Every spring, Steele Stadium plays host to The Classic at Mishawaka, an annual boys track and field meet featuring many of the area’s top athletes. At the 2025 edition, then-Cavemen sophomore Leon Fowler was not chosen to represent his school as one of its three best long jumpers.
Fast forward 14 months, and the thought of leaving Fowler out of any long jump competition in the state of Indiana — and perhaps all of the Midwest — would be unthinkable.
On Saturday, June 6 at North Central High School in Indianapolis, Fowler backed up what his social media profiles have boasted throughout his entire junior season. The self-proclaimed No. 1 long jumper in Indiana now has a state championship to prove it, with his best distance of 24-06 feet coming just 1.75 inches short of Frank Young of Kokomo’s state record set in 1995.
Fowler made his own history, though, becoming the first Mishawaka boys track and field state champion since Nicholas Banke in 2009, who won the discus title. The only other Caveman to win the long jump state championship was Franklin Kristl in 1936.
“Unbelievable,” Fowler said in a phone interview Saturday night. “God was on my side … It’s giving, ‘Long jump is back at Mishawaka.’ If you know you’re special, then you’re special.”
Fowler said he prays before every meet, and his prayer Saturday was that God would have his back, keep him healthy and allow him to perform up to the standards his confidence sets. He dedicated his eventual win to his grandmother, who died in 2024 after a battle against cancer.
It’s Fowler’s focused, dedicated and confident mindset, which he calls “kill mode,” that allowed Mishawaka assistant coach Shane Jodway to see Fowler’s potential as a long jumper late in the 2025 season. He finished in 17th at last year’s state finals with a top distance of 21-10.75 feet.
A near three-feet improvement in just 366 days means Fowler is already unmistakably a favorite to repeat as a state champion as a senior. Like all gifted track and field athletes, Fowler is already looking to what’s next.
He isn’t just looking to set a new Indiana state record. He also wants to break the national mark of 26-10 feet, set in June 2009 by future NFL wide receiver Marquise Goodwin.
With the type of confidence and physical gifts Fowler possesses, who’s to say he couldn’t do so 12 months from now?
“I have to work harder than I did this year,” Fowler said. “… The first place I want to go when I leave [high school] track is the Olympics.”
Head coach Kyle Shaw said this type of approach from Fowler less than two hours after he won a state championship is why Shaw was secretly hoping Fowler wouldn’t break the state record — yet. He wants the most physically talented athlete in Mishawaka to stay hungry.
“He’s always had the physical attributes, the speed, the jumping ability and the technique,” Shaw said. “His mental preparation and his confidence, those are things that have really developed and allowed him to be able to do this.”
Elkhart’s Alonzo Newbern headlines other area standouts
In the 200-meter dash, Elkhart senior Alonzo Newbern finished 0.28 seconds away from becoming the first state champion from an Elkhart school since Memorial’s Julius Smith won the discus title and Aaron Jordan won the 200-meter dash title in 2004. His 21.42-second finish was good for second place, and given his life story, that’s an achievement in and of itself.
Newbern’s twin brother, Alfonzo, finished fifth in the 100-meter dash at 10.73 seconds. The Lions athletic department dubbed the Newbern’s the fastest twins in the state.
Northridge was the top-scoring South Bend Tribune coverage area team with 14 points, good for the 16th-best team score. The Raiders’ top finisher was from Harvard commit Baylor Miller, who placed fourth in the 800-meter run at 1:51.50. Fellow senior Jaden Fisher also made it onto the podium with his eighth-place finish in the 400-meter dash (48.64 seconds).
Miller was also an integral part of Northridge’s fifth-place 4×800-meter relay team, finishing in 7:45.20.
Two Northern Lakes Conference (NLC) throwers earned podium finishes as well, with NorthWood junior Colson Yoder finishing third in the shot put (60-01 feet) and the senior Purdue-Fort Wayne commit from Concord Donovan Arnold finishing sixth in the discus (175-09 feet).
Finally, South Bend Saint Joseph junior Will Elick earned a podium finish in the 300-meter hurdles, finishing in eighth place at 38.60 seconds.
Full IHSAA boys track and field state finals results
100-meter dash
Alfonzo Newbern, Elkhart senior (5th place, 10.73 seconds)
200-meter dash
Alonzo Newbern, Elkhart senior (2nd place, 21.42 seconds)
400-meter dash
Jaden Fisher, Northridge senior (8th place, 48.64 seconds)
Braden White, Penn junior (22nd place, 49.52 seconds)
800-meter run
Baylor Miller, Northridge senior (4th place, 1:51.50)
Xavier Miller, Northridge senior (11th place, 1:54.78)
Caleb Barnard, Elkhart Christian Academy (13th place, 1:55.09)
3,200-meter run
Brady Hicks, Northridge senior (19th place, 9:26.58)
Braden Bachmann, New Prairie junior (28th place, 9:45.59)
300-meter hurdles
Siva Bahradine-Bell, South Bend Career Academy senior (7th place, 38.27 seconds)
Will Elick, South Bend Saint Joseph junior (8th place, 38.60 seconds)
4×100-meter relay
Penn (9th place, 41.55 seconds)
Elkhart (11th place, 41.78 seconds)
South Bend Saint Joseph (20th place, 43.24 seconds)
4×400-meter relay
Northridge (10th place, 3:21.33)
Penn (22nd place, 3:23.05)
Elkhart (29th place, 3:26.33)
4×800-meter relay
Northridge (5th place, 7:45.20)
Penn (16th place, 7:56.11)
High Jump
Valentino Summers, South Bend Riley junior (19th place, 6-02 feet)
Shot Put
Colson Yoder, NorthWood junior (3rd place, 60-01 feet)
Max Lamb, Northridge junior (15th place, 53-07.75 feet)
Casey Cochran, La Porte junior (20th place, 51-08.5 feet)
Malachi Washington, La Porte senior (23rd place, 50-09.25 feet)
Long Jump
Leon Fowler, Mishawaka junior (1st place, 24-06 feet)
Discus
Donovan Arnold, Concord senior (6th place, 175-09 feet)
Colson Yoder, NorthWood junior (14th place, 163-03 feet)
Malachi Washington, La Porte senior (27th place, 141-05 feet)
Kyle Smedley is a sports reporter at the South Bend Tribune. Contact him via email at ksmedley@usatodayco.com or follow him on X @KyleMSmedley.
This article originally appeared on South Bend Tribune: Mishawaka’s Leon Fowler wins long jump IHSAA boys track and field state title
Reporting by Kyle Smedley, South Bend Tribune / South Bend Tribune
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By Kyle Smedley, South Bend Tribune | USA TODAY Network
