Indoor track returned to Richmond's West End as St. Christopher's School unveiled a spectacular new field house with a small meet on Friday, January 13th. With a very fast encapsulated rubber surface, this 200 meter facility will be a great resource for Central Virginia indoor track. The incredibly spacious field house includes a 6 lane oval track with two 9 lane sprinting straight-aways. Two sandpits also provide jumpers with a great place to compete. Spectators can stand on a one-of-a-kind balcony and gaze across this beautiful indoor track and field complex to see magnificent performances.
The inaugural meet included athletes from Atlee High School, Norfolk Academy, Randolph Macon Academy, St. Catherine's and St. Christopher's. These athletes produced a few notable results:
Chris Barnes (St. Christopher's) ran to impressive wins in both the 55 meter and 300 meter dashes and anchored his team to a last lap, come from behind victory in the 4x400 meter relay. His time of 6.74 in the 55 ranks him second among Virginia's private school men this year. His victory in the 300 meter dash (36.55) places Barnes in the top 15 among all Virginians this winter, as well as second in the private school ranks.
Katie Doswell (St. Catherine's) returned to the track after her holiday break to post an impressive 1000 meter run in an essentially solo effort for a time of 2:59.24. Her nearest competitor was nearly 30 seconds behind. She moves back atop the state 1000 meter rankings, after holding that spot briefly earlier this season. Her time this evening places her #5 nationally for the 1000 meter run. Doswell also leads the state, and is #5 nationally, in the 1600 meter run.
Dana Harvey (Atlee High School) won the 300 meter dash in a time of 41.83. That impressive performance, one of her all-time bests, puts her eighth in the Virginia this winter.
Daniel Jenkins (St. Christopher's) not only anchored his 4x800 relay team to a private school leading time, but also pulled out a victory in the 500 meter dash. His time of 1:11.38 is (by only a slim margin) the top mark for private schools this winter.
Glennis Lofland (St. Catherine's) improved her private school state-leading time to 1:20.81 in the 500 meter run. Her convincing victory in the event moves her to number eight in the state for this season.
Kiernan Lofland (St. Christopher's) continued an impressive indoor campaign with a convincing win in tonight's pole vault. He flew to a PR and tied the St. Christopher's indoor school record with a height of 14 feet, 9 inches. Although he maintains his position as second in the state rankings (and first in the private school standings this season), his impressive jump places him in the top fifteen in the nation this winter.
The Saints relay teams posted impressive performances to land them a spot atop the state private school leader board. The Saint Christopher's 4x200 team ran a time of 1:36.15. Good for the win in the event, as well as a top 20 time among all schools in Virginia this season. Their men's 4x800 team also won in a private school leading time of 9:04.04. The Saint Catherine's 4x200 team narrowly edged Atlee for the win in 1:53.34. Their women's 4x400 team, although placing second in the event, ran a private schools state leading time of 4:16.39.
Many of these teams will meet again next Friday, January 20th, for another meet at Virginia's newest indoor track. This event, hosted by St. Christopher's, will also include Benedictine, Collegiate, Norfolk Academy, St, Catherine's, and St. Gertrude's.