Bellevue's Sumser clears 6-9 in high jump to win a state title

DAYTON — To be honest, Friday didn't start out as well as Wyatt Sumser had hoped at the Division II state track meet.The Bellevue senior struggled a bit in the long jump, but eventually popped off a leap of 20-10 ¾ to finish sixth."I could have done way better," Sumser said.He did.Sumser bulled his through a rough patch in the high jump and kept on going, eventually breaking his own school record to finish with a gold medal after clearing 6-9.And all that came after never going over 5-10 until this year."Nobody expects me to be jumping 6-9. That's fine," said the 5-10, 145-pound leaper."I never thought I'd be in this position two years ago, a year ago," he said.But he loves proving people wrong just as much as he does out-scrapping them, and he had his share of the latter Friday.He was one of nine jumpers to clear 6-4, but he found himself down to his final attempt at 6-5, which would have put him on a step much farther down the state podium than he wanted.Then the fighter in him came out."That was an angry jump, honestly. I slowed down to get that power jump," Sumser said. "I knew I had to get it, it was do or die. Angry jump."And a heart-stopper for high jump coach Christian Booze."The one, he kind of scared me half to death because he kind of slowed down towards the end. I thought he was going to completely miss it," Booze said. "He just power jumped over that thing because he was so mad he missed it the first time."He didn't have to rely on anger after that, just the technique that got him to state."The big thing was, he never changed anything. His approach stayed the same, he trusted the process," Booze said. "He didn't worry about 'it's too high, I've got to do this, I've got to move my steps back here or there.' He stayed the course."But the competition was still there.He and three others cleared 6-5 and 6-6, before just Sumser and Clear Fork freshman Davis Hoeflich each cleared 6-7 and 6-8, both a with miss on their first attempt at the latter height.Then came 6-9. Both knocked the bar down on the first try, with Sumser clearing it after that. The title went to the Bellevue senior when Hoeflich missed his next two tries."I was a little nervous in the beginning, but I knew it was going to come out in a dogfight and that's basically what I'm good at, catching up in those late jumps," Sumser said."It's in my blood, to be honest. I think I've always been this way," he said. "Also, I used to be looked down on as a kid, no one expected me to be jumping 6-9, so I love proving those people wrong."And making school history, apparently.Sumser not only bettered the school mark in the high jump, but became the first Bellevue boy to win a state crown since Matt Rowland won three state pole vault titles in a row from 2011-13. He was also the first Bellvue boy to reach state in high jump since 1958 and the first to make it in the long jump since 1959."He refuses to lose," Booze said. "He had the best meet he's had all year. This is the best Wyatt's looked all year in terms of approach and in terms of form. Everything came together. It was a perfect meet for him, really."It's a banner day for him," he said. "Couldn't ask for better for him."