Krolikowski takes second in long jump

Grand Island Senior High's Ariel Krolikowski had redemption on her mind in the Class A girls long jump Friday at Omaha Burke Stadium.

Krolikowski, who was fourth at state as a freshman, failed to qualify for the state meet in 2007.

"I didn't get to come here last year because I scratched all three times at district," Krolikowski said. "I was just excited to be back here this year."

She was excited enough to jump 17 feet, 33⁄4 inches to finish second behind Omaha Westside's Emily Wilkinson at 17-71⁄2.

Krolikowski had the best district jump in Class A. That gave her some confidence heading into the state meet.

"I came in rated first and I didn't want to let that get to my head," Krolikowski said. "I thought there were a lot of girls with 17-foot jumps, so I'm just going to go out there and give it my all."

Krolikowski had at least one jump that could have been close to the 18-foot mark, but her form wasn't quite what she wanted.

"The one my arm was back and I lost about a foot," Krolikowski said. "It was a 16-11 jump with my arm back, so I'm going to work on my arms next year.

"It's always been my arms and getting up in the air. Those are the two things I need to work on next year."

Krolikowski missed a couple of weeks this year after having her right knee scoped to remove scar tissue that had built up over the years.

"Sliding on it at my last volleyball tournament was the straw that broke the camel's back," she said. "Then it was rubbing up against my meniscus so I wasn't able to bend my knee at all. I was only out for two weeks which was good."

Krolikowski will compete in the high jump at 3 p.m. today. She went 5-4 in the first meet of the season but hasn't gotten to that height since.

"I need to press longer and get my butt up," Krolikowski said. "Those are my two main problems."

The Islanders also got a big performance from Amber Kunze in the pole vault. The junior produced a personal best 10-4 vault to finish fourth.

Grand Island stands sixth after the first day with 13 points. Millard North leads the Class A race with 33 points followed by Millard West with 22, Omaha Westside 18, Kearney 17.5 and Fremont 14.

Suzanne Higgins had the third fastest time in the 400 (59.11). The senior also advanced with the third fastest time in the 300 hurdles (45.88).

Junior Alex Armes, the defending state champion in the 100 and 200, had the fastest qualifying time in the 100 at 12.40. Armes also qualified for the 200 final with the second-fastest preliminary time of 25.60.

Brandon Grotzky advanced to the finals of the 110 hurdles in 15.34 for the Grand Island boys. Zach Christensen qualified for the finals in the 200 with a 22.90 time.