At Woodward Relays, no wins, several PRs

B-CC Junior Laura Nakasaka

By Emily Young

The Barons headed to Georgetown Prep this past Saturday for the 40th annual Woodward Relays. The meet, which originated at the no-longer-in-existence Woodward High School, has changed venues numerous times; however, one thing that hasn’t changed is the high level of competition. While the Barons were unable to walk away from the day with any victories, they did tally a couple of second place finishes and a number of season-best performances.

Early in the day, the girls’ 4 x 800 team stepped to the line without their fastest runner, Junior Brittney Wade. Still confident that they could compete with the best, the girls were determined to run for the win. Sophomore Helen Webster (2:21) led off with a blazing first leg and handed the baton to Junior Laura Nakasaka (2:25) in 3rd place. Nakasaka calmly and confidently moved into second place, gained a lot of ground on the leaders, CH Flowers, and made it a two-team race. Nakasaka handed off the baton to Junior Caroline Leuba (2:28) who took a page from the Caroline Beakes’ playbook and sat behind her competitor, waiting until just the right moment to make a move. With about 200m to go, Leuba moved into the lead and opened up a gap on the CH Flowers runner. Senior Ava Farrell (2:23), B-CC’s anchor, tried to maintain the lead but was quickly overtaken by her competitor. Though Farrell managed to almost catch her in the last few meters of the race, it was too little too late, and she was out-leaned at the line. The girls finished second in 9:40.28. CH Flowers won the race in 9:40.26.

The second runner-up performance of the day came from the girls’ 4 x 1600 meter relay team of Webster (5:39), Beakes (5:29), Nakasaka (5:42), and Farrell (5:28). The girls put forth a solid effort and ran a respectable time, but they were unable to keep pace with the Whitman girls who finished the race in meet-record time.

Another strong event for both the boys and the girls was the Sprint Medley Relay (SMR), a 400-200-200-800 relay. Nolan Ebner (400—54.64), Weyimini Dorsu (200—22.98), Max Braganza (200—25.36), and Peter Horton (800—2:03), raced their way to an impressive 5th place finish out of 25 teams.

For the girls, Caroline Leuba (400—65), Shayna Nash (200—28.2), Sisan Dorsu (200—30), and Hallie Jester (800—2:29) earned a 6th place finish in the event. They competed against 24 other teams.

The Barons also finished the day with a number of season-best performances. The boys’ 4 x 800 relay ran their fastest time so far this year thanks to particularly impressive legs by Sophomores Peter Horton and Nolan Ebner. They teamed with team of Junior Nick McGrievy (2:10) and Senior Thomas Horton (2:10) to run a total time of 8:28.

In the field events, Senior Luidgi Morton jumped 17’ 3/4'”, his farthest long jump this year. Freshmen Liam McGowan and Kyle Nakasaka, two newcomers to the triple jump this year, stepped up to complete the triple jump relay for the Barons and jumped personal bests in the process.

Junior Anthony Royster

Also recording their top marks of the year in the throws were Senior Ruth Orevba and Junior Anthony Royster. Orevba threw 27’3” in the shot put, and Royster sent the discus flying 83’ 10.5”. The mark was also a personal record for Royster, who is showing a great deal of potential in his first year as a thrower.

The Barons are back in action on Tuesday for their last divisional meet at Wootton. They will also compete this Saturday at Whitman’s Viking Relays.

B-CC track teams sweep rival Whitman

B-CC Junior Thomas Horton

By Chad Young

The B-CC-Whitman rivalry is intense in all sports, and running is no exception. Most years, like this year, B-CC and Whitman’s track and cross country teams tend to be fairly evenly matched. Knowing they could both walk away with wins if they competed well, both the B-CC boys and girls track teams arrived at Whitman ready to compete and take down their cross-town rivals.

The rivalry for the boys kicked off with a battle in the first event, the 4x800 relay. Whitman and B-CC ran within strides of one another for the first three legs. Junior Thomas Horton began with a lead and battled Whitman’s anchor leg, who gradually began to catch him. Horton sensed him inching closer and even looked over his shoulder a few times to make sure he knew how close he was. It came down the final stretch and Horton found something extra and surged ahead for the win in the team’s best time of the year in 8:35.03: Peter Horton (2:06), Nolan Ebner (2:09), Nick McGreivy (2:10) and Thomas Horton (2:06). Whitman finished less than a second behind in 8:35.59.

