2007 MileStat.com Elite Track Gala

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5/21 - Several of North Carolina's best have signed up for the Gala to take on Virginia's best. Dylan Ferris, one of the country's top 800 meter runners, who recently won the North Carolina 4A state title in a US #10 time of 1:51.48 as well picked up a 1600 meter state title in 4:14. Another outstanding half miler from North Carolina in Drew Tucker will be making the trip to Richmond as Tucker won the 2A state title in the 800 at 1:54.21. Tucker won the 2A state title last year also in 1:52.73. Andy Wacker, a more longer distance geared distance stud from Pinecrest High School in North Carolina, will be competing in the 5000 meter run at the Gala and has a best of 15:20 from cross country. Wacker was a state champion indoors for 3200 meters and has a 9:26 best this spring.
5/16 - Two-time Penn Relays discus champion and returning Nike Outdoor Nationals All-American in the discus event, Natalie Baird of Park View (Sterling), returns to defend her Gala title from last year. Baird is the defending Virginia 2A state champion in both the discus and shot put and last year as a sophomore recorded the state best discus mark in state history with a throw of 157'7".
5/14 - One of Group A's most talented distance runners ever in Nathan Brame will be racing individually at the MileStat.com Elite Track Gala and will also be featured on the All-Star DMR for the small schools of Group A. Brame will be one of the top 1600 meter anchor legs in the race as he split a 4:18 leg in a DMR 1600 meter leg at VMI earlier this month. Brame is the defending Group A state champion for 1600 meters and cross country. Only a junior, Brame has a personal best of 4:22 for 1600 meters.
5/14 - Highland Springs state champion senior duo of Rashaad Cannon and Adams Abdulrazaaq will be competing at the MileStat.com Elite Track Gala as both have to be considered strong favorites to win their respective events. Cannon, the AAA state indoor champion in the long jump, was the Nike Indoor Nationals runner-up in the event and has gone over 24 feet this spring to find himself ranked high on the national lists. Meanwhile, Abdulrazaaq has just really started to come in it his own as a hurdler and had a breakthrough meet at the Southern Track Classic in which he broke two meet records in the 110 and 300 meter hurdles with a 14.04 and 37.79. Abdulrazaaq won the Virginia 3A state title indoors in the 55 meter hurdles.
5/14 - Steeple mania appears to be catching on in Virginia as one of our state's top distance runners ever in Northside senior Catherine White will be competing in the 2K event at the Gala. White is a four-time Nike All-American and is now well into the double digits for AA state title championships in cross country and track. White has personal bests of 2:52 for 1000 meters, 4:51 for 1600 meters, and 10:28 for 3200 meters. White could threaten the national record of 6:35.63 if she is able to make a successful conversion to a steepler this post-season at the Gala or Nike Outdoor Nationals, but at NON she'll have to take down the reigning champion and national record holder in Marie Lawrence of Nevada.
5/13 - Two-time AAA state indoor 3200 meter state champion Sarrah Hadiji is planning to compete at the Gala in either the 2K steeple or 1500 meter run. Hadiji was a runner-up at Friday night's Southern Track Classic in the mile with her first sub 5 clocking ever in 4:57.15. Hadiji also has a personal best of 10:46.51 for 3200 meters and has won a handful of Northern Region titles in cross country and track.
5/13 - State leader in the discus throw, Erik Kuster of Liberty in Bedford, has signed up for the Gala as he is coming off an outstanding meet at the Southern Track Classic as he defeated the state state's top throwers in the shot put and discus. Kuster posted the state's best mark at the Dogwood Track Classic in a 169-7 win and will be looking to break last year's meet record mark of 176-10 set by Chad Lawson of Mills Godwin. Kuster threw for a personal best of 55'8" in the shot put at STC
5/11 - The boys' 1500 meter field looks to be one of the loaded events at this year's Gala with the additions of Cox senior Eddie Judge and Atlee sophomore Ben Dejarnette. Judge ran 4:16 for 1600 meters indoors, while Dejarnette is recently coming off a 4:16 mile at the Southern Track Classic, which is the third fastest time in the country among sophomores this outdoor season. We could see several runners pushing for a sub 4:10 equivalent mile for 1500 meters with Peter Dorrell and Dakota Lowery in the field and many other top athletes to follow signing up for the meet.
5/11 - The Richmond Sports Backers and its event sponsors for the Maymont Cross Country Festival have joined Runner Bill's as another major sponsor for the Gala. Sports Backers has been a tremendous supporter of MileStat.com in recent years and has shown a strong interest in building a better relationship with the high school running community in the state of Virginia through their hosting and support of several events including Maymont, the Gala, the Southern Track Classic, and the St. Christopher's Mid-Atlantic Track Clash. Sports Backers is a non-profit sport commission group, which looks to attract major sporting events to the Richmond area.
5/10 - Runner Bill's has come on board as a major sponsor for the 2007 MileStat.com Elite Track Gala. This will be the second year in a row that the Midlothian and Richmond area running store has helped to support the Gala through sponsorship. Without sponsorship from the likes of Runner Bill's and owner Bill Lis, this meet would not be possible. If you happen to be in the Richmond area, check out Runner Bill's at 13569 Midlothian Turnpike in Midlothian, VA (23113). Mr. Lis has been a big support of high school running and MileStat.com over the years and MileStat.com visitors should repay him by shopping him at his store!
5/9 - The Eleanor Roosevelt girls from Greenbelt, Maryland will be coming down to compete in the Gala and will be bringing a loaded DMR relay in attempt to go after the high school national record of 11:33.43 set in 2004 by Bay Shore HS of New York. The Eleanor Roosevelt girls have won a countless number of national championship relay titles over the years at Nike Indoor and Nike Outdoor Nationals and most recently posted a US #3 all-time 4x800 performance of 8:51.19 in a victory over the Jamaicans at the Penn Relays. It may take All-Star relays assembled by the Virginians to help push our neighbors to the north to a national record time in the DMR.
5/6 - West Springfield senior and Footlocker finalist Mike Spooner has committed to the Gala and is aiming to run a fast 5000 meter time in preparation for the two mile at Nike Outdoor Nationals. Spooner was an All-American indoors for two miles and in cross country this past fall had a personal best 5K time of 15:06. Spooner's future coach at the University of Tennessee in George Watts has the fastest 10K in Virginia high school history at 29:33.10 (US #6 all-time). Could Spooner make a name for himself as one of the fastest Virginians for 5000 meters and go well under 15 minutes at the Gala?
4/30 - Blacksburg junior Peter Dorrell, one of Virginia's top distance runners is set to compete in the 1500 meter run at the Gala. Dorrell has a 4:15 best for 1600 meters this spring, which he posted in a runner-up showing at the Florida Relays to Joseph Franklin, who recently ran a US #2 1600 meter time of 4:08 at the Florida State Meet. Dorrell will be looking to run under the sub 4:10 1600 equivalent for 1500 meters of roughly 4:10 along with other top entrants bound to be ready to get a rare chance to compete at 1500 meters.
4/24 - All-American pole vaulter Anne Marie Gordon of Mills Godwin will have one final meet at a venue that is very familar to her in Sports Backers Stadium, which has hosted the Central Region Meet. Gordon, the senior headed to Duke in the fall, has won several Central Region titles as well as two AAA state indoor titles in the pole vault including her state meet record win this past March over 12 feet.