Warsaw’s Robert Murphy leads the pack in the 3,200 Monday night. The stellar senior won a pair of races as the Tigers defeated Northridge (Photos by Jim Harris)

WARSAW – Warsaw’s Robert Murphy doesn’t surprise his track coach Matt Thacker anymore with his performances.

The stellar senior, it’s safe to say, still does amaze him sometimes though.

Murphy, a key cog for the deep and talented No. 6 Tigers, continued his sensational efforts Monday night.

Murphy, fittingly enough on Senior Night, was outstanding again as Warsaw easily defeated Northridge 90-42 in Northern Lakes Conference action.

The Tigers, fresh off a second-place finish in the Goshen Relays Saturday, continued to dominate conference competition to improve to 3-0 versus league foes.

Murphy and senior sprint standout Wyatt Jones each dominated in a pair of individual wins to pace Warsaw in the meet which had been rescheduled from last Thursday after being postponed due to the weather.

Murphy, who will run at Vincennes University, dominated the field in taking first in both the 1,600 in a time of 4:19.54 and the 3,200 in a time of 9:26.85.

“I stopped being surprised by Robert at the Indoor State,” said Thacker, referring to the Hoosier State Relays meet in mid-March. “He has something you can’t coach and that’s the desire to win every race. It’s an amazing trait to have. He just refuses to lose.

“From freshman year to now, you would never have guessed that Robert would have gotten to this point. He’s just done it the right way with his work ethic. He’s been amazing for us.”

Murphy finished third in the 3,200 at the aforementioned indoor state meet held at Indiana Wesleyan University. The Tigers went 1-2-3 in that race as Ellis Coon won it, while Jake Poyner was second and Murphy third.

Murphy teamed with senior Poyner and junior Coon to lead the Warsaw cross country team to a fourth-place finish at the State Finals last October. He has not missed a beat this spring, despite limited outdoor competition due to the weather. Murphy and Poyner, who will run at Wake Forest, have been outstanding, while Coon is currently sidelined due to an injury.

“Those three guys are such an integral part of this team,” Thacker said. “They are all leaders.”

“That was easy,” said Murphy after finishing the 3,200.

He sure made it look that way by beating runner-up Blake O’Dell of Northridge by 17 seconds in the race.

“It was easier than I thought it was going to be,” explained Murphy. “I was going for place tonight and worried about my competition not my time. Northridge has been tough on me in the past.

“It’s been fun so far, especially today. I’ve been very impressed with my times and definitely feel I’m getting to my full potential now. I’ve surprised myself some, but I really realized I could reach my full potential at Indoor State.”

Wyatt Jones won both the 100 and 200-meter dashes for Warsaw Monday night.

Jones won both the 100 and 200-meter dashes in top times 11.54 and 22.85.

The Tigers, who won both NLC and sectional championships in 2012, also got winning performances on the track from senior Taylor Cone in the 110 hurdles (15.79), senior Nathan Kolbe in the 400 (51.30), junior Ryan Goon in the 300 hurdles (41.08) and senior Poyner in the 800 (1:58.57).

Warsaw also placed first in both the 4 X 100 relay and the 4 X 400 relay events. The team of Jones, Nathan Kolbe, Chad Goon and Tristan McClone won the 4 X 100 in a time of 43.92. The team of Landon Perry, Poyner, Ryan Goon and Michael Compton won the 4 X 400 in a time of 3:32.40.

Sophomore Andrew Scheidt won the discus for the Tigers with a throw of 126-11.5, Sophomore Ben Plummer took first in the shot put for Warsaw with a winning toss of 44-4.

“It’s just exciting with the interchangeable parts we have on this team,” said Thacker. “We were trying to look ahead some tonight and look at some of our younger guys. It’s about our depth and the whole team aspect for us.

“We’re just still looking for that competitive desire from everyone right now.”

The Tigers were without standout high jumper Stephen Kolbe, who took top honors in his division Saturday at the Goshen Relays. The junior was sidelined due to illness Monday night.

Winners in JV action for Warsaw Monday night were Ross Armey (110 hurdles), Storm Stapleton (100 and 200), Michael Compton (400), Brett Fancil (300 hurdles) and Daniel Messenger (800). The Tigers also won the JV 4 X 400 relay event with the team of Jake Fayed, Jeff Coulter, Matt Wildman and Andrew Wade.

Warsaw continues a busy week on Thursday by hosting Concord and Plymouth in NLC action. The Tigers then host their own Max Truex Invitational Friday night.

Senior Nathan Kolbe soared to a second-place finish in the long jump for the Tigers Monday night.