. Keira Antoni, Paul Laurence Dunbar, 15.18; 3. Destiny Jones, Central, 15.25.

300 hurdles — 1. Keira Antoni, Paul Laurence Dunbar, 43.21; 2. Aly Doyle, West Jessamine, 45.80; 3. Alexandria Masden, Fern Creek, 46.54.

100 — 1. Sanaa Washington, Bryan Station, 12.04; 2. Isabella Vonlehman, Conner, 12.11; 3. Clara Warrick, Oldham Co., 12.16.

200 — 1. Sanaa Washington, Bryan Station, 24.33; 2. Clara Warrick, Oldham Co., 24.60; 3. Isabella Vonlehman, Conner, 24.99.

400 — 1. Presley Gallimore, Marshall Co., 56.53; 2. Gracie Hoskins, South Laurel, 57.41; 3. Alexandra Allen, Manual, 57.95.

800 —1. Julia Schmitt, Assumption, 2:16.31; 2. Olivia Holbrook, Campbell Co., 2:16.37; 3. Emma Kendall, Collins, 2:18.10.

1,600 — 1. Tula Fawbush, Oldham Co., 4:51.58; 2. Flora Biro, Manual, 4:52.83; 3. Addison Moore, Woodford Co., 4:54.66.

3,200 —  1. Reagan Gilmore, Assumption, 10:27.57x; 2. Leah Penick, Assumption, 10:31.71; 3. Flora Biro, Manual, 10:40.64.

400 relay — 1. Bryan Station (Mikayla Garrard, Heavan Dobson, Dakya Jackson, Sanaa Washington), 47.73; 2. Male 48.43; 3. Oldham County 49.85.

800 relay — 1. Male (Zalaya Scott, Alivia Lilly, Jaliyah Taylor, Grace Bethel), 1:41.78; 2. Manual 1:43.56; 3. Bryan Station 1:44.51.

1,600-meter relay — 1. Fern Creek (Alanna Masden, Alexandria Masden, Rianne Moss, Jordin Noah), 3:59.99; 2. Notre Dame 4:06.14; 3. Woodford County 4:08.62.

3,200-meter relay — 1. Assumption (Leah Penick, Julia Schmitt, Mabel George, Reagan Gilmore), 9:02.21x; 2. Campbell County 9:03.83; 3. Manual 9:38.55.

BOYS

Team scores — 1. St. Xavier 91.50; 2. Trinity 63; 3. Central 40; 4. McCracken County 39.50; 5. Ryle 31; 6. North Oldham 28; 7. Madison Central 27.50; 8. Bryan Station 26; 9. Male 25; 10. Madisonville-North Hopkins 24; T-12. Butler 21; 16. Oldham County 16; T-17. Manual, 15; 19. South Oldham 15; 25. Eastern 8; 26. Pleasure Ridge Park 8; 29. Ballard 5; 32. Atherton 4.

Shot put — 1. Deegan Croley, Marshall Co., 56-6; 2. Zach Cowper, Madison Central, 53-3.75; 3. Ashton Jones, St. Xavier, 52-1.

Discus throw — 1. Ashton Jones, St. Xavier, 157-9; 2. Tyler Neal, St. Xavier, 155-9; 3. Zach Cowper, Madison Central, 154-7.

Long jump — 1. Trashaun Smith, Madisonville-North Hopkins, 22-0.25; 2. Brayden Polly, Simon Kenton, 21-10.75; 3. Joey Hill, George Rogers Clark, 21-7.

Triple jump — 1. Joey Hill, George Rogers Clark, 46-1.25; 2. Taurian Smith, Central, 45-6.25; 3. Bryson Carpenter, Bryan Station, 45-4.75.

High jump — 1. Trashaun Smith, Madisonville-North Hopkins, 6-8; 2. Bryson Carpenter, Bryan Station, 6-8; 3. Aaron Ramey, Central, 6-4.

Pole vault — 1. Jordan Bryner, Madison Central, 16-0; 2. Jackson Gray, Woodford Co., 15-6; 3. Ethan Southerland, Ryle, 15-0.

110 hurdles — 1. Adrian Johnson, Central, 14.67; 2. Romaro Knight, Manual, 14.86; 3. Nashawn Brooks, Frederick Douglass, 14.92.

300 hurdles — 1. Adrian Johnson, Central, 39.16; 2. Branton Koroly, Campbell Co., 39.65; 3. Nashawn Brooks, Frederick Douglass, 39.90.

100 — 1. Hank Scherer, Trinity, 10.77; 2. James Barragan, McCracken Co., 10.80; 3. Jayden Channer, Henry Clay, 10.83.

200 — 1. James Barragan, McCracken Co., 21.85; 2. Hank Scherer, Trinity, 22.04; 3. Jayden Channer, Henry Clay, 22:09.

400 — 1. James Burnett, St. Xavier, 47.49; 2. Brendan Ruggles, North Oldham, 47.89; 3. Elijah Porter, Butler, 48.20.

800 — 1. Evan A. Smith, Ryle, 1:54.40; 2. Didie Drogba, Butler, 1:54.42; 3. Matthew Whitlock, Oldham Co., 1:55.17.

1,600 — 1. Tiger Bartlett, Ryle, 4:14.25; 2. Mikie Carnell, Meade Co., 4:15.60; 3. Ryan Hendrix, Woodford Co., 4:16.26.

3,200 — 1. Adam Patel, North Oldham, 9:05.93; 2. Joey Carroll, Conner, 9:08.99; 3. Cooper Wasson, George Rogers Clark, 9:09.31.

400 relay — 1. Trinity (Carter Vinson, Will McCauley, Kaleb Warner, Hank Scherer), 41.82; 2. St. Xavier 42.32; 3. Male 42.70.

800 relay — 1. McCracken Co. (James Barragan, Cooper Falconite, Ayden Hunter, Cannon Ford), 1:27.27; 2. St. Xavier 1:27.85; 3. Male 1:28.39.

1,600-meter relay — 1. Trinity (Logan Tenkman, Carter Vinson, Hank Scherer, John Bryant), 3:20.48; 2. St. Xavier 3:21.63; 3. Butler 3:23.41.

3,200-meter relay — 1. Oldham Co. (Sean Crady, Kyle Crady, John Tyler Bottorff, Matthew Whitlock), 7:58.27; 2. South Oldham 8:02.91; 3. Lafayette 8:03.41.

Class A track and field: Veliquette brothers pace Collegiate to second at state meet

Reach sports reporter Prince James Story at pstory@gannett.com and follow him on X at @PrinceJStory.

This article originally appeared on Louisville Courier Journal: KHSAA track and field state meet 2024 results: Louisville high schools