Knees bloodied, finishing first

In the first race Tuesday at B-CC’s second and last home meet – the girls’ 100 meter hurdles -- junior Julia Hardgrove crouched for the starter’s gun. A slow, steady rain had dampened the track, making the footing less sure. The gun sounded and Hardgrove shot to a commanding lead, but halfway through her leg caught a hurdle and down she went on her knees.

Wobbily at first, then regaining her stride, Hardgrove finished first in her heat – and first overall – in 19.30 seconds. At the finish line, she looked down at her bloodied knees and wondered if her day was over.

It wasn’t. ``She was banged up a little bit,’’ said Coach Chad Young. ``She skinned both her knees and then went and cleaned them up a little bit.’’ And then she kept competing, finishing second in the 300 meter hurdles (56.3); third in the triple jump; and fourth in the high jump.

``She’s tough,’’ Young said.

The meet against Blair, Landon’s boys and Stone Ridge’s girls featured other gritty performances – as well as some hard moments. Overall, the B-CC girls ended up winning the meet, while the boys finished second, behind Blair.

Rain fell intermittently. Temperatures dropped to near 50. Runners and field athletes, many wearing coats, were shivering only minutes after their races.

Among the highlights:

• A 1-2-3 finish in the boys’ 1600 meter race -- senior Chris Henderson (4:54); junior Eliot Gerson (4:57); and senior Eric Damtoft (4:59) – and a 1-2 finish in the boys’ 3200-meter, with Gerson winning in 10:47, and junior Trevor Stephens right behind in 10:56;

• Freshman Brittney Wade finished second in the 100 meters (13.4) and 200 meters (27.8);

• In the high jump winners in both girls and boys: junior Ariana Braganza cleared 4 feet 6 inches, while senior Alex Barrett cleared 5 feet 6 inches. (In a lonely scene with just two officials watching at the end of field, Barrett, the only competitor in the boys event, gamely attempted 5 feet 8 in the pouring rain but nicked the bar.);

• And in the shot put and discus, dual winners for boys and girls: senior Chuck Bank (41 feet in shot put and 94 feet in discus) and freshman Ruth Orevba (23 feet shot put for third and 63 feet discus for first).

In addition, the girls distance runners continued to dominate.

In the 4 x 800, the B-CC `A’ and `B’ teams finished first and second among five teams. In the 1600 meter race, Grace Reingruber (5:44) outlasted Hallie Jester (5:46) to finish 1-2. ``They were pushed by a girl from Stone Ridge,’’ Young said. ``They were surprised when the girl passed them, and so then they put their heads down and got going. Both are very competitive; it’s always fun to watch them race.’’

In the 3,200 meter race, senior Paige Donnelly and sophomore Ava Farrell ran together in the lead by themselves until the very end, when Donnelly held off Farrell. Donnelly finished in 12:18, Farrell a fraction of a second behind.

And in the girls 800, BCC swept the top five places: Reingruber (2:37); Jester (2:39); sophomore Alison Thomas (2:43); senior Darcy O’Connor (2:45); and freshman Laura Nakasaka (2:46).

But the day wasn’t all about wins.

In the boys 4 x 200 relay, senior Casey Shamma, running the first leg, went to ground in pain with an apparent hamstring injury. ``We’re trying to figure out the problem,’’ Young said. Shamma has been a standout sprinter so far this season.

And the B-CC girls 4 x 200 relay team never got to race because one sprinter couldn’t remove an earring. State competition rules prohibit wearing jewelry of any kind, and sophomore Jasmine Holmes couldn’t remove an earring in time.

Afterward, Young was philosophical.

``As horrible as it is not to run a race, it is a lesson learned,’’ the coach said. ``I’d rather learn it here at a dual meet, than at a bigger meet when it will be a big deal. Things are not going to be perfect every time, and so we have to learn these lessons.’’