Liberty High School Christmas Invitational

The Liberty meet was a two day affair, Dec. 10-11, in Lynchburg. Over 40 teams from Virginia and North Carolina competed. AHS boys finished 3rd, the girls 4th. Cam hit a PR of 7.20 in the 55m dash, placing 37th. Ryan ran the 1600m, for an 8th place 4:35.12, and the 1000m, for 5th at 2:43.84. Camron jumped in the Long Jump, 17' 5.5" (27th), and the Triple Jump, with a season best of 37' 1" (14th). Both young men competed in relays. Ryan was the anchor of the 4x8 that took second (8:35.15). Camron ran first leg of the 4x2, I had his split at 25.4, and the team placed 11th with a time of 1:40.47. Camron also anchored the 13th place 4x4 relay, with a total time of 3:45.42. Congrats to the boys and to the team.

Camron - 55m

Camron - Long Jump

Welcome Back Camron!

After a difficult season long hiatus due to injury, Cam was back with a vengence, competing in five events in the Louisa Polar Bear. His first event was the long jump, placing 7th with a 17' 3.25". Next up was the 55m dash, and Cam tied for 6th (7.30) against a deep Louisa sprint squad. The schedule was adjusted, and the 4x200 relay was Cam's next event. As the first leg, he opened up a 15m lead by the first zone. Team-wide handoffs were a problem, and the relay team placed second. Next, Cam returned to the pits to place third in the triple jump (36' 5"). His last race was the 300m, and he finished 12th with a time of 42.7. A great day overall, and I know we are as glad to see him back as he is to be there.

Indoor Has Begun

Saturday, Dec. 4, the Louisa County Polar Bear meet was held, with Albemarle, Orange and host Louisa participating. It was cold and windy, perfect weather for a Polar Bear meet. Ryan and Camron competed in 8 events total, and contributed over a third of the AHS boys 54 point total. Ryan finished first in the 1600m (4:41.8), 1000m (2:49.8), and was the second leg (0.55) of the 4x400 first place relay team. Cam gets his own write-up.
Next meet is Friday & Saturday in Lynchburg, at the Liberty University Christmas Invitational.

Nike XC Southeast Regionals

Ryan finished 120nd, and the #2 freshman overall, at the NXN SE Regionals in Cary, NC, with a 5K PR of 16:35.
This concludes the 2010 XC season, and on to Indoor Track. First meet is next Saturday at Louisa. Camron and Ryan have made the AHS varsity.

State Championships

The AHS boys team took third in the state AAA championship race at Great Meadow. Ryan was 60th overall, with a 5K PR of 16:41. Next up is the Nike XC Southeast Regionals in Cary, NC in two weeks.

Regionals

This rainy, cold afternoon, the AHS XC team advanced to the state meet with a fourth place team finish at Panorama Farms in the Northwest Regionals. Ryan placed 22nd overall, with a time of 16:51.2. The State Championship meet is next Saturday, November 13, in Warrenton.

Districts

Thursday, the AAA Commonwealth District Championships were held at Willowmere Park in Stafford. Five of the top ten teams in VA were vying for four slots to advance to Regionals. AHS was picked to finish fifth, but put together a great effort and finished third. Ryan placed 15th, earning All-District honors, with a 17:13.6. He was the #3 AHS runner to cross the finish line. Next up is Regionals, next Thursday at Panorama Farms.
The past two weeks, with most runners off and preparing for the championship season, Ryan maintained his #7 slot in the Ragged Mountain Poll.

10/14 Ragged Mountain Poll

Today, Ryan has the distinct honor of making the Poll twice, at #7 and at #13. Don't ask me how. His results from the AHS Invite are what landed him in the top 10, although they list his school as Woodberry Forest. His #13 ranking has him at AHS, but time listed is for the VMI meet. Anyway, congrats to Ryan. He is off from competition until the District meet at Willowmere Oct. 28.

