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3A Meet Recap (by Herb Wills) - Florida FHSAA Outdoor Championships 2014Published by
A few weeks before May 3, the date of Florida's 2014 state championships in high school track and field, the number crunchers started murmuring that the Miami Northwestern girls were staffed to score a ridiculous number of points in class 3A. Various figures were quoted, results of "virtual meets" were invoked, but the only certainty was that Northwestern had tallied 252 points in the class 3A Region 4 meet. Would Northwestern rack up a similar total at State, perhaps more points than any team had ever scored in the 100-year history of the Florida track and field championships? Track isn't a virtual sport, so only the actual meet at the University of North Florida's Hodges Stadium would reveal the answer.
Northestern Girls 4x800 Relay Team
A Northwestern team was also the early leader in the boys' 4 x 800, but early in the second lap Chiles senior Sean Turner erupted. The lead-off runner for the Timberwolves, Turner vaulted from fourth place up into first. When Turner handed the baton to junior Avery Bartlett, Chiles was well in the lead, followed by Belen Jesuit, Lake Nona, and Niceville. Belen Jesuit had come out on top of Chiles during cross-country season, winning the state championship. Niceville, on their part, had beaten Chiles in the Region 1 boys 4 x 800 a little over a week earlier.
Niceville's Nick Morken anchiring the his Boys 4x800 Relay Team
Lake Nona opened the fourth leg by jumping into second, leading the pursuit of the Chiles anchor runner. Morken followed before making his own move, carrying the Niceville baton into the lead with one lap to go. Morken was uncatchable after that, running a 1:55 split. Niceville won in 7:50.56, with Lake Nona second in 7:51.76. After leading nearly six laps of the eight-lap relay, Chiles placed third in 7:54.82.
Leon's Suhki Khosla finishing with a US#1/Florida State Meet Championship Record 4:05.96 "I wanted to go out hard," said Karen Xiang.
Sarasota's Emily Harding winning the Girls 1600 over Fort Walton Beach's Emma Rudman
Harding would return to the track in the girls' 800, her third race of the day after the 1600 and the 4 x 800 relay. Kicking down the final straight in lane two, Harding overtook Rachel Cazares then Julia Porter just before the finish line to win her second state title of the day in 2:15.12. Carol City senior Porter was second in 2:15.43 and Gaither senior Cazares was third in 2:15.61. Estero senior Katie Slater was fourth in 2:15.85.
Double Gold for Sarasota's Emily Harding as she wins the Girls 800 The boys' 800 also featured two runners returning from the 1600--Zackery Summerall and Avery Bartlett. Summerall had placed ahead of Bartlett in the four-lap race, but Bartlett proved more successful at two laps. Finishing strong, Bartlett broke into the lead on the homestretch to win in a PR time of 1:52.27. Boyd Anderson junior Javon Patterson was second in 1:52.89. Lee senior Rayford James was third in 1:53.57, taking a big chunk off his previous PR of 1:55.82. Incidentally, James had passed on running the 1600.
Chiles Avery Bartlett securing victory in the Boys 800 Before the first half of the girls' 3200 was over, the three leaders were Karen Xiang of Nease, Emma Rudman of Fort Walton Beach, and Bartram Trail senior Hannah Giangaspro. The same runners had been the top three at the Region 1 meet in Tallahassee the previous week. But this time out, Rudman and Giangaspro were staying with Xiang. At the bell lap all three were still together, far out in front. Rudman was the first to go, opening a gap. Giangaspro was left behind, but Xiang wasn't done yet. Xiang fought back up to Rudman, making it a race on the homestretch. Rudman prevailed on the final kick, 10:55.52 to 10:55.82, adding 3200 gold to her 1600 silver.
Nease Senior Karen Xiang (L) and fort Walton Beach's Emma Rudman kicking down the homestretch in the Girls 3200 When it was time for the boys' 3200, Leon's Sukhi Khosla was tired. "More tired than usual after the 1600," he said. "My coach told me to remember the state meet record, but the important thing is to win."
Leon's Sukhi Khosla and Niceville's Thomas Howell finishing the Boys 3200 The Miami Northwestern girls ended the meet by winning the 4 x 400 relay, giving their team a winning 154 points. No team in any class, boys or girls, had scored as many points in the 100-year history of the meet. That much, at least, the number crunchers had been right about. But now it was official. More news |