Scott ready for final high school races

SCOTT TRUXELL/independent sports

Van Wert High School’s Owen Scott is ready to take a few more laps around the track, but not just any track – the track at Jesse Owens Memorial Stadium at Ohio State University, site of the 2025 OHSAA Track and Field Championships. That’s where he’ll close out his high school running career and while there, one of his biggest supporters will be rooting him on from above.

Scott, who is considered one of the state’s top distance runners, has enjoyed a record setting high school career, one that has seen him establish new school record times in both track and cross country. His inspiration has been the legendary Jared Fleming, a 2013 Van wert High School graduate who recently passed away after a year-long battle with cancer. For years, Fleming’s name was at the top of Van Wert’s record board. He went on to have a successful collegiate track career at Ohio State University.

“Jared inspired me to pursue my goals in running,” Scott stated. “Every day I would look up at our school record boards and see his name. As a young athlete, I dreamed of being on that record board one day. That day came when I first broke our 3200 school record in my junior year. When I opened my phone after the race, I saw a text from Jared. He congratulated me and wished me luck for the rest of my season.”

“After every accomplishment, Jared would shoot me a text saying he was proud and that I was going to do great things in my career,” he continued. “When the news broke that his cancer had gotten worse, I knew that this track season had to be for him. At the Ada Invitational I broke his 1600 school record, a record which I was working so hard for. I was extremely excited and astonished by my performance, however that excitement was short lived. After my races, Coach Kim Laudick informed me that Jared passed away shortly after my race. The news immediately changed my mood from excitement to heartbreak. Jared was a Van Wert track legend, he was a man who I looked up to so much. From then on, my season was not for personal glory, but it was to make Jared proud.”

While in Columbus on Friday and Saturday, he’ll compete in three different events – the Division II 1600 meter run, the 3200 meter run and the 4×800 meter relay, in which he’ll serve as the anchor. Scott qualified for Columbus by winning regional championships in the 1600 and 3200 and as regional runner-up in the 4×800.

“With me qualifying for the state meet in three events, there are some challenges that come along with that,” Scott acknowleged. “The main challenge however comes on the second day of the meet. The 1600 and the 3200 are only about an hour apart, which gives me little time to recover and prepare for the next race. Thankfully, I have practiced what to do in between those events and I am very prepared for the challenge this Saturday.”

In two of the races, the 1600 and the 3200, Scott will be pitted against his friendly WBL rival, Ty Rosengarten of Ottawa-Glandorf. The two have consistently finished 1-2, most times by a wide margin, at many events this year and this weekend will likely be no exception.

“Over the past couple of years, I have consistently seen Ty Rosengarten and competed against him,” Scott said. “We eventually became close friends, and have even done track workouts together. He and I have always paced off of each other during races, making for competitive events. However, it doesn’t matter who wins out of the two of us, because we congratulate each other regardless.”

In the remaining event, the 4×800, Scott will team up with two seniors and a freshman, a trio that seems to feed off each other.

“Two of the three guys on my 4×8 team are also seniors and close friends,” Scott stated. “Noah Spath has been one of my best friends since childhood. I have always counted on him and he has never let me down. He is one of the hardest workers I know, and his work on the track has paid off. This year he has improved astronomically and is extremely important to our relay.”

“Andrew Laudick is our leadoff runner and is vital to the success of our relay. Andrew and I became very close friends because of the sport of running. We have run together for six consecutive years and we also were on the swim team together. He is the guy on the team who brings everyone together. Andrew always hypes our guys up before races, telling them that he believes in them and they can do great things. He has also pushed me to become a better runner because without his push, I would not be where I am today.”

“Evan Keuneke (a freshman) is the only non-senior on our relay, but he competes like a runner with years of experience. Throughout the season, I have watched him grow and improve like crazy. Week after week he would improve significantly, and now he is an important part of our relay squad. I am extremely excited for the rest of Evan’s high school career. I believe he can make some noise and do some amazing things in the next three years.”

Scott acknowledged that before the season, he set some big goals for himself and divided them into different categories.

“I always make three groups – a realistic group of goals, a challenge group of goals, and a dream group of goals,” he explained. “However my main goal for this year was just to enjoy my last track season. I have made many close friends because of this sport, and I want to enjoy this season with them.”

Last year at state, which was held at Dayton’s Welcome Stadium due to renovations at Jesse Owens Memorial Stadium, Scott finished eighth in the 1600 (4:20.73) and 10^th in the 3200. He was also a two-time state qualifier in cross country and finished fifth and fourth overall in his appearances there.

Getting to state in two sports in two consecutive years doesn’t happen without a lot of hard work and preparation.

“Obviously Owen’s on the track accolades are incredible and his improvement from his freshman year, when he didn’t earn enough points for a varsity letter, to now have been huge, Van Wert track and field head coach Nate Hoverman said. “Just yesterday while he was sitting in an ice bath after practice, we were chatting about how he has been focusing on his nutrition this season and how it’s made a difference. To be that dedicated as a high school kid is incredible.  His and his fellow seniors leadership have been huge this year. Our underclassmen really look up to him and see his hardwork and it raises the rest of the team.”

It’ll be the end of a magnificent high school running career, one that has resulted in Scott setting new school records on more than one occasion. His record times are 4:12.21 in the 1600 meter run, 9:12 in the 3200 meter run and with the aid of his teamates, 7:54.14 in the 4×800 relay.

However, the end of the state track meet will hardly mean the end of Scott’s career. He’s signed on to run cross country and indoor/outdoor track for Youngstown State University.