Upload a Photo Upload a Video Add a News article Write a Blog Add a Comment
Blog Feed News Feed Video Feed All Feeds

Folders

Featured (1526)
All (1746)
 

 

There's Nothing Quite Like Sunday Afternoon at New Balance Nationals Indoor - Recap

Published by
DyeStat.com   Mar 12th 2019, 7:56am
Comments

Thrills, Spills, Upsets And Redemption Weave Together For A Furious Final Session at New Balance Nationals Indoor

By Doug Binder, DyeStat Editor

NEW YORK CITY – There are times at New Balance Nationals Indoor when things go so haywire, so unexpectedly sideways from normal, all you can do is shake your head.

That’s partly why it’s so fun to watch – the best high school kids in the U.S. (and occasionally Canada) laying it all on the line. Once the finals start, it’s pretty much spectacular from beginning to end.

This past weekend at The Armory, the 2019 edition of NBNI will be remembered for a few things.

Sam Affolder and his teammates from Jungle TC, which is Loudoun Valley of Purcelville, Va.

Coaches Marc and Joan Hunter had the forethought to find a local apartment on airbnb, where the boys could go and recover, or relax, between races. That’s a smart play because there is hardly one square inch of space inside the drill shed of The Amory that isn’t being trampled, or pummeled by noise.

Affolder ran faster than the winner of the boys mile on two occasions over the weekend in separate relays. He also ran faster than the winner of the boys 800-meter final on his leg of the 4x800 relay. Jacob Hunter was courageous on the anchor and Connor Wells also ran on all three teams in the unprecedented triple relay sweep.

But more impressive than Affolder's splits was the quality he showed to persevere and bounce back from previous disappointments.

BIG BOARD | INTERVIEWSRACE VIDEOS | RESULTS

Here is a look at how Sunday’s finals played out.

The 60 Dashes

For someone who had never been to New York before, Micah Williams handled three rounds in The Armory with poise and confidence. The junior from Portland, Oregon’s Benson High is apparently just that good. He bolted through 60 meters in 6.60 seconds, good for No. 3 all-time indoors in the event.

Oregon has a sparse history of producing great sprinters besides Olympians Margaret Johnson Bailes (1968 gold medalist in the 4x100), who was in the building to witness Williams’ race; and 2012 U.S. team member Ryan Bailey.

Still, on the high school level, Williams’ national title is a practically unprecedented achievement for a sprinter from the Northwest.

Briana Williams’ victory was not unexpected. She is, after all, a two-time World U-20 gold medalist. Even though she has barely set foot on an indoor track, she came to New York for a competitive challenge and delivered with 7.28 seconds in the finals. The challenge came from Thelma Davies of Girard College PA, who was on her tail at 7.30.

Williams, of Northeast (Oakland Park) FL, is on the cusp of a potential IAAF World Championships spot if she can continue to improve. That Jamaican team is not easy to make.

The 60 Hurdles

You have to feel for Kurt Powdar, who powered his Virginia Elite (Oscar Smith VA) teammates to a shuttle hurdles relay victory Saturday, yet once again found misfortune in the finals. Last year, it was a false start that knocked him out of the race. This time, he chopped his steps coming out of the blocks and had no chance to get over the first hurdle, so he pushed it over as the other finalists rushed on by.

That left the win for Sincere Rhea of Richland NJ, who fell to his knees and put his hands to his face – in shock – after coming through in 7.69 seconds for the victory.

In the girls race, Western Branch VA’s Shadajah Ballard powered through the final in 8.11 seconds to tie No. 5 all-time in the event. In her case, it was a debacle in the shuttle hurdle relays that possibly helped her stay laser-focused Sunday.

The results of the girls shuttle hurdles relay on Saturday were a mess, perhaps one of the craziest in meet history. Western Branch thought it had broken the national record and become the first team to dip under 30 seconds. But upon further review, one of the team’s racers broke too early and a protest was filed.

