GREENSBORO, NC -- Fauquier senior Sarah Bowman was simply amazing in her final all-high school race at the Nike Outdoor Nationals. Against the nation's best in the girls' mile, Bowman would win the race in the fastest time ever recorded in all-high school race at the distance with a time of 4:36.95. The time ranks US#3 all-time. Bowman just missed the national record of 4:35.24, set by Polly Plumer in 1982. Bowman went through the quarter in 67.2 and 2:17.2 through the half mile.
Dennis Boone redeemed himself in a big way at the Nike Outdoor Nationals. After a shaky spring season of track which included him missing the Group AAA State Meet all together due to school disciplinary reasons, Boone returned to the national champion caliber form that won him a national title in March at the Nike Indoor Nationals as he won the long jump competition with a leap of 24-05. Boone's mark was an outdoor personal best and a new state leading mark. The St. Augustine's College bound Boone plans to continue to compete this summer at the U.S. Junior Nationals and hopefully qualify for Worlds.
Western Branch freshmen came into the girls' freshmen mile race without a question as a strong favorite given her accomplishments already this year as a Foot Locker Nationals finalist and two-time Group AAA State Champion (1600 and 3200 meters outdoors). Scott did nothing short of domination in Saturday's race as she won by three seconds in a new meet record time of 4:54.08.
Great Bridge multi-event star Mike Morrison opted to compete only in his top event with the pole vault at Nike and Morrison did not disappoint in saving his energy for the sole event. Morrison cleared a personal best height of 16-10.25 to take national runner-up honors to California senior and national leader coming into this weekend, Scott Roth, who cleared a height of 17-02.25 to win the event. Morrison, only a junior will stand an excellent shot to win a national title next year as a senior.
The city of Hampton is sure loaded with some quarter horses as two Hampton city schools came away with All-American honors in the 4x400 meter relay as the Bethel girls of Francena McCorory, Shakirra Pinnock, Megann Lawrence, and Kamilah Barnette took national runner-up honors in the event with a time of 3:50.71. Meanwhile, the Hampton girls clocked a season best time of 3:54.56 to finish in sixth place for All-American accolades.
Virginia was blessed a few years ago with a very talented 4x100 meter relay team from Deep Creek which posted a time of 41.19 at the 2003 Penn Relays, but had yet to see a squad come close to such a performance since. Well the I.C. Norcom boys of LeAndre McAdams, Terrance Williams, Anthony Hines, and Antonio Norvell came pretty close to such greatness as they earned All-American honors with a national runner-up clocking of 41.36 in Saturday's 4x100 meter relay finals.
J.R. Tucker senior Thuom Mathaing had his greatest race yet at Nike in the 800 meter run. The Group AAA 800 meter state champion was entered in the second of six heats for his specialty with the heats running from slowest to fastest. However, the Virginia Intermont College bound Mathaing was not deterred by running from the slow heat as he went on to post a huge personal best time of 1:51.10 to win his heat by two seconds and finish fourth overall among all heats to earn himself his first ever individual All-American honors. E.C. Glass junior Carlton Phipps also had a PR day at Nike in the 800 meter run as he ran a time of 1:53.69 to finish third (18th overall) in the same heat that Mathaing won.
After posting a 23.56 clocking in the preliminaries to advance to Saturday's finals of the 200 meter dash, Bethel junior Francena McCorory earned her second individual All-American honors in the meet as she finished third in the 200 meter dash with a new personal best and state leading time of 23.39. McCorory would later earn a third All-American honor for the weekend in the 4x400 meter relay with her Bethel teammates.
State runner-up to Landstown's William Harvin in both the 100 and 200 meter dashes at the Group AAA State Meet, Bayside junior Charles Clark finally got his glory as he was the top finishing sprinter from the state at Nike with All-American performance in clocking a time of 21.27 to finish fourth overall in the 200 meter dash finals on Saturday.
Group AAA state champion Raphael Hall of Deep Creek cleared a season best and state leading height of 6-08.50 to claim All-American honors in the high jump as he finished fith overall in the event.
After claiming All-American honors on Friday in the triple jump competition, Meadowbrook senior Rachel Lewis came up short on Saturday to garner a second All-American award as she finished eighth in the long jump with a mark of 18-02.50.
In the boys discus throw, E.C. Glass junior and state leader Michael Zajac finished 9th with a toss of 168-11, while Radford University bound and Group AAA State champion Jonathan Cowden of Lake Braddock finished 11th with a mark of 168-06.
Group AAA 800 meter state champion and Douglas Freeman junior Christi Harsha had a solid showing against the nation's best at Nike as she finished two places and two seconds shy of All-American honors with a time of 2:11.72 for eigth place. James Monroe senior Shylan Bumbrey (15th, 2:14.55), Blacksburg junior Ariel Burbey (21st, 2:15.41), Midlothian sophomore M.C. Miller (22nd, 2:15.88), Western Branch junior Kenya Jones (23rd, 2:16.04), and Gate City sophomore Ahston Bishop (31st, 2:17.63). Virginia certainly shows plenty of promise next year in the middle distance events with all but the University of Kentucky bound Bumbrey returning next year.
Group AAA 300 meter hurdles state runner-up Tierra Brown of Hampton had a strong race in the 400 meter hurdles in Greensboro as she finished eighth overall in the competition with a time of 1:01.83 to finish second in section three of four heats.
The Fairfax girls' 4xmile relay team took a surprising sixth place in the relay event on Saturday morning with a time of 21:02.56 to claim All-American honors and beat out the Oakton girls who finished seventh in a time of 21:03.19. A shocking run for the Fairfax girls of sophomore Anne-Marie Duncan, junior Jordan Henderson, junior Elizabeth Kakouris, and sophomore Jessica Trapeni as they all return next year and might be a major player in cross country even as Oakton was the top team in the Northern Region for much of this past cross country season.
The Potomac School girls had a great race in the distance medley relay as distance stars Charlotte Lawson and Michaeline Nelson led the way for the squad to finish 9th in a time of 12:08.54.