Date: Mon 03-Mar-1997

Author: KIMH

Illustration: I

Full Text:

Becky Osborne, Girls Track, Shot Put

B Y K IM J. H ARMON

NEW HAVEN - Becky Osborne didn't start the 1996-97 indoor track season

particularly well, but it isn't so much how you start as how you finish and

she will finish as a champion.

Osborne, 17, already the defending South-West Conference outdoor shot put

champion, earned the CIAC Class M state shot put championship last Friday at

Yale University with a throw of 32 feet, 2 inches.

That toss out-distanced her nearest competitor, Lia Parico of Ledyard, by over

17 inches.

" At the beginning of the season, " said Osborne, " I couldn't hit 30 (feet)

and I was very discouraged. But it just kind of clicked. I just kept doing it

and doing it and doing it until it did. "

Former indoor track member Becky Young won the shot put state championship

back in 1990.

Osborne's winning throw came on her first throw of the meet - the first of

three preliminary throws which could be carried over into the finals - and

that was all it took.

" (Coach Rick Medve) said all you need is one, " said Osborne. " I went in

with the mind set that I was fresh and strong and I went focussed on getting

off my best throw. "

She wanted a 33, the number that beat her at the South-West Conference meet a

week earlier, because she was worried that it would happen again.

Obviously, it didn't. After Parico in second, Kelly Dehner of Fitch was third

with a throw of 30-3 and Kristin Denninger of Newtown was fourth with a throw

of 29-11.

The state championship made up for the conference championship that eluded

Osborne and she said, " I was discouraged not winning the SWCs after winning

it outdoors, but the girl from Joel Barlow was so technically perfect with her

throw. "

And it is more difficult than it looks, a complete amalgamation of form and

function involving the legs, the shoulders, the arms, the position of the head

at the point of the throw.

If Osborne can put all of that together at the CIAC State Open Friday, then

she might find herself traveling to the New England Championships next month .

. . the kind of impetus she needs to repeat this spring as the South-West

Conference shot put champ.

" I want to SWC champ again, " she admitted. " I want to be at 33. And I want

to

beat the girl from Joel Barlow.

" And, " she added, " a state championship would nice. "

Team Performs Well

When a time of 4:39 was good enough to win the sprint medley last year and

Newtown High School's time of 4:38 this year was good enough for only fifth

place, head coach Brandt Schneider was right in characterizing the CIAC Class

M indoor track championships as, " one of the fastest ever. "

The girls, coming off their recent SWC championship, finished eight overall

with 24 points (which, last year, was good enough for fifth).

" A lot of girls really stepped up, " said coach Schneider. " They said, `I

don't care, I'm going to run fast.' Everybody went at this really hard. "

Other than Osborne's first, freshman Janelle Tracy had the best individual

finish for the girls with her third (7.65) in the 55-meter dash. Becky Crane

was fifth in the 500-meters with a time of 1:22 while the sprint medley of

Tracy, Shannon Elf, Katie McClure and Crane finished fifth with a time of

4:38. Denninger was eighth overall and Erica Masella ninth overall in the high

jump. Osborne, Crane, Tracy and the sprint medley team all will go on to the

CIAC State Open.

There they will join Reid Warner of the boys' indoor track team, who finished

second in the pole vault at 11-6 behind Seth Tyminski of Ledyard, who did a

12-0. The boys scored eight points, good for 15th.