Decker finishes alone at the top

Felzkowski also reaches podium for the Bluejays

The potential for greatness has always been lurking in Athens junior Caden Decker. A lean and wiry athlete, Decker is naturally suited for the sport of pole vault, where his speed and lean build has propelled the Bluejay to great heights.

Decker first flirted with that potential during his freshman season in 2019. He finished second in the Marawood North Championships, and then placed second in regionals and fourth at sectionals to punch his first ever ticket to state.

That first appearance at Veterans Memorial Stadium on the campus of UW - La Crosse was a combination of sweet and sour. Sweet because he reached the state meet, and sour because he failed to clear his opening height of 12 feet.

Decker likely would have reached state in 2020, and been a favorite to make it on the podium, but like all athletes across the state, the coronavirus pandemic robbed him of that opportunity.

Two years later, and two years stronger, Decker has taken full advantage of the opportunity to compete once again.

Decker has been on a tear through the 2021 regular season. After failing to clear twelve feet in 2019, he achieved that feat in the first weeks of his junior campaign. Three straight first place finishes followed in early May.

But there were bumps along the road. Decker faltered at the Marawood Conference Championships in Marathon back in early June, failing to clear twelve feet as he finished runner-up to David Graf of Chequamegon.

He rebounded quickly a week later, winning the WIAA D-3 regional in Cadott with a then personal best height of 13-6. A week later, another bump, as Decker scraped by with a fourth place finish in his sectionals, barely qualifying for state with a cleared height of 12-3.

Not that Decker was concerned. Outside of clearing the bar, just getting to state was the biggest obstacle in his way this year.

“This was my goal all year long,” Decker said on Thursday. “Getting to state was probably the hardest thing.”

Once there, and with the pressure off his shoulders, Decker seemed to almost fly through the air on the first day of the state tournament. He opened his day by clearing eleven feet, and then breezed through his next five attempts on each of his first tries to reach thirteen feet.

Decker credited coaching, as well as the presence of his family in La Crosse, for his excellent day.

“Our coach is a good coach, he’s been coaching many years, and he helped me a lot. I got my grandpa, mom, dad and brother here. That helps too.”

Only four other athletes reached thir- teen feet on Thursday, ensuring Decker a place on the podium. He wasn’t satisfied with that; he had come for far more.

The bar went up three more inches, and once again Caden nailed the height on his first try. This time only one athlete joined him in scaling that height.

The bar went up three more inches, resting at 13-6. That height matched Decker’s personal best, and for the seventh straight time he made height on his first try.

Decker could see the gold medal in his sights, and he had the bar set at 13-9.

Clearing that would also give him a new personal record, and likely the gold.

“Now was my time to set it,” said Decker. “The last few weeks I haven’t been doing too good, so now was the time to do it.”

Decker took a deep breath, and raced down the track, but failed to clear the height on his try.

Another bump on the road, another obstacle to clear.

His competitor also failed to clear the height, and that seemed to fill Decker with confidence. Caden flew down the track and cleared the height on his second attempt, earning his new PR.

Decker’s opponent failed to match him, giving Decker the state title.

Decker is proud of his achievement, but has set the bar even higher for his upcoming senior season. With one milestone cleared, Decker has eyes on history in 2022.

“I hope to beat the school record at Athens, which is 15-1,” Decker says about his final year as a ‘Jay. “So that’s the goal for next year.”

Felzkowski sixth

Athens senior Dana Felzkowski ended her track career on a high note on Thursday, joining Decker as a podium finisher in the pole vault.

Like Decker, the potential for more was there, with Felzkowski winning the Marawood - North title in the pole vault her sophomore year. With one last year to represent the Bluejays, Dana made the most of her senior year, winning the event in six meets this season.

Felzkowski defended her pole vault title at the combined Marawood Conference Championships in Marthon on June 7, and then won the WIAA D-3 regional title in Cadott, where she reached a PR of ten feet.

Felzkowski carried that momentum into the sectional meet in Cameron, and while her height of nine feet was a foot lower than conference and regionals, it earned her a spot at state.

Dana made the most of her maiden appearance at state, racing past the first four rounds in just five attempts as she climbed to 9-6. She attempted to reach her PR, but stalled out on all three attempts.

However, that height was enough to net her sixth place and a medal and gave her the perfect send-off as a ‘Jay.

Junior Aiden Guralski formed the third leg of a trio of pole vaulters who competed at state last week. Guralski, a junior at Athens High, has had a quietly successful season in 2021.

He finished fourth at the Marawood Championships, and then was runner-up at regionals. Aiden followed this up by advancing to state with his second place finish in the Cameron sectional with a PR of 12-6, where, like Felzkowski, he made his first ever appearance at Veterans Memorial Stadium.

Aiden made it through his first three rounds, but could not match his PR, finishing eleventh with a height of twelve feet.

SENIOR DOES HER BEST- Athens senior Dana Felzkowski begins her pole vaulting motion at the Division 3 state meet on Thursday in La Crosse. She capped off her high school career with a sixth-place finish in the pole vault.SN PHOTO/MATT FREY