B-CC Sophomore Kenneth Norris competed most of the day in the jumps. Early in the day, Norris tied teammate Max Braganza to share a win in the long jump. Norris and Braganza both jumped 16’ 08”. Norris then ran the 400 and finished second to a Whitman runner by the narrowest of margins—0.01 seconds.

Later in the meet, as the open pit for triple jump neared its end, Norris had completed two jumps with average marks. He realized the 800 was about to start and ran to the starting line to compete. Clearly a little tired from his earlier events, he ran 2:27; however, this race proved to be the warm-up he needed for his final triple jump of the day. He jumped a season best 38’01” for the win.

B-CC's Max Braganza

In the throws, newcomer Junior Anthony Royster made his debut at the meet, earning second place in both the shot put (36’ 11”) and the discus (83’10”). His teammate, Mike Nyarko, won both events, throwing a season-best 40 feet in the shot put and 115’8” in the discus.

Success for the boys continued as they won all of the relays except the 4x100 because B-CC did not have a team compete in the event. The boys won 11 of 17 events and won the meet 82-51. Their victory was their first divisional win of the year.

In the girls meet, B-CC also recorded a victory. Even though the B-CC and Whitman girls match up well in the distance events, the depth of the Barons in all events proved to be too much for the Vikings. The girls won 12 of 17 events including all of the relay events.

The most exciting race of the day for the girls was the 4x200 relay. Shayna Nash (28.87), Sisan Dorsu (28.09), Chelsea Folkes (28.23), and Alexia Thorpe (27.72) ran a very close and competitive race. Whitman had a slight lead as the final handoff was executed, but Thorpe was determined to win and made a strong move past her Whitman counterpart, just barely edging her out at the finish line to win in 1:52.30. Whitman finished in 1:52.44.

Thorpe also helped the team to a win in the high jump in 4’6.”

The team’s success continued in the field with Junior Ruth Orevba’s first place throws in both shot put (26’11”) and the discus (68’2”). Both are best throws of the season. Teammate Olea Rugumayo also had an impressive day, finishing second behind Orevba in both the shot put (21’6”) and the discus (59’8”). Both throws were also season bests for Rugamayo.

Sophomore Nicole Flibbert also scored for B-CC in the jumps, finishing second in both the long jump (12’2”) and the triple jump (26’7”).

The B-CC girls won 12 of 17 events to beat Whitman 100-37.

Event Winners:
4x800 - Nolan E, Peter H, Nick M, and Thomas H (8:35.03)
1600 - Peter Horton (4:49.95)
4x200 - Max B, Carl Z, Nolan E, Luidgi M (1:40.29)
3200 - Nick McGreivy (10:36.71)
300 - Hurdles Nolan Ebner (45.62)
4x400 - Peter H, Thomas H, Sam B, and Luidgi M (4:15.52)
Shot Put - Mike Nyarko (40-00ft)
Discus – Mike Nyarko (99-04ft)
High Jump – Nick McGreivy (5-02ft)
Long Jump – Kenneth Norris and Max Braganza (both at 16-08ft)
Triple Jump – (38-01ft)

Girls
4x800 - Ava F, Caroline L, Helen W, and Brittney W (9:55.36)
1600 - Caroline Beakes (5:37)
4x200 - Shayna N, Sisan D, Chelsea F, and Alexia T (1:52.30)
400 - Brittney Wade (61:61)
3200 - Ava Farrell (12:16)
300 - Hurdles Eugenia Wilson (51:03)
800 - Caroline Leuba (2:32)
4x100 - Shayna N, Kayla F, Tatiana A, and Alexia T (55.63)
4x400 - Ava F, Laura N, Caroline L, and Brittney W (4:30.56)
High Jump – Alexia Thorpe (4-06ft)
Shot Put – Ruth Orevba (26-11ft)
Discus – Ruth Orevba (68-02ft)

The next divisional meet will be on Tuesday April 17th at Wootton starting at 3:30pm.

