But the most fun of the day, spurring the whole team to gather at the track’s edge, was watching sophomore Laila Shehata compete in the steeplechase. The 2,000-meter, five-lap race features four hurdles on each lap, including one in which the runners try to get over a pool of water (and often don’t succeed).
Coach Chad Young has to find a volunteer for this once-a-year race, and he approached Shehata, a long-limbed athlete who also plays field hockey at B-CC.
``I ran it by her, and I think she was secretly excited, a little nervous about it,’’ Young said. ``It’s brand new and she was a little intrigued and agreed to give it a try. She’s a good athlete and I have a lot of faith in her.’’
Shehata, one of about 15 runners, started out well, nearly clearing the water pit the first few times around.
``Most people get pretty wet, and the some of the competitors in this race were not good at it, almost had to swim out of it,’’ Young said. ``But Laila was a natural.’’
She finished fifth, to the cheers of her team.
In the girls’ 4 x 800 relay, sophomore Ava Farrell went out quickly and put the team in second place. Her teammates – senior Paige Donnelly and sophomores Grace Reingruber and Hallie Jester – kept that position throughout, finishing second in 10 minutes flat.
Later, in the 4 x 1600 meter race, the competition had more drama.
Donnelly led and initially stayed with the pack as a runner from Sidwell Friends went out exceptionally fast. Donnelly broke from the group and closed the distance some, putting the team in second place. Jester followed and lost more ground, staying in second, but the team was 100 meters behind. Reingruber, determined to close the gap, finished her 1600-meter leg just 50 meters behind.
Farrell went out hard. ``She caught the first-place girl after the first lap, and then gave the team a large lead, running away with it,’’ Young said. Their times: Donnelly, 5:30; Jester, 5:46; Reingruber, 5:44; and Farrell, 5:34.
``It was not our greatest performance – they have all run faster -- but they competed well, and came out with a win,’’ Young said.
The boys relay teams did not place in the meet, but Young said one runner – senior Chris Henderson – had a particularly strong day.
Henderson also got a good workout, running four events. He opened the 4 x 800 relay; he then led the DMR with a 1200-meter leg (the DMR is 1200, 400, 800, and 1600 meter legs); he ran the 800 leg of the SMR (400, 200, 200, 800); and he ran a leg of the 4 x 1600. For his 800-meter runs, he finished with identical times, 2:08, close to his personal best.
The last race of the day was a co-ed relay.
The B-CC team consisted of Farrell (400 meters), senior Casey Shamma (200 meters), freshman Brittney Wade (200 meters) and sophomore Julian Dorsey (400 meters).
``Our goal was to medal – finish in the top three,’’ Young said of the race, which B-CC won last year.
Farrell (1:07) put the team in third place, and Shamma (23.9) kept it there. Then freshman Wade (25.7) burst through the field, vaulting the team into first place. Dorsey (55.5) fell back into second, but the team still reached its goal to earn a medal.
The next meet will be Tuesday, at B-CC, the second and final home meet of the year. One special part of it: The school will recognize the team’s 18 seniors in a ceremony at 3 p.m. Competition starts at 3:30 p.m. and will finish at around 6:30 p.m.
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