Western Branch was disqualified. Second-place Bullis MD had a similar problem, so it was disqualified. Third-place Union Catholic NJ momentarily thought it had won. Not so fast. Union Catholic was disqualified.

After an extensive video review by meet officials assigned to the appeals committee that lasted more than two hours, nine teams ended up with a DQ in the results.

Virginia Elite (Oscar Smith VA), originally the fourth-fastest team, was elevated to first and made it a clean sweep for the club/school in that event.

The 200

In a first meeting of Davis vs Davis, it was Tamari, the defending champion, who smoothly and powerfully tore around one lap of the track in 23.31 seconds for the win.

Thelma Davies was second in 23.78 for her second runner-up finish on the day. Jonah Ross from Garner, N.C. was third in 23.79. And freshman Kayla Davis from Run U Xpress of North Carolina was fourth in 24.20.

Tamari Davis, like Briana Williams, is rising quickly to the level of international elite. She should be on the starting line of the USATF Outdoor Championships in July.

Mario Heslop, an Armory regular from Franklin NJ, turned in the performance of his career in the boys final, ripping through 200 meters in 20.90 seconds. That’s No. 4 all-time.

The 400

Justin Robinson of Hazelwood MO, much like Micah Williams, came into the meet as a highly touted junior who resides outside the usual crucible of East coast indoor track. They are also both members of last year’s World U-20 team.

Robinson faced a big challenge from Bullis star Ashton Allen but held on and shot through the finish line in 46.55 seconds. That’s No. 5 all-time.

Kimberly Harris of Buford GA and Britton Wilson from Mills Godwin VA put on a show in the girls final, clocking No. 5 all-time 52.62 and No. 6 all-time 52.72. Both ran indoor PRs by more than a second.

In third place was that freshman, Kayla Davis, who ran 53.72.

The 800

Few saw Roisin Willis coming with a lap to go. All eyes were, of course, on Athing Mu. The junior from the Trenton Track Club set the track world on fire just two weeks prior when she nearly broke the world record in the indoor 600 meters.

Of course, Mu was the underdog then. She wasn’t supposed to beat a pro like Raevyn Rogers. And then she did.

On Sunday, meet officials had set up timing cameras not only at the regular finish line, but 400-something centimeters further, at 880 yards. If Mu was going to break the national high school record at 800 meters, she might as well get Mary Decker’s 1974 880 yards record as well.

Something else happened instead. The fast early pace that Mu tried to maintain wilted her over the final lap and Willis, a freshman from Stevens Point, Wis., was able to pass her in the final strides on the way to a freshman class national record of 2:05.70. Mu was second in 2:05.86. (Not sure what the 880 yards times were).

Mu was gracious, as she always is, in defeat.

Willis suddenly became someone to watch. Her mother, Breeda Dennehy-Willis, was a professional runner who competed at the 2000 Olympics for Ireland.

Abdullahi Hassan from Toronto, Canada, said he was familiar with one guy in the finals of the boys 800 meters: Luis Peralta. Hassan had come to NBNI last year and finished 11th. Peralta had beaten him.

This time, Hassan flipped the script and pulled off an upset of the Passaic NJ standout. Hassan ran 1:51.91 to Peralta’s 1:52.30.

The Mile

The final strides of the girls mile will be replayed a million times.

The favorite, Marlee Starliper, was closing in on the national title. The underdog, Taryn Parks, a friendly rival from Pennsylvania, hurled herself at the finish line and got the win by thousandths of a second.

They were both timed in 4:39.05, good for No. 1 and No. 2 this year – ahead of Katelyn Tuohy’s 4:39.15 from earlier this season.

Parks’ dive undercut the legs of Starliper and both went crashing to the surface of the track. Thankfully, neither was hurt.

Victoria Starcher of Ripley WV collected third place in 4:40.63.

An entertaining boys mile featured Jake Renfree of Knoxville Catholic TN kicking to the victory in 4:06.39, just ahead of Valor Christian CO junior Cole Sprout (4:06.68) and Ann Arbor Pioneer senior Nick Foster (4:07.18).

