Goshen County racks up the athletic awards

Erick Starkey
Posted 5/24/17

At the state track meet, Torrington’s Logan Harris broke a 27-year shot put record, while the Trailblazer boys soccer team reached the state championship game for the first time in program history.

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Goshen County racks up the athletic awards

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TORRINGTON – At the state track meet, Torrington’s Logan Harris broke a 27-year shot put record, while the Trailblazer boys soccer team reached the state championship game for the first time in program history.
Harris went into the 3A shot put event as the heavy favorite, with his seed mark almost more than 10 feet further than the second-furthest throw at regionals. The Blazer lived up to the hype.
On the final throw of his career, Harris recorded a put of 63 feet, 8.5 inches, which was 7.5 inches further than the old record set in 1990. His throw was the 20th-best throw among high school athletes this year. Cheyenne Central’s John Godina, who went to compete in three Olympics, held the old record.
“I just had to think about it,” Harris said. “I just knew that I wouldn’t have any more after this so I definitely thought about it and thought about it and it just came to life. All these people out here to support me I was like, ‘Well they’re here to watch me so I knew I couldn’t let them down.”

While Harris and the rest of the local track stars were competing in the state meet, the Torrington boys soccer team was making waves in Sheridan, reaching the state championship game for the first time in program history. They handled Buffalo in the first game, 3-0, advancing to the semi-finals.
Worland pushed Torrington to the limit in the semi-finals, sending the game to extra time on a late goal. In the second period of extra time, A.J. Shields knocked through a goal, sending the Blazers to the title game.
“I want a championship – that’s my first thought,” Shields said after netting his goal against Worland. “I know Cody is going to be a hard team to match against and it’s going to be 50/50.”
Cody proved to be too much in the finals, beating the Blazers 1-0 after a goal in the 14th minute. A last-ditch effort didn’t pan out for the Blazers, sliding them into the runner-up position.
“Overall, this season was the best season that they boys have ever had and I’m proud of how our team worked for one another,” coach Jeshua Arnusch said. “We are a close knit group who would go to battle anytime and we proved that time after time this year. We definitely wanted to send our seniors home with a state title, but when we look back I know that we will all cherish the memories that we had together in this
special year.”