The winner of 'Devils' race: Beakes

Caroline Beakes, left, winner of the girls' 'Devils' race.

By Chad Young

If you ask any runner about what motivates them in a race, you’ll get a range of answers: some like you to yell at them, some like you to quietly and positively encourage them, some like to manage the race on their own without any motivational cries. Each year, the Cougar Relays is kicked off in a devilish way with a race that is meant to test your endurance, your motivation, and your desire to test and push yourself for just one more lap.

The race is called “The Devil Takes the Hindmost” where after two laps the devil, Quince Orchard Coach Seann Pelkey, pulls runners off the track that can’t stay with the pack.

In the girls’ race, Caroline Beakes and Nora McUmber sat in the middle of the pack for a mile or two until the pack thinned out. Then a front pack formed of about ten runners, and the two B-CC runners moved up to sit just behind the leaders. They were smart not to push the pace, not knowing how long the race would last. They ran mile after mile: 6:17, 6:28, 6:35, 6:25 until there were just three runners left.

Beakes took the lead, leaving McUmber and a Severna Park runner to battle for second place. McUmber was just barely out-kicked and ushered away from the track by the devil. McUmber was impressive and covered 4.5 miles in 28:45. Beakes unleashed a strong kick on the final lap and opened up a very large lead on her way to victory. She covered 4.75 miles in 30:07. Beakes’ victory was the only first place finish of the day for B-CC and is the fifth B-CC victory in that event in seven years.

In the last seven years, we have also seen an emergence of B-CC middle distance running excellence. The girls 4x800 team of Helen Webster (2:23), Ava Farrell (2:24), Laura Nakasaka (2:25) and Brittney Wade (2:16) placed second and ran the second fastest time of any BCC team in the last seven years en route to what would have been a meet record in 9:30.

The girls’ distance medley relay, Brittney Wade (1200-3:51), Laura Nakasaka (400-1:05), Hallie Jester (800-2:29) and Ava Farrell (1600-5:27) finished second as well after a tough battle with Severna Park.

The boys showed great improvement in the field events on Saturday.

Sophomore thrower Devin Doherty set a personal best in the discus by almost three feet in 71 feet 11 inches. Senior thrower Romario Newman-Latty also set a three-foot personal best in the shot put with a distance of 33 feet 8.5 inches.

Senior Michael Nyarko set a season best in the shot put with a distance of 39 feet five inches.

In the jumps, Max Braganza set a personal record in his final long jump of the day to hit 17 feet even. Kenneth Norris jumped a season best 36 feet 4.75 inches in the triple jump.

Also impressive were two B-CC freshmen who were happy †o help the team and competed in events that they didn’t think they would run.

Freshman Orlando Pinder.


Orlando Pinder, after helping complete the shuttle hurdle relay, checked in to complete the triple jump relay. With very little training in this technical event, he successfully jumped and helped to make sure B-CC’s relay team was complete. Sam Baker filled in to run a 200, a distance he has never raced, on both the 4x200 and sprint medley relay teams.

Freshman Sam Baker.

Our next meet will be at Whitman on Wednesday April 11th. Please come out and support the team.

We look forward to seeing everyone who is in town at practice this week on Tuesday and Thursday from 9:00am-11:00am at B-CC.

Enjoy your break and make sure to keep up with your training.

WJ meet: PRs and a prom proposal

By Emily Young

Word Problem: A track is 400 meters in circumference. Coach Young has entered you into the 1600 meter run. How fast can you run each lap without dying before you cross the finish line? Be sure to account for such variables as wind speed, what you ate for lunch, the caliber of your competition, and how much sleep you got the night before last.

Suddenly the term mathlete has a whole new meaning.

Whether it's the 300 hurdles or the 2 mile, racing can be as challenging mentally as it is physically. Many of our new runners have recently and unexpectedly found themselves confronted with this unpleasant reality. Not only are they learning how to pace themselves, they're also learning to compete with the runners around them and to train their minds to ignore and overcome the pain taking over their bodies.

"One of the best things you can do as a young runner is to reflect on each race and think about what went well and what you could do better or differently next time," commented Coach Chad Young.

Like many of her fellow track rookies, Freshman Nora McUmber did just that.