Albemarle Invitational

The AHS varsity took the Invitational top team trophy Saturday. Ryan finished 22nd, out of 224 runners, and was #4 Albemarle finisher, with a 5K time of 17:03. Last Thursday, Ryan moved up to #12 in the latest Ragged Mountain Poll.

VMI Invitational

Saturday, Oct. 2, Ryan placed 8th in the varsity race in Lexington at the VMI Invitational, with a 5K time of 16:49 (PR). The team took third behind Blacksburg (#24 in the nation) and Jefferson Forest.
Thursday, Ryan retained his ranking of 14 in the weekly Ragged Mountain Poll.

Maymont Invitational

Ryan placed first in the Freshman Championship Race at Maymont. 2,200 Runners from 16 states competed in this premier East Coast cross country meet. Ryan's time of 18:12, over a tough 5K course, was 20 seconds better than the second place finisher from Delaware. The AHS freshman team took first place for the third consecutive year.

9/23 Ragged Mountain Poll

In this morning's Progress, Ryan moved up a slot to 14 despite not competing last week, and still the only freshman on the boys list. Ryan runs Saturday at the Maymont Invitational in Richmond. On a side note, his JV football team moved to 4-0, with victory over North Stafford last night.

9/16/10 Ragged Mountain Poll

Ryan is ranked 15th in the Ragged Mountain Central Virginia Cross Country Poll in today's Daily Progress. It is compiled of votes from area XC coaches. Pretty cool, since Ryan plays JV football full time, and does not practice with the XC team.

FUMA XC Invitational

Ryan placed 4th, of 250 runners, in the Patriot Division (Varsity B) three mile cross country race Saturday, with a time of 16:54.54.

1500m Finals - Junior Olympics

This is the official race video, and it has its problems. The beginning is out of focus, it freezes for a second or two mid-race, and the sound is low. Stay with it, as Ryan runs a beautiful race and wins gold.

AAU JO Primary Girls Long Jump

Way to go, Kiana! With a jump of 10'1/4", Kiana moved up from 64th seed to a 40th place finish. What an improvement, we are so proud of all you have done this season, and at both National Championships!

AAU Junior Olympics 1500m

Ryan won the gold medal for the Youth Boys division this morning, with an official time of 4:16.38. Second place was Shane Streich from Minnesota with a 4:21.69. Ryan's friend, Stanley Davis, of Henrico, placed third with a 4:22.18.
Ryan took the lead for good during the third lap, and did not let up. Congratulations to Ryan on his first National Championship title.

Medal Ceremony

AAU JO 1500m Youth Boys

Ryan opened up his lead on the final lap, and finished with a 4:16.37 to take gold.

Ryan Wins Gold at Junior Olympics

Starting the fourth lap, Ryan has a 10m lead over Stanley Davis.

AAU JO Primary Girls 100m

Kiana is running in Lane One, wearing the GCTC red uniform.

AAU JO Primary Girls 100m

Kiana placed 63rd in the 100m preliminaries, with a time of 16.62. She was able to move up six places from her mark time at the National Qualifier meet. We are so proud of Kiana, and wish her the best on Saturday with the Long Jump.

AAU Junior Olympics

The final track meet of the season has arrived - The AAU Junior Olympics National Championships. It is being held in Virginia this year, at Norfolk State University. Kiana will participate in two events, the 100m held Monday, August 2, and the Long Jump on Saturday, August 7. Ryan will run the 1500m on Thursday, August 5.
Congratulations to both athletes on making it this far, and Good Luck at the Olympics!

Ryan's 1500m At Nationals

Ryan's 800m At Nationals

Kiana At the AAU Primary Nationals

AAU Primary National Championships

Kiana brings home two medals from Nationals!!!
Despite stumbling at the first hurdle of the 40m Hurdle finals, she finished strong and with loads of heart. Kiana took the 8th place medal with an effort of 10.97.
Way to go Kiana!!! We are so very proud of your hard work, glad you had fun, and had a great experience.

