WADENA – In another year, Wadena-Deer Creek's Brady Domier would've had an excellent shot to win the Class A state pole vault championship.
Unfortunately for Domier, Pine Island's Jarod White is one of the best ever to do it in the state of Minnesota. Domier took second place at 14-feet, 6-inches, which was a foot and a half shorter than White, the all-time state record holder.
"He's crazy," Domier said of White. "It was a lot of fun to go against him. I competed against him at the Hamline Elite meet as well. We know each other pretty well outside of pole vaulting from track. It was cool to see him go out there and do his thing. He's pretty insane."
Second palace is nothing to scoff at, especially this year. Domier cleared St. Charles' Jett Thoreson by six inches and three others by a foot. The Class A state track and field championships at St. Michael-Albertville High School marked the end of a valiant high school career.
"A couple of years ago, we had a really good team as a whole," Domier said at STMA. "Making it to true team state then was an awesome achievement. Getting to do that is something I'll remember. I think I'll remember this year pretty well too."
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Domier qualified for state in three events. Along with the pole vault, he took first place at the Section 6A championships in the 110-meter hurdles. He also ran the second leg of the 4x200-meter relay (1:35.08, 10th) with Matthew Pugsley, Charlie Bushinger and Lyrik Haug.
"I definitely didn't start the year thinking I was going to make it to state in three events," Domier said. "I was very surprised when I made the finals in hurdles. This is my first year hurdling, and it's been a lot of work with my form all the way until the end."
Domier qualified for finals in the 110-meter hurdles with a ninth-place finish (15.57) in the prelims, ensuring he landed on the podium a second time.
"Last year, we had two senior hurdlers," Domier said. "When they graduated, we didn't have a hurdling lineu[ that was strong. I decided to jump in and try it my senior year. It was fun to pick it up as an extra event, and it got me to state."
Domier improved to seventh place in the finals with a time of 15.75. However, his favorite moments at state were spent with his teammates.
"It's been awesome. It's a lot of fun," Domier said of sharing the state experience with his teammates. "We got to stay in the hotel together and do a bunch of team-like things like go out for meals and stuff. The bonding, as a whole, has been awesome."
As WDC ushers in a new crop of track and field athletes in 2023, they will have to replace athletes and leaders like Domier. After the Minnesota State High School League expanded track and field to a three-class system, more Wolverines will have opportunities to advance to the state tournament in the coming years.
"WDC has a lot of horses that are going to do really well next year," Domier said. "Lyrik Haug, in the high jump, is a sophomore, and he's outstanding. He's a quarter of an inch off our school record already. We have a bunch of girls with a ton of potential. It's a little bittersweet to be done, but the future's so bright."
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