"I think I could have run faster in the second lap of my 800, but I didn't know until after. I wasn't sure during the race, but now I know I could have," she reflected.

A number of new and experienced runners were able to translate their past racing lessons into success on Tuesday.

Sophomores Nolan Ebner and Peter Horton both ran their way to PRs against some tough WJ competition. Ebner finished third in the 800 in 2:06.9, almost 5 seconds faster than his previous best time of 2:11.62.

"A 5 second PR is huge in the 800," noted Young.

Horton also recorded an impressive PR in a hard-fought 3200 meter battle. Horton dropped his PR from 10:17.52 to 10:09.1 on his way to a third place finish in the event.

"Both Peter and Nolan are learning what they're capable of in a race, and they're running with a lot more confidence as a result. They're not afraid to put themselves up with the front pack, and they're hanging with guys who are some of the best runners in the state," said Young.

The girls 4x8 team of Helen Webster, Ava Farrell, Laura Nakasaka, and Brittney Wade also drew on their past races as they attempted to run a qualifying time for Penn Relays. Their time of 9:41.8 is the fastest 4x8 time run by a B-CC girls team this year, but it remains to be seen if it will be fast enough to qualify them for Penn Relays. They will have another chance to improve on that time this weekend at the Cougar Relays.

Freshman Caroline Beakes repeated the racing strategy she utilized at last week's home meet as she again sat behind her competitor before overtaking her with a little over a lap to go. Beakes won the event in 11:49.9.

One of the most exciting races of the day was the boys 4x200 meter relay. Junior Max Braganza, Sophomore Carl Zambard, and Senior Luidgi Morton each ran strong 200 meter legs to maintain contact with the WJ team. Senior Weyimni Dorsu, the Baron's anchor, finished what his teammates started, surpassing his competitor on the home stretch as the boisterous crowd urged him along.

In the field events, particularly the throws, a mix of newcomers and returners made quite an impression.

Freshman Olea Rugumayo won the discus with a throw of 59' 3" in her first time ever competing in the event, and Freshman Haley Callicottt threw over 20 feet in the shot put in her second meet as a thrower.

"Our new throwers have so much natural talent and potential, and they're so into it and eager to work hard to improve," reported an enthused Coach Goidell.

Also throwing his way to a victory for B-CC was Senior Mike Nyarko who hurled the shot an impressive 37' 7".

Although neither Baron's team came away with a win, Junior Nick McGreivy triumphed in his effort to find a prom date. During a break in the races, McGreivy procured the microphone from the WJ coach and, in front of everyone

at the meet, asked Senior Ava Farrell to accompany him to (her) prom. Luckily for McGreivy, Farrell happily accepted his request.

"Flowers and Georgetown Cupcakes are always the way to a girl's heart," advised McGreivy, who presented Farrell with both as he posed the question.

A small Barons contingent will compete at the Couger Relays on Saturday at Northwest High School. All who are in town are invited to come show your support for the team. The meet begins at 9 AM.

First outdoor meet yields many top performances

By Emily Young

Wednesday's home meet, the first and only one this year, began with a brief senior recognition ceremony involving gifts, reminiscing, laughter, and a few tears from proud parents.

As the festivities wrapped up, the merriment quickly faded to nervous anticipation as the Barons prepared to face the small army of Churchill and Gaithersburg runners that had descended on the grounds of the B-CC athletic complex. Focused and determined, the Barons laced up their spikes and ran into battle.

Junior Eugenia Wilson claimed the first victory for the Lady Barons in the first event of the day, the 100 hurdles. Wilson attacked the hurdles and blazed past her competitors in a time of 17.1 seconds. She showed the same strength, coordination, and desire to win as she dominated the 300 hurdles later in the afternoon, winning in 51.1 seconds.

The 4x8 picked up where Wilson left off. Sophomore lacrosse player emeritus Helen Webster opened up a sizeable lead on the field with a 2:25 lead-off leg, and her teammates Senior Hallie Jester and Juniors Caroline Leuba and Laura Nakasaka followed suit, maintaining their hefty margin all the way to the finish line. Jester, Leuba, and Nakasaka would later team with Junior Brittney Wade to win the last event of the day, the 4x4 relay.