AAU Primary Nationals Championships

Kiana jumped 8'0" in the Long Jump, placing 13th.
She advanced to the finals of the 40m Hurdles with a fifth place effort of 9.55.
Awesome performance Kiana, we are so proud of you. Good Luck tomorrow!

AAU Primary National Championships

At the ESPN Wide World of Sports Track & Field Complex in Orlando, Kiana took 6th place in the Primary Girls 8 Triathlon with 518 points. She ran a 16.35 in the 100m, jumped 7'6.25" in the long jump, and threw the shot put 13'1.25". Way to go Kiana!
She will jump again in the long jump and run the 40m hurdles later today. Bring home some more National Championship medals!!!!

AAU Primary National Championships

This weekend Kiana will be competing in multiple events in Orlando at the 2nd annual AAU Primary National Championships. Best of luck in competition Kiana, make those pink spikes fly! We are all rooting for your success!

Three National Championship Medals

Sunday

The final of the 1500m was run Sunday morning. On the third lap, as with the previous laps, Ryan sat in 4th, boxed in and hugging the rail. With 75m to go, Ryan kicks past Batista to take second place with a time of 4:15.78. Five athletes in this race were below 4:20.

Saturday

Saturday was the finals for the 800m. After sitting back in 5th place for most of the first lap, Ryan accelerates with 150m to go. He finished a close second, 2:01.56, to earn his second trip to the medal podium.

Friday Afternoon

Friday afternoon Ryan competed in the triple jump. His last of six jumps was his best, with a 34'6.75" effort. He received a fifth place medal for that jump.

Friday Morning

Friday morning brought the prelims for the 1500m. Shown here on the second lap, in sixth place, Ryan eventually moved up and took second in his heat with a 4:20.57. His time placed him third seed for the finals.

Thursday

Ryan ran the prelims for the 800m, finishing first in his heat with a 2:07.07. Shown here with 250m to go, he starts his kick.

Wednesday

We arrived in Chicago Tuesday morning, and Wednesday made it out to Lisle to get a feel for the track and meet atmosphere. Ryan got a couple laps in on the track, and said it was a fast one.

Final Day of USATF Nationals

Sunday brought Virginia-like weather to Lisle, and two southern boys rocked the field in the 1500m. Ryan took second to Bailey Roth, from Atlanta. Ryan ran a smart race, taking another five seconds off his previous PR for a 4:15.78.
Final medal total was two seconds and a fifth. He dropped his 800 time six seconds, and 1500 time almost eleven seconds. He increased his TJ mark by almost a foot.
Good to be home, and congrats to Ryan.

USATF Nationals - Day3

Saturday brought the heat and the finals of the 800m. Ryan finished second, .29 seconds off the first place time. He shaved six seconds from Thursday's PR, with a new PR of 2:01.56.

USATF Nationals - Day 2

Friday was another incredible day at the Outdoor Championships. In the morning, Ryan ran the semis for the 1500m. Going in seeded 6th, Ryan placed second in his heat. His time of 4:20.57 moved him up to 3rd seed in the finals, and took over four seconds off his PR.
Friday afternoon brought the triple jump, and Ryan started as tenth seed. After prelims, he made the finals and was re-seeded as 6th. His final jump of 10.53m (~34'7" & PR) landed him on the medal podium as 5th in the nation. Ryan nailed all 6 jumps without a scratch.

USATF Outdoor Championships

Greetings from Chicago. Ryan's first day of competition was awesome, running in the semis of the 800m. Seeded third going in, Ryan finished with a PR 2:07.07 and will go into Saturday's finals seeded second.

USATF Youth Outdoor Championships

Ryan will be competing in Lisle, Ill. this week in the USATF Nationals. He is currently seeded 10th in the Triple Jump, 6th in the 1500m, and 3rd in the 800m. Results are posted as they happen, on the USATF website.

Good Luck Ryan!

Kiana's 100m Final

Results are finally posted, and Kiana finished 8th in the Primary Girls 100m, with a time of 16.51.

