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Two weeks off proved to just the tonic for Jalin Marshall.
The Middletown senior returned to competition at this week’s Greater Miami Conference track meet at Mason after sitting out while dealing with what coach Keith Vincent described as a hip flexor. The rest paid off as Marshall captured the conference long jump and high jump championships.
Marshall earned the second of his dual championships by jumping 6 feet, 4 inches to win the high jump on Friday.
“I took those two weeks off because I was hurting,” said Marshall, an Ohio State football recruit. “I’m recovered now. I was able to be explosive. I attacked it. For being off two weeks, it was big to be able to come out here and perform.”
Marshall felt so good that he decided to take a shot at setting school and meet records by clearing 6-10.25, but he fell short. Vincent believes Marshall still has that height in him.
“He will get that,” Vincent said. “He was distracted. He was needed on the (800-meter) relay team and was trying to (help) to his teammates.”
Marshall, the defending Division I state champion in the long jump, won the GMC competition with a mark of 23 feet, ½ inch on the first day of the meet on Wednesday. Chance Sorrell earned the discus title with a throw of 153-4 the same day, helping the Middies take a nine-point lead over Mason in the team standings going into Friday’s finals.
Middletown finished fifth in the boys team standings, behind champion Mason and runner-up Sycamore. Vada Edwards led the Middie girls team with a second-place finish in the 400-meter dash, but Middletown finished seventh as a team. Mason won the girls team title and Sycamore finished second.
Friday’s running competition was delayed 1 hour, 21 minutes by lightning and thunder.
Marshall finished second to teammate Lance Johnson in last year’s GMC long jump, but Vincent didn’t think that played a role in his winning the title on Wednesday.
“Jalin’s a competitor,” Vincent said. “He hates to lose, but I know he was happy for Lance.”
While Marshall enjoys the competition of track and field, he and Vincent know that football is his primary concern. That’s why they chose to take the two-week break.
“The day after (the state track meet) is moving day to Ohio State,” Vincent said. “With him being a three-sport guy, he needed a break. We didn’t want to hurt him.”
Vincent also doesn’t want to lose him.
“In 23 years of coaching, he’s the best kid I’ve ever coached,” he said. “He’s been absolutely fantastic. I wish I had a million like him.”
He’s got Marshall for three more weeks, starting with next week’s district competition. They agree that he’s ready to go.
“He’s a competitor,” Vincent said. “He’s set up perfectly.”
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