In addition to her shared 4x4 victory, Wade, the reigning Maryland State Indoor Champion in the 800 meters, also notched individual wins in the 400 and the 800 and finished second in the 200 to Gaithersburg's Alexia Mitchell.

Senior Ava Farrell also added to the team's tally with a first place finish in the mile. Sour memories of indoor states still lingering in her mind, Farrell showed no mercy as she fought for redemption and bested Churchill standout Lucy Srour to win the race in a time of 5:21.

Perhaps the most surprising win of the day came in the two mile where Freshman Caroline Beakes dropped an exciting and unexpected kick on Srour in the last 250 meters, shocking both the crowd and her competition. It turns out that the soft-spoken, innocent "Baby Beakes" is actually a fierce and calculating competitor, one who stealthily stalks her unsuspecting victims before launching a surprise attack to the finish line. Should she become a cross country convert in the fall, she will undoubtedly establish herself as a vital member of the Barons' squad.

The Lady Barons also picked up points in the field events. New B-CC coach Geoff Goidell has formed a cadre of promising throwers led by returner Ruth Orevba. Orevba, a junior, competed Thursday with her fellow throwers at Churchill due to a lack of adequate B-CC facilities. She launched the discus 63' 7" to earn fourth place in the event.

In the triple jump, mid-distance Sophomore Angie Peterson successfully executed the complex hop, skip, jump progression in her first competition as a jumper. Her mark of 27' 8" was good for third place.

The Lady Baron's efforts on the track and in the field events combined for team victories against both Churchill and Gaithersburng, bringing their divisional record to 2-0.

On the boys side, a number of solid performances suggested a promising future for the Barons.

The 4x1 relay of Sophomore Isaiah Bennett, Juniors Max Braganza and Marquel Lee, and Senior Luidgi Morton finished second to Gaithersburg and "showed more potential than any B-CC 4x1 has shown in years," according to Coach Gray.

The best individual performance in the sprints came from Senior Weyimni Dorsu who ran 11.5 seconds on his way to a second place finish.

The Horton brothers also showed exciting signs of things to come this season. Thomas, the elder Horton, delivered breakout performances in both the mile and the 800, recording PRs of 4:53 and 2:08 respectively after a frustrating year and a half injury-induced hiatus from competition. Young Peter Horton also ran personal bests in the mile (4:36) and the 800 (2:06), finishing second in both events.

Other notable performances for the distance and mid-distance squads included Senior Aidan Hennessey running under 5 minutes for the first time in the mile and the boys 4x8 finishing second to Churchill with impressive legs from Sophomores Nolan Ebner and Peter Horton.

In the field events, experienced triple jumpers Kenneth Norris and Max Braganza earned 3rd and 4th place finishes with jumps of 35' and 32' 11" respectively, and Junior distance runner Nick McGreivy showed his versatility by clearing 5' 2" and finishing third in his first meet as a high jumper.

Senior Mike Nyarko represented the Baron's in the throws on Thursday at Churchill. Under Goidell's tutelage, Nyarko sent the discus flying 115' 10" in a near-personal best throw.

Although the Barons' efforts were not enough to earn them a win against either team, they came away from the meet excited to improve and fulfill the potential that they showed glimpses of throughout the two days of competition.

The coaches and the team would like to thank all of the parents who volunteered at the meet. Your help with timing, field events, and snacks was invaluable to the meet's success. Thank you also to those athletes who worked field events and hurdle crew. It was truly a team effort by all involved, and we greatly appreciate your help.

We hope to see you Tuesday at Walter Johnson as we take on the Wildcats. Competition begins at 3:30.

At state meet, victory and heartbreak

One won by a step. The other lost by a hair’s breadth.

B-CC junior Brittney Wade led from start to finish in the girls’ 800-meter race at the Maryland 4A high school state indoor track championship Tuesday, winning in two minutes, 17 seconds.

Later in the state competition, senior Ava Farrell (No. 2 in the picture below)

took the lead in the last 300 meters in the 1600-meter race, only to finish in a virtual tie with Churchill runner Lucy Srour. Cameras on either side of the finish line helped determine that Srour finished first by 0.004 of a second.

Srour’s time: 5:15.371.

