By Gary Ogle
gogle@wbcowqel.com
Callie Ruffener’s senior year at Colonel Crawford has been one chapter after another in a storybook about how to make high school memories. The latest chapter came on Thursday when she officially signed her letter-of-intent to accept an athletic scholarship to the University of Central Missouri.
“It’s kind of like a dream,” Ruffener said, noting that being part of a state swim meet relay team that made the podium – the first ever at Colonel Crawford – came as a bit of a surprise. “But track, it’s kind of exactly how I wanted it to go. Winning indoor was crazy.”
It was literally a couple of weeks after stepping out of the swimming pool that the Colonel Crawford senior vaulted 11-feet-9-inches to capture the state indoor title. Last weekend, in ideal weather and a facility to match at the Sole Elite Invitational in Glen Oak High School where Colonel Crawford graduate Scott Ferrell is the head coach, Ruffener competed against many of the top programs and athletes in Northeast Ohio.
Not only did she win the pole vault, she won it in style at 11-feet-10-inches. That height set records for Colonel Crawford, the Sole Elite Invitational and the Glen Oak stadium.
“I want to PR a couple of more times. Twelve feet is big for me,” Ruffener said. “I want to be the outdoor state champ to go with the indoor.”
First is the Crawford County Meet tonight at the Bucyrus Athletic Complex. She already holds the record for the county meet. Then comes the N10 league meet, the Division III districts and regionals.
Should she return to Jesse Owens Stadium at The Ohio State University on the first weekend in June, it will be her fourth trip to the outdoor state meet where she has finished sixth, fourth and seventh.
“Work ethic and competitiveness,” Colonel Crawford coach Brett DeGray quickly answered when asked what sets Ruffener apart. “I would put her on the same level as Tyler Orewiler.”
Orewiler is a Colonel Crawford grad who now vaults for Mount Union and is currently ranked third nationally in NCAA Division III.
Ruffener said that in spite of a nine-hour drive between her home and the University of Central Missouri, the campus in Warrensburg, Missouri, is where she wants to be.
“For me it was kind of easy. When I went on my visit I really enjoyed it,” Ruffener said. “They have a really good track program and they actually have my major. So when I was looking at my list of colleges, the list got really short when I chose actuarial sciences.”
Ruffener carries a 3.83 grade point average and was inducted into the National Honor Society this year. She plans to pursue a career as an actuary in the insurance industry.
Her father Brad, who is also on the track staff at Colonel Crawford, admitted nine hours is a long way to send his daughter.
“Yes,” he said with a shake of his head. “She’s been talking about this for a long time – just to experience something outside of Crawford County, outside of Ohio.
Callie has two sisters, an older sister Corri who is a senior at Malone University and competes for the Pioneers’ track team, and 12-year-old Katie. Callie noted both she and Corri are seniors this year and in a way that is a disappointment.
“No, not really,” Callie said with a smile when asked about a sibling rivalry with Corri. “She definitely inspired me in a way. It’s kind of sad (we’re both seniors). I wish we could have competed together.”
Ruffener said an open enrollment transfer to Colonel Crawford mid-way through her high school career has been beneficial.
“It’s been awesome, Crawford has been such a great move for me,” Ruffener said. “The staff has just been awesome.”
But Ruffener’s accomplishments culminating with an athletic scholarship to NCAA Division II Central Missouri aren’t just a dream come true for her.
“It’s why you’re in this business, to see a kid work so hard, to reach her goals,” said Colonel Crawford track coach Preston Foy. “She works seven days a week, 365 days a year and to see that rewarded is so awesome.”