Congratulations on an incredible performance Kiana!!!

AAU Junior Olympics

Kiana and Ryan participated in the Region 3 Junior Olympics National Qualifier Sat. and Sun. June 26-27. Top eight finishers in each event qualify to compete in the AAU Junior Olympics Nationals the first week of August.

Kiana did exceptionally well, advancing in two of her three events. She placed 8th in the semis of the 100m with a 16.56. As the eighth seed in the finals, she automatically advances. Results of the finals will be posted when received. Kiana also placed fifth in the Long Jump, with a best jump of 8'-11". In the 200m, Kiana finished 11th with a 36.96.

Ryan's only event was the 1500m, and he placed second with a PR of 4:24.96.

Congratulations to Kiana and Ryan for advancing to the AAU Junior Olympics.

The end of a great season...

It is time to call it and end the season due to so many other sports obligations and vacations that all of our members are partaking in this summer. Everyone showed so much improvement and the coaches hope that everyone learned a lot and had a lot of fun. We sure did! What a great group of young runners. Or course, we can not forget the parents for your support and dedication to bringing your children to practice and driving to various meets. GCTC rules!

There are a few more summer track meets that some of our runners are participating in and we wish them all the best of luck. Please keep running ..... whether it be playing soccer, field hockey, around the backyard, or whatever your heart desires.

Everyone keep in touch. We can continue to use the GCTC blog to communicate what is happening with our runners. If anyone is heading to the track for a practice, let others know so maybe others are available.

Until we run again.....................

Practices

There will not be practice on Sunday, June 20th. Happy Father's Day. Practice Monday the 21st is up in the air. Ryan & Camron leave for FLA during normal practice time, and the coaches wish to see their boys off on their trip. Stay tuned for updates.

Weekend Meets

Good Luck to those competing this coming Saturday. Kiana is on the road to Hampton, running (and jumping) in the USATF Junior Olympics State Championships. Jeremiah will be trying to advance out of the District Hershey meet at UVa's Lannigan Track. He will up against competitors from 17 Virginia counties, and the top two in each event will advance to the Hershey State Championships, also at UVa. I apologize if I have left anyone out - please let me know and I will edit this post (Andrew, Maddie & Ellie).

Flames Invitational

Virginia Beach. 95 degrees with breeze. 44 teams. 1100 athletes.
Ryan placed second in the 800m with a 2:10.06. Almost run off the track by the outside pack at the start (from the 2 hole), and took 200m to get up to 4th position. Ran down Malcolm with 50m remaining to get second. Triple Jump was a mixup, switching twice between pits, not allowing run throughs because of schedule. PR'd on his first jump (33'9.5"), and bettered that with his second. Ryan finished third with a 34'0". Injured his back on the third jump, reaching for the board. Trainer told him to rest the muscle strain for a week, and thus the 1500m was scratched. Good day despite the problems.

Henrico Pacers - Sydney

Henrico Pacers - Maddie & Ellie

Henrico Pacers - Ryan 1500m

Henrico Pacers - Andrew 100m

Henrico Pacers - Kiana 100m

Henrico Pacers Results

Here are the team results from yesterday's meet:
Kiana
100m - 10th 17.03
200m - 7th 35.72 PR
400m - 8th 1:24.82 PR
LJ - 3rd 9'1" tied PR

Andrew
100m - 37th 16.65 PR
400m - 33rd 1:26.84 PR
LJ - 15th 9'5.75" PR

Sydney
200m - 23rd 41.99 PR
400m - 14th 1:33.71 PR
LJ - 4th 8'9.5" PR

Ellie
400m - 11th 1:31.60
800m - 2nd 3:30.62
LJ - 4th 8'9.5" PR

Maddie
LJ - 10th 8'2"

Ryan
1500m - 1st 4:31.52
LJ - 4th 15'8"

Congratulations to all who competed!

