Every two years the 4A West Regional meet changes its location between the familiar PG Sportsplex and the less familiar— and less glamorous—Baltimore Armory. The seniors, having run at the armory as freshmen, explained the horrors of running there: There is no actual track (it’s more of a gym floor), the floor is dusty and slippery, the lighting is dim, there are no pits for long or triple jump (hence the reason those events are not contested at the state meet), and shot putters throw onto mats.
The top four places at the regional meet qualify for the state meet and athletes not in the top four can still qualify if they hit a predetermined qualifying time, distance, or height. The team goals at the regional meet are not necessarily to win the meet, but rather to qualify as many athletes for the state meet as possible to increase the chances of winning a state title.
Despite the less than adequate facilities, the athletes remained competitive and determined. The girls surpassed their performance from the county meet, where they finished fourth overall, to get second place. They beat Clarksburg and Wootton, who had beaten them at the county meet a few weeks earlier, but they were still outmatched by Northwest who won the meet. The boys performed very well and placed 12th overall out of the 17 teams in the region.
The day began with sophomore Lucas Beck competing in the pole vault, an event that has not featured a BCC athlete in many years. Lucas awed his teammates with his new talent as they gathered to cheer him on as he attempted to clear the opening height of 9 feet. With just one other competitor from Quince Orchard, Beck needed only to clear the bar to score eight points and to advance to the state meet. Unfortunately, nine feet was just out of reach, but his performance was surely a highlight of the meet.
The girls 4x800 was the first race of the day and BCC shined. Caroline Leuba (2:34) led off with confidence. She set a fast tempo from the beginning, which showed from the single file line that formed behind her. She handed the baton off to Hallie Jester (2:33), with a Richard Montgomery runner not far behind. Hallie surpassed the RM runner and held off a charging Northwest girl to hand the baton off in first place. Laura Nakasaka (2:40), running the mile shortly after this race, ran with a sense to conserve, but did not wish to relinquish the lead to NW who would not agree to keep the pace slow. Brittney Wade (2:33), received the baton just behind the NW team, but took over the pace making and held off the field for the win in 10:22. (The team is pictured, minus Laura Nakasaka.)
Wade continued to have an impressive day, edging the fifth place runner in the 500 to get fourth and qualify for the state meet by just .17 seconds. She then went on to become the regional champion in the 800 in 2:29. It was her third race of the day, and she admitted to feeling a little tired. She sat near the back of a pack of six runners, and with each of the four laps she gradually moved her way up to the front. A lap and a half from the finish she took the lead and made fighting off a group of six runners for the win look easy.
Wade was not the only athlete to book a trip to states in multiple events. Now a senior, Ava Farrell last ran at the armory when she was a freshman, and a lot has changed since then. She has run many races and learned a lot about her abilities and about how to race. One thing that hasn’t changed – she’s still really fast. During the 1600, a race she wasn’t originally planning to run, Ava sat behind the leaders for the majority of the race. When Churchill’s Lucy Srour pulled away from the field, Ava didn’t panic, but instead gradually reeled Srour in and set herself up for an exciting last lap where she decisively passed Churchill’s star runner and pulled away to win the race in 5:26.
Farrell had little time to enjoy her 1600 success. With her next race, the 3200, quickly approaching, she was forced to turn her cool down into a warm-up. Two of Farrell’s toughest competitors would be doing the same, which would keep the race close. What none of these three girls realized though, is that BCC freshman Caroline Beakes would look to steal the spotlight.
A pack of five runners circled the track together until Caroline Guiot, the Whitman senior and 4A state cross country individual champion, took off with two laps to go. Farrell and Beakes closed the gap and Beakes sprinted during the final lap to challenge Guiot for the win. Guito edged her out by a mere one second, but Beakes’ 2nd place finish was more than enough to earn her a trip to the state meet. Farrell, also sprinting and challenging Guiot in the final lap, crossed the line one second behind Beakes for a third place finish and her second qualifying mark of the day. Beakes and Farrell finished in 12:01 and 12:02 respectively.
The girls 4x400 was the last group to qualify. Sophomore Laila Ismail (1:05), Leuba (1:06), Nakasaka (1:05) and Wade (1:05), finished in 3rd overall in 4:25.
Although the boys had no qualifiers, they had a number of notable performances. Sophomore Nolan Ebner showed that a slow surface doesn’t always result in a slow time. The boys’ 800 was separated into two sections and Ebner ran in the slower seeded section. He sat back early, but surged ahead on the final lap and ran away with the win. His time, 2:12, tied his personal best and earned him a fifth place finish - just one place from qualifying.
Sophomore Peter Horton ran the same tough double as Farrell – the 1600 and 3200. He performed well in both finishing 8th in the 1600 in 4:50, and 6th in the 3200 in 10:29, just missing the qualifying standards.
The boys’ 4x200 relay of Julien Dorsey (26.26), Alessandro Lallas (25:35), Chris Bonilla (26.03), and Weyimni Dorsu (25.72) showed the most improvement, finishing 7th overall in 1:44. The boys 4x400 team, Ebner (58.55), Lallas (56.27), Dorsey (58.97), and Dorsu (59.60), finished in 8th place overall in 3:53.
State qualifiers will compete next at the 4A State Championships that will be held at the PG Sportsplex on Tuesday February 21st at 4pm.
Race videos from regionals can be found on the Running Maryland website: http://runningmaryland.com/index.php?option=com_jomtube&view=videos&Itemid=70
Full regional results can be found on mocorunning.com: http://www.mocorunning.com/meet.php?meet_id=2321
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