Matthew Payamps of St. Anthony’s NY, one of the pre-meet favorites, was disqualified for cutting in too soon and impeding another runner.

The 2-Mile

Katelyn Tuohy, buoyed by the success of her team’s Friday night distance medley relay win (and fourth in a row), was steady and dominant in winning the 2-mile with a No. 2 all-time 9:51.05.

She was able to create a safe distance from her challengers, Katelynne Hart of Glenbard West IL and Sydney Thorvaldson of Rawlins WY. Tuohy could have been in trouble if she had faltered, but she didn’t. She won again.

Hart became the first non-winner of a high school 2-mile to dip under 10 minutes, with 9:58.42. And Thorvaldson almost made it three, with 10:01.52. Racewalk winner Taylor Ewert was fourth in 10:19.14.

The boys race came down to a made dash the finish between future Stanford teammates Devin Hart of Point Pleasant NJ (8:56.89) and Ryan Oosting of Arlington MA (8:57.37). Hart bounced back in a big way after losing the New Jersey Meet of Champions title to Liam Murphy two weeks ago. Oosting came into the race after taking part in a pair of relays with his Spyponder teammates.

The 4x200

Oh, boy. There is something frantic about watching the best teams go at it in the 4x200 on a banked oval track. It’s like playing Mario Kart.

Will the guy taking the baton in lane six get eaten alive by the rail? Will the fight for room around the tight corners result in a collision that sends bodies – and batons – flying?

On Sunday, the national record holders from Bullis MD were already down one man due to an injury. But the team was still gunning for the national title, and it was all going smoothly until the final the final exchange. Feet got tangled, bodies went down. Other teams had to veer out of the way.

It was over.

Southeast Raleigh NC won the title out of slower section.

Between injuries, DQs and mishaps like the 4x200, it was a tough weekend for Bullis.

The girls 4x200 was executed with more precision. Team WAR of Nansemond River VA controlled the race and won the national title in 1:37.94.

The 4x400

The Western Branch girls closed out the meet with another victory, salve for the shuttle hurdles the day before. Winning their first national relay title without coach Claude Toukene, the team won 4x4 in 3:44.97.

With the Bullis boys out of the race because of injuries, a window opened for the remaining finalists. And St. Benedict’s Prep NJ, stung by its loss in the 4x800, was all too happy to take advantage of the opportunity.

St. Benedict’s grabbed hold of the lead and won it in 3:18.36, the only team to go under 3:20.

The Field Events

Jasmine Moore was arguably the female athlete of the meet after picking up a big indoor PR of 44-2.50 to move to No. 2 all-time in the triple jump. That followed her win in the long jump the day before, when she soared 20-9.50. In both cases, she had to defeat the fantastic winner of the high jump, Morgan Smalls.

Moore, of Mansfield Lake Ridge TX, has now won six New Balance Nationals titles, indoors and out.

In the girls weight throw, Monique Hardy of Webster Thomas NY launched a huge throw of 64-7.25 to claim the championship and move all the way up to No. 4 all-time.

Trey Knight of Ridgefield WA, a junior, successfully defended his title in the boys weight throw with a toss of 80 feet even. He fouled on four of his six attempts as he was trying to chase after Conor McCullough’s junior class national record.

Justin Forde, who spent much of the season nursing two ankle injuries, managed to get healthy enough to compete at NBNI and won the triple jump title with a mark of 51-3.

Kaeli Thompson of Warwick NY made 13-6.25 for a PR and victory in the girls pole vault. North Carolina standout Lindsay Absher also made that height but lost because of more misses at earlier heights.

Likewise, Trey Allen from Oak Mountain AL won the boy high jump at 6-10.75, taking the title on fewer misses after David Ajama of Lowell MA made the same bar.



More news

History for DyeStat.com
YearVideosNewsPhotosBlogs
2024 1091 354 13762  
2023 5382 1361 77508  
2022 4892 1212 58684  
Show 25 more
 
+PLUS highlights
+PLUS coverage
Live Events
Get +PLUS!