Charlottesville All-Comers Meets

Info on the Charlottesville Track Club's summer meets is linked on the sidebar. June 17, June 24, July 1 and July 8 at 6:30pm at the CHS track (change from last year @ UVa). Cost for CTC members is $1, and non-members $2.

Henrico Pacers & Flames Invitationals

Deadline for entry into the June 5 Henrico Pacers Invitational is June 2. CoachO.com is the registration site. Info on the clickable link on the sidebar. This meet is near Richmond.

Deadline for the June 12th Flames Invitational is June 9, and CoachO is where to go. Jumps are a little different in this meet. Athletes will get one jump to meet the qualifying standards, then three more if they make the cut. Standards are posted in the info packet linked on the sidebar. The Flames meet is in Virginia Beach.

No Practice Memorial Day

Sorry folks, I misunderstood the practice schedule for the weekend. Practice on Sunday, May 30 at 1:00. There will be no practice Monday, May 31. Wednesday, June 2, practice back to normal time at 5:00.

Suffolk Stars - Maddie 800m

Suffolk Stars - Ellie 400m

Suffolk Stars - Maddie Long Jump

Suffolk Stars Update

Results were finally posted, and sorry for the delay in getting the 800m results up on the GCTC blog. Maddie ran a 3:56.62 in the Bantam race, while Ellie got a PR, and 4th place, with a 3:30.51 in the Sub-Bantam division. Once again, congrats to both girls on an excellent meet.

Memorial Day Weekend Practices

Sunday's practice has been changed from 2:00 to 1:00 start. Practice should last no longer than an hour.
Monday's practice is at 5:00.

Upcoming Meets

Check out the sidebar for info on upcoming meets this summer, both AAU & USATF.

Reminder to the Athletes

The point of the GCTC is to introduce youngsters to the sport of track & field. As you get older, and remain in the sport, you will have many coaches. The efforts at practice and the respect you show the coaches should go hand in hand, both at the top of your ability. Our coaches are volunteers, parents, and track & field fans, with many years as competitors and coaches. You, as athletes, should respect your coach, regardless of the sport, at all times, whether at practice or at a meet. There is always time for silliness and fun, but never for disrespect.

Sufflok Stars - Ellie Long Jump

First place jump! The wind from her approach knocked over a marker cone!

GCTC Stars at the Suffolk Stars Invitational

Maddie & Ellie made the long return trip to Suffolk's Lakeland HS, site of the Real Deal Classic, this past Saturday. Results are not posted yet for their 800m races, but the young ladies showed what hard work at practice does for the PR. Both girls PR'ed in the long jump, with Maddie leaping 8' 4.5", and Ellie placing first in her division with a 8'3" jump. In the 400m, once again PRs for both, Maddie ran a 1;38.19, and Ellie clocked a 1:30.10.
What a performance on a rather dreary weather day! Congrats to both!

Pictures to follow as they become available.

Hershey Ribbon Winners

Jeremiah, Maddie & Ellie after the Hershey meet in Greene.

Hershey Local Meet - Jeremiah

Jeremiah shows great running form as he completes his come-from-behind victory.

What a jump! 6'4"

Congratulations Jeremiah on your incredible performance Saturday.

(Don't forget to click on the photo to enlarge)

Hershey Local Meet - Maddie

Maddie added to her first place ribbon for jumping with TWO more first place ribbons in the 200m and the 400m. She ran a 42.5 200m and got a PR in the 400m with a 1:39.9!!! What an run! She dropped two seconds off her Real Deal PR from last weekend.

Excellent effort, Maddie!!!

Hershey Local Meet - Maddie

Maddie scored big with a first place jump of 4'11". Just look at the arm extention, and is easy to see why she had such a great jump. Way to go, Maddie!

Hershey Local Meet - The Boys

Andrew rocked the 400m with a first place finish and a time of 1:29.9. Rumor has it that he also got first in a relay.
Jeremiah had an incredible day, with three - count them three! - first place finishes. He jumped 6'4" in the Broad Jump, ran 7.47 in the 50m, and 15.53 in the 100m. Jeremiah came from behind in both running events to get victories.
Congratulations to both boys!
Pictures will be posted as they become available (thanks Michele!)

