Corey Shank hopes to lead team to State Title (IN)

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http://www.journalgazette.net/article/2 ... 008/sports

Bruins have lofty goal
Two-time state pole vault champion Shank eyes team title

Greg JonesHigh school sports editor


Northrop senior Corey Shank has vaulted himself to lofty heights as the two-time defending pole vault state champion.

This year, he is looking to bring his teammates along to the top of the podium, and the Bruins have the components for that kind of success.

“We have a lot of guys coming back,” Northrop coach Fred Blanks said. “The kids keep working hard, and I try to keep them grounded. They are having fun competing against Warren Central and Ben Davis.”

Northrop has two state titles, in 1997 and 2004.

Shank, who recently signed with Kansas, won his second consecutive state pole vault title by beating Bishop Dwenger’s Kevin Schipper – again. Shank went 16 feet, 6 inches, and beat out Schipper because of a tiebreaker. Two years ago, Shank set the state record at 17 feet.

Shank was ranked the No. 1 high school pole vaulter in the nation in the preseason by Track & Field News.

“I think he is on his way,” Blanks said of a possible rare, but not unprecedented, three-peat state championship. “How many times do you have a kid ranked No. 1, not just in the state but in the nation, on your team? I think he will three-peat. I don’t know of too many other kids at the boys level who were a three-time state champion. It is hard to do.”

Shank finished in third place at state as a freshman at Canterbury. Matt Campbell of White River Valley won three straight state pole vault titles from 1999 to 2001.

Schipper, who is at Notre Dame, was the pole vault state runner-up for three straight years.

Shank hasn’t vaulted this year and even missed the Nike Invitational in the summer with a slight hamstring problem, according to Blanks. He is expected to come back April 18 in the North Side Relays.

Northrop was ranked No. 3 in the preseason poll, behind No. 1 and defending state champion Ben Davis and No. 2 Warren Central.

Last year, Northrop won its 11th straight SAC championship, 10th straight sectional and sixth straight regional championship and was ninth at the state meet.

“It was kind of unexpected the way we finished off last year after starting out with only Corey and (the now graduated) Sam Bird coming back from the year before,” Blanks said. “Everybody else just developed over the year and stepped up.”

The Bruins also return sprinters James Rogan, Juan Sanchez and A.J. Smith.

Shank also runs the first leg of the 400 relay team, which has been ranked No. 1 in the state by IndianaRunner.com. The relay team finished third at last year’s state meet and all four runners return.

In the Hoosier State Relays indoor meet March 21 at Purdue, the Bruins finished tied for second with Warren Central with 28 points. Ben Davis won the meet with 66 points.

Northrop’s 1,600 relay team of Trevor Bly, Erin Herd, P.J. Ford and Corey Harris was first at the Purdue meet in 3:25.76.

“That was without Corey, so that was promising right there,” Blanks said.