Virginia Boys Recap from Penn Relays

Nolan Jez


Four performances on the guys' side of things truly stood out to us from the 124th Penn Relays. Those four performances where that of Lake Braddock in the 4x8,  Frank Royal in the long jump, Emmanuel Waller in the 400H, and Loudoun Valley in the DMR. 

First up was Emmanuel Waller (E.C. Glass) running early Saturday morning in the 400m Hurdles. He blasted out of the blocks and was chasing from the gun. He ended up finishing second in a photo finish to Jamaica's Rovane Williams (51.22) to his US #1 51.36. 

Waller now sits VA #3 all-time in this event according to our database. 

Next up was St. Chris' Frank Royal in the long jump. He finished 3rd in a very stacked long jump field with his 24-4.25 new state leading mark. That finish though was good enough to win him, just like Waller, a gold Penn Relays watch as the first American finisher. 

Also performing at a high level in individual events for Virginia was: Solomon Ghosh (Blacksburg) who finished 9th in the discus with his 170-0 throw, Trey Causey (John Handley) who finished third in the high jump with his 6-7.75 clearance, EJ Richardson III (Bethel) who finished 6th in the 400H with his 53.42 victory out of the first section, Matthew Wilson (Patriot) who ran 53.72 out of the unseeded section in the 400mH, and Ben Nibbelink (Tuscarora) who finished 6th in the 3K with his 8:32 clocking. 



Virginia's best relay finish came from the Vikings of Loudoun Valley. Though it was not the time or performance they desired, they were still able to finish third in a record-setting race with a stellar time of 10:04.49. 

The next best finish for Virginia in the relays was that of Lake Braddock in the 4x800m relay. The finished 6th overall and as the third American team. The team of Tyler Lawson (1:57.02), Edward Cerne (1:52.37), Andrew Delvecchio (1:55.20), and Jacob Willis (2:01.80) tallied up to run 7:46.38. That time ranks VA #25 all-time. 

In front of them was a monster squad from Calabar who won the race in 7:26.09. Behind them were Ocean Lakes in 8th (7:50.83) and Deep Run (7:55.80). 

Virginia's only victory in the relays came from L.C. Bird's 4x100 who took home the "national" consolation race in 41.92. Their team was comprised of: Jaden Payoute , Jemourri La-Pierre, Lamar Davis, and Jevon La-Pierre.