The Dejarnette twins, Emma and Ben, could not be anymore different from each other including their track & field specialties with Emma as the pole vaulter and Ben as the distance runner. After graduating from Atlee High School in Mechanicsville, both went to two very different and distance colleges from each other this fall. However, they both also went into very competitive and challenging environments with Ben joining a list of big names and stars at the storied University of Oregon distance program while Emma went to one of the nation's top programs in the pole vault at Virginia Tech. Each has had to deal with their hard knocks and the difficult adjustment to college, especially just in practice alone being a part of such stacked teams of talented athletetes, which the Dejarnette twins hope will push them to a higher level of performance in the end result.
Grafton senior David Gunnerson leads an impressive group of distance runners at the Group AA school in Yorktown, Virginia which has improved itself to have one of the best relay quartets in Virginia this past indoor season. Grafton boys 4x800 meter relay won the Group AA state title three weeks ago and last weekend turned in two swift times at Nike Indoor Nationals. Grafton posted one of the fastest DMR times all-time indoor in state history with their 10:09 7th place finish, while they broke 8 minutes for the first time in the 4x800 meter relay. Gunnerson individually won his first individual state title this season in the 1000 meter run, which is an event that he is ranked among the VA top 25 all-time list in. After bettering his all-time best in the Nike Indoor Nationals open 800 with a 1:55.21 performance in his third race of the meet, Gunnerson now eyes another title in the outdoor 800 as well as posting some more great times with his Grafton teammates including Group AA state cross country champion Kyle King. 
Blacksburg might be losing two great runners and twins to graduation after this spring in Kathleen and Joanna Stevens, but Coach James DeMarco has another star coming up and running faster than the twins did as a sophomore in Hannah Brown. Brown (pictured right by John Herzog) has ran personal bests under 5 minutes for 1600 meters and under 3 minutes for 1000 meters this indoor season and last week won her second consecutive Group AA state indoor 500 meter dash title. Brown will be running as a key leg on Blacksburg's 4xmile relay this weekend at the Nike Indoor Nationals, which the team will be attempting to break 20 minutes and break the national record held by Saratoga Springs. MileStat.com intern Elisabeth Greenwood interviewed the Blacksburg sophomore Brown last week as she prepares for Boston with her teammates. 
