Day one results from the 2010 MileStat.com Elite Track Classic are now posted below. Quite a few teams automatically qualified for state competition and broke school records in Friday's relay action at Maggie Walker Governor's School.
MileStat.com Elite Track Classic Friday Results
The smaller venue of Maggie Walker Governor's School provides for a more intimate and close quarters setting for Friday's relay onlys meet format. The high quality track surface found at the Jim Holdren Track coupled with ideal racing weather and spirited and energetic crowd of spectators, coaches, and athletes helped produce many season best times, state qualifiers, and school records across the board.
The Lee-Davis girls got a strong anchor leg from senior Amanda Lineberry to come from behind and take the win and automatically qualify for the state meet in a new school record time of 9:32.99. Deep Run played catch up after their first leg and were able to make up the gap in their middle two legs of Madalyn Nuckols and Courtney Dobbs to give the lead to Erica Dobbs. Deep Run dropped 12 seconds from their previous best this year, but just missed the automatic qualifying state standard by seventh tenths of a second. Taking third place with a new school record time were the Cosby girls in a time of 9:40.09.
A total of eight schools went under 10 minutes including two more school record breakers in Mills Godwin at 9:52.64 and Atlee at 9:55.57.
Atlee boys did not load their 4x800 with Marques Atkinson and did not get the best of races from their other three "A" team guys to be competitive in Friday's race, which opened the door for others to take the victory ahead of the state indoor champions. Colonial Forge and Riverbend certainly seized the moment to run fast at Maggie Walker on Friday night as both teams dropped their previous 2010 bests of 8:09 significantly to run under 8 minutes for the first time. Colonial Forge outdueled their district rival with David Pennesi pulling out the win on anchor leg in a two second victory at 7:57.53. Riverbend posted a new school record time in second place at 7:59.72 as well as automatically qualifying for state competition.
Rounding out the top three and earning an automatic state qualifier with their 8 second school record breaking time of 8:04.57 were the James River boys who opened in the lead with a strong first leg from sophomore Sam Reid and were anchored by state cross country champion Ted Richardson. Colonial Forge boys exhibited their depth with their "B" team running ahead of their "A" team early on and then finishing sixth overall in a time of 8:11.57.
The Meadowbrook girls became the first repeat champions in meet history with their second straight win in the meet's short history in the 4x100 meter relay. The race featured the Central Region's fastest in the event, which Meadowbrook received a serious challenge from sophomore Shyra Molton and the Patrick Henry girls (2nd, 48.97) on the anchor but held on for an automatic state qualifier win of 48.71. Meadowbrook set the meet record last year in 47.95 with three members of this year's first place squad.
Bad hand-offs were costly for the top seed and favorites from Booker T. Washington, but clean exchanges might not have been enough to defeat the Thomas Dale boys on this day as their relay was hitting on all cylinders en route to their swift state qualifying time of 42.65. Quintin Fulgham, one of the state's best in the long jump, ran a strong second leg on the backstretch for Dale to move them up, while Byron Robinson was able to hold off Booker T. Washington (2nd, 42.81) on the anchor leg.
New Kent ran one of the fastest times this season among Group AA schools in third place at 43.23. The top four teams all ran under last year's meet record set by Henrico at 43.31 including section 3 winner Meadowbrook at 43.29.
No teams under four minutes but there were was a whole wave of them coming in together racing each other to go under the barrier in the fast section with a two second spread separating the four teams headed by event winners and Maryland private school Elizabeth Seton at 4:01.14. Seton had to hold off a hard charge by a pack of Virginia schools on the final stretch including new Group AA state leaders Tabb at 4:01.40, Riverbend at 4:01.84, and Douglas Freeman at 4:02.06.
Tabb's anchor and sophomore Julia Aymonin ran a 57 second split on their anchor leg. Riverbend had a respectable third place showing as the defending champions and still meet record holders at 4:00.97 from last year despite losing their top leg Monique Wright to graduation. The Cosby girls are a team to look out for within the Central Region in the 4x400 after running a time of 4:03.42 by themselves from section two of four to finish sixth overall
Booker T. Washington boys were not going to make the trip all the way to Richmond without taking home first place medals after bad hand-offs hurt them went from taking a win earlier in the 4x100. Their team went against the Central Region's best of Cosby, Atlee, and John Marshall and came out as the champions knocking off three seconds from their previous 2010 bests in an automatic state qualifying performance of 3:22.23. The crew from Norfolk put their top two legs Lamonti Charity and Deshawn Wilson to build a good size lead for Julian Williams to hold onto as their anchor. Williams was able to hold on despite a good closing leg from Cosby in a school record time of 3:23.41 for second and Riverbend in third place at 3:24.56.
Atlee ran without one of the Atkinson twins (Michael) and finished fourth overall not at full strength in 3:26.01. A total of ten teams ran under 3:30 including several school record runs by multiple relays.