Technique 800m

Ryan placed 2nd in the 800m with a 2:08.32. Both Stanley (2:07.38) and Ryan broke the previous meet record for the 800.

Pictured in the lead pack, from left to right, are Ryan, Malcolm and Stanley. It is anticipated that these three boys will form the core of a 4x800 relay team that should make a run at the AAU JO National Championship.

Technique 1500m

The 1500m included Youth Boys and Open Men divisions. Ryan placed first over all, with a meet record 4:28.38, shattering the previous Youth Boys record by 18 seconds.

In the 400m, Ryan placed 7th, with a PR of 0:57.70.

Technique Long Jump

Ryan took 4th in the Youth Boys Long Jump with an effort of 16'6.5".

May 15 Meets

There are three USATF meets available this coming weekend:
Firebird Invitational, Gaithersburg, MD. Even the team website does not list meet, so no info available. There are telephone numbers on the PVA website Youth Schedule document.
Tommie Smith Invitational, Washington DC. Never been, don't know what to expect. Registration is CoachO.com
Technique Relays, Hampton, VA. Armstrong Stadium, Hampton University. Nice track, big stadium, little room for tents inside. Same teams as the Real Deal Classic. Registration is CoachO.com ($11.63 per) and closes 5/12 midnite. The Thomases are attending this one.
If I remember correctly, Greene County Hershey local meet is the 15th, too. No cost, at WMHS track. Plenty of room for tents.

Ellie Long Jumping

Real Deal Results

Wow, what a day for the young ladies.
According to what I could find, looks like we have seven Personal Records (PRs). Maddie got three with a 1:41.20 400m, 3:54.94 800m, and a Long Jump of 8'2". Ellie PR'ed in the 400m, 132.29 and the 800m finishing 4th with 3:30.73. She also jumped 8'0", getting her third PR of the day. Kiana improved in the 100m, with a PR of 16.43 (5th). She also took second in the long jump with an 8'11" mark. Kiana also ran a 1:27.92 400m, finishing seventh.
Camron was feeling the pain from his hip injury, and was unable to compete at his normal level of excellence.
Congratulations to the team, always improving!!!
Hope you feel better soon, Cam.

Southern Track Classic

Friday, May 7th, Ryan (#652) ran the Emerging Elite Mile for 8th & 9th graders at Sportsbacker Stadium in Richmond. Out of a field of 15, Ryan finished 8th (seeded 11th) with a PR & an official time of 4:44.23. After race quote: "Next year I'm going to win this race."

Congratulations to Ryan for a race well run.

Updates

Looks like the a strong team will be at the Real Deal Classic. Good luck Maddie, Ellie, Kiana & Camron!!!
Congrats to Maddie & Ellie for their performance at Sonic Boom. Your efforts raise the award total from ten to twelve for the team at Sonic. Great job!!!
Ryan is running in the Emerging Elite Mile at the Southern Track Classic Friday night. Good luck to Ryan.
Go Greene!

Mother's Day

Track practice is cancelled for Sunday, May 9.
Happy Mother's Day to all moms out there.

Weekend Meets

Busy weekend for the club...
Don't know for sure, but it looks like the team will be scattered over the area, with featured meets in Landover, Suffolk and Richmond. Good luck to all who compete. Results will be posted next week.

Coolest Athletes in the World

Hershey Track & Field

Greene County will hold a local qualifier for the Hershey Track & Field program Saturday May 15th. Julius Bates has indicated that he does have a rain date, if needed (Thanks for the info Michele). Coach Hatchett has entries for the Charlottesville/Albemarle one at Monticello High School. You may run in only one local meet. Top two or three in each event advance to Districts and State Championships (all in Charlottesville), with a chance to run in the Nationals in Hershey PA. This program is free to enter, birth certificate required if you move on out of locals. Historically, there is about a hundred athletes competing at the