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With a borrowed pole and an adjusted stride, Thomas Johnson High junior Erick Artusio set the state record in the pole vault on the second day of the State Track and Field Championships at Morgan State University on Friday.

The new mark for Class 4A, as well as the rest of the state pole vault competitors, is now at 15 feet and 2 inches. Artusio got it using a 14-foot, 6-inch long poll that was borrowed from Middletown after he snapped a pole from Brunswick in the Frederick County championship.

The break, which happened while Artusio was about 15 feet in the air, was just over two weeks ago, limiting the amount of time that he had to adjust his approach.

"I got on it at regionals and took maybe 3-5 jumps on it," Artusio said. "It's five pounds heavier and it's the same length, but it's a different company, so it has a higher handle, so it's a bit of a higher grip."

He's had to back up his run length by two inches, but so far it's been working. Artusio cleared 15-0 at the North Region meet, locking down the No. 1 seed.

He didn't enter Friday's competition until the bar was at 13-6, and he locked down the win by clearing 14-0 and 14-6. From there, he took control of the bar's height, and set it to one inch above the old record of 15-1.

Artusio appeared to have enough height to clear 15-6 on his record-setting fling, but going against the bar at 15-6 scratched him out. The mark would have increased his chances at making the nationals, which currently have a qualifying mark of 15-6.25. There is a possibility that the mark will be lowered.

One of the keys to Artusio's success is the competitive yet supportive pole vault community of Frederick County. It included Bobby Rankin of Linganore taking third at 13-0, which was also what Thomas Johnson's fourth-place Charles Lord finished at. And Richard Wilkinson, another Lancer, was fifth at 12-0.

Even in the girls competition there was Frederick representation, with Sarah Lueck of Urbana finishing second at 10-6.

The other big Day 2 winner in the field events was Emily Vannoy in the discus, throwing a mark of 138-3. She beat Chesapeake's Lauren Allam by 1 foot, 3 inches, as both scored their best marks on their final throws.

On the track, it was the Tuscarora boys 4x200 meter relay team of Kevin Johnson, Jakarie Jackson, Fabian Gonzalez and Dominic Clarke who won the 3A title in a scorching 1 minute, 27.83 seconds. Thomas Johnson's Stephanie Bryan was third in the 4A girls 3,200, while Urbana's Jimmy Miller was third in the 3A boys 3,200.

The Patriots boys team added a few more points on the field, with Momodou Drammeh leaping to third in the high jump and Nick Forbes earning fifth in the shot put.

Over at the triple jump pit, Urbana's Chardae Harris was fourth and Tuscarora's Courtney Gray was sixth. Laquan Randolph of Tuscarora was fifth in the boys long jump, and Frederick's Mac Stephen was sixth in the 3A shot put.