New season, new coach

As spring is upon us again, so is track season at Solon High School. A different, yet familiar voice is now in the boys track locker room this season with new head coach Brian Sabol taking over the mantle. Having coached both girls track and boys cross country during his tenure at Solon, Sabol’s experience and dedication will hopefully take the team to the next level.

Sabol is replacing Matthew Kirk who had coached the team for the previous two seasons before his resignation. A rather surprising opportunity left Sabol with quite some thinking to do, but his resume and history coaching Solon sports made him a great candidate for the job.

“It did happen awfully quickly,” Sabol said. “I wasn’t really planning on doing it this spring, but when the opportunity presented itself I was actually pretty excited to take on the job and be able to work with a bunch of my runners from the cross country season. I was looking forward to keeping some continuity with the training program and the guys.”

Expectations are high once again for the boys team. Both the players as well as the staff understand that competing at the highest level is of the utmost importance. Sabol has a clear vision of what he wants his men to achieve this season.

“My goal is to help everyone improve and lower their [personal record],” Sabol said. “Teamwise, I want our 4×800 meter relay team to qualify to the state meet and hopefully place high. [Also] to have an individual qualify in all of the distance events, the 800, the 1600 and the 3200.”

Not only is Sabol happy to be back coaching track, but his runners are as well. Those who have been under his tutelage before have nothing but good things to say about their new coach.

“He’s a fantastic coach to be able to run for,” junior Ryan Harford said. “I’m really happy I came back to track this year, mainly because of Coach Sabol. He’s kind and really care[s] about his runners, but he’s also demanding and wants us to give it our all every time we run. It’s tough sometimes, but I really respect him as a mentor for that.”

Coach Sabol’s experience coaching girls track two seasons ago will be another interesting component to the success of the boys team this year. That insight and knowledge will no doubt translate well this season.

“Having his positive energy around again is really exciting,” junior Anna Rodgers said. “I only worked with him for my freshman year but he was always very focused on correct running form and coming out of blocks efficiently. I enjoyed having him as the head coach of the girls team, and now having him coaching distance for the boys team is really good.”

His numerous accolades not only make him more than qualified for the job, but also provide a unique championship-winning standard to the team. It’ll take a lot of hard work and perseverance as always, but if Sabol knows how to do one thing better than others, it’s winning. His achievements during his tenure as head coach of the girls team are evidence of just that.

“We were fortunate to have a lot of success. We won two outdoor state championships and three indoor state championships,” Sabol said. “I think with the experience of being able to perform at a high level, knowing what it takes to win and succeed and understanding all the things that come with it, I think it’ll suit me and the guys very well knowing that we can draw on that experience.”