Farrell’s: 5:15.375.

The bottom line from the competition overall was that B-CC girls’ team finished fourth in the state. Every girl who competed scored points for the team. The boys’ team, after a strong year, did not have any athletes qualify for the meet.

Wade’s victory was especially impressive, said Coach Chad Young, because it was her third competition of the day. She ran the 500-meter race, winning her heat in 1:17. That was good for sixth overall, as the large field was divided into two groups with Wade seeded in the slower field.

In the 4 x 800 girls’ relay team, junior Caroline Leuba led off in 2:30, putting the team in fifth place. Senior Hallie Jester (2:27) (pictured below) and junior Laura Nakasaka (2:24 for her fastest time of the year, pictured second below), picked up the pace slightly, passing a few teams. Wade, the anchor, ran 2:20, but she was unable to catch Northwest’s anchor. B-CC ran strong and well, finishing second in 9:42, or three seconds faster than its earlier record.

“We’re a pretty deep team,” Young said. “We just stayed calm and got ourselves back in the race. Northwest was just a little bit out of reach. You have to give a lot of credit to them. They also ran a very smart race.”

In the 800-meter race, Young said he wasn’t sure that Wade would have enough energy to win.

“I hoped she would still have the legs,” he said. “We were all waiting to see how she would feel. She went out and ran the fastest time of the year. She decided she would lead the race from the beginning. Toward the end of race, a girl from Severna Park came on her shoulder, but Brittney held her off for the last lap. Mentally, she was extremely determined to win the 800. She had a lot of confidence.”

Farrell did as well. Young had made the tactical decision not to place her in the 4 x 800 relay, even though Farrell was the team’s second fastest 800 runner. He wanted her fresh for the two longest races of the meet – the mile and two mile.

In the mile, the pack started at a 5:20-minute pace, slow enough so that eight girls hung together for several laps. Young had talked to Farrell before the race about not waiting until the end to start her kick.

Farrell did just that, breaking away from the field with 300 meters to go.

“In that last lap and a half, she took off, and built and maintained a nice lead,” Young said. Srour, the Churchill runner, started closing the gap, gradually erasing the distance, and caught Farrell right at the finish line.

No one knew who won.

Twenty minutes passed. Farrell gave an interview on the sidelines. Coaches and teammates watched and waited. Finally, the judges ruled Srour the winner.

“I guess it shows you have to lean at the finish line,” Young said. “Sprinters always do, but distance runners run to the line. It was a great race. Ava ran beautifully. Tactically, she ran a great race, too. It was her best race of her high school career so far.”

In the 3200-meter race, Farrell and freshman Caroline Beakes entered for B-CC.

“Caroline has been our freshman star of the indoor track season,” Young said. “There have been a lot of freshman stars this year, and she is yet another.”

Beakes (pictured left) passed Farrell a few laps into the race, and continued to pass other runners, finishing in 11:45, for fifth overall. Farrell finished seventh in 12:01.

There was one letdown at the end. The team’s 4 x 400 relay was set to go, waiting for Wade after she finished her 800 meter race. Wade started cramping a bit near the starting gate and signaled to Young that she couldn’t run. Young quickly tried to substitute her with Jester, but the officials wouldn’t allow it.

Young said he felt terribly for the team, especially sophomore Laila Ismail, who had waited all day for the race. The other team members were Leuba and Nakasaka. “It was a real debacle,” Young said. “Everyone was confused. The officials were confused. The girls were confused. Sadly, it didn’t work out. I felt so badly for Laila. She really cared a lot, and wanted to put on a great performance at the end of the season.”

Fortunately, the indoor season’s end comes just a week before the outdoor season’s start. Practice starts March 1. The first meet is at home on March 21, against Churchill (possible redemption for one senior) and Gaithersburg.

“We just had a great group of girls and boys on this team,” Young said. “Every one had such a great attitude. It was so easy to coach these kids. It’s a shame that the boys didn’t qualify for the states, but I have high hopes for both teams next year.”

Regionals: B-CC girls race to 2nd place finish

By Chad Young

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.

Boys' 4x800 team: Matt Boden, Sam Hainbach, Aidan Hennessey and Kyle Nakasaka.


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