The annual New Balance Indoor Track & Field Nationals were held March 13 through March 16 and featured the best high school athletes from all over the country. 13 State High athletes competed in the events under the name Nittany Valley Track Club.
The field events took place to start the weekend in Boston. For State High, senior Sanai Abdullah took on the long jump and placed 20th with a distance of 5.68 meters and the triple jump with a distance of 11.40 meters, placing 36th. Junior Josie Younkin competed in the high jump but failed to get over 1.68 meters. Nevertheless, she placed 19th in the country. Standout pole vaulter and senior Adam Bell finished 23rd overall with a height of 4.70 meters.
For many athletes, competing at this high of a level was a brand new experience. However, some had already competed in national competitions. One team in particular is State High’s distance team. The boys’ team qualified for nationals in cross country and qualified for indoor nationals again in the 4xMile relay. The team consisted of senior Owen Coughlin, sophomore Luke Bradbury, sophomore Theo Oppermann and senior Isaac Oppermann.
“It’s a great experience,” Bradbury said. “And it was awesome, incredible because I got to go with three of my best friends, so [it was] really fun running for them.”
The group’s experience in prior national competitions proved important, as they finished sixth in the country and became All-Americans. Coughlin discussed this accomplishment as one of the greatest moments of his running career and was proud of his teammates for their resilience.
“I would say the craziest thing is, like, was definitely getting all-American,” Coughlin said. “The four mile [team] from nationals…me, Isaac, Theo and Luke, we’re all as, like, tightly knit as you could possibly be. Like the team environment is just such a critical aspect of everyone’s success because we all really build upon one another.”
Two other relay teams took on Boston’s indoor track. In the Girls’ 4×800 relay, junior Devon Jackson, senior Devyani Wadhia, senior Brooke Shellenberger and freshman Evie Younkin worked together to finish 34th in the nation with a time of 9:41.25. Jackson, Wadhia and Younkin would team up again in the Girls’ Distance Medley, joined by junior Malia Abdullah. They finished 27th, running a 12:29.47.
Younkin talked about how supportive the team has been and how hard they’ve worked.
“It’s a really special thing to be a part of, because there are so many people on that…help motivate me to become faster. Like, running with people faster than you, and people just as motivated as you can help you become better. So it’s really just a special environment to be a part of, and also, because the team helps me get to so many of these events, like I might not have run at Nationals without, like the relay teams I ran with,” Younkin said.
Being the youngest member of the team proved to be quite an accomplishment, but also a challenge. Younkin gave some advice to young runners like herself who are starting their high school careers.
“Never compare yourself to other people,” Younkin said. “Take your own path and know that like, success will come in time, and that it’s not always gonna be right away.”
Senior Jesse Myers blazed through the 200 meter qualifying and moved to the championship. He ran a record-setting 20.99 seconds in the final, earning him second in the country. The time was also the fourth fastest of any U.S. runner in 2025. He came just behind Archbishop Carroll (DC)’s Jake Odey-Jordan, who set the top time of 2025 at 20.90 seconds. Myers also took on the 60 meter race but was barely eliminated from the qualifiers with a time of 6.90 seconds, placing 25th.
Some of the runners who competed in relays also competed individually. Both Coughlin and Bradbury completed the Boys 1 mile championship, placing 99th and 137th, respectively.
“I wasn’t really feeling it,” Bradbury said of his solo race. “It wasn’t a great day for me, but I think just being there and putting in the effort made the difference.”
Evie Younkin and Jackson competed in the Girls 800m. Younkin finished 126th with a time of 2:19.08. Jackson finished not far behind with a time of 2:24.04 and placed 167th. Isaac and Theo Oppermann both completed the Boys 2 mile, and the sibling duo performed well. Isaac Oppermann placed 22nd with a time of 9:05.82, also earning himself the 45th best time in the U.S. in 2025. Theo Oppermann placed 122nd with a time of 9:32.88.
Multiple siblings took to the track and performed well. Isaac and Theo Oppermann helped lead their team to a top-10 finish, and Evie and Josie Younkin ran and jumped for Nittany Valley Track Club.
“It’s like, really fun. Josie, she is a lot better of a jumper than she’s a runner. So it’s nice for me, because I’ve never been compared to like her times or anything, because she kind of has her own thing going on at practice. Like she high jumped at Nationals, and she did great,” Evie Younkin said of her sister.
Looking ahead, the track and field team is preparing for the outdoor season, and the seniors are looking to give it their all for one last season.
“Just kind of one more lap around the track of my with all the boys, all the coaches and everyone,” Coughlin said. “I could never repay all the people that I have had relationships with throughout my career in cross country and track. And I just, I kind of, I guess the goal is to kind of leave leave it better than I found it and also kind of set a foundation for all like the underclassmen, and even juniors here just kind of like the expectation, and just that they can kind of pick up where we left off and bring us even like better heights than we did this year.”
The outdoor season began with a quad meet victory for both the boys and girls teams. To see the full results from the Indoor Track and Field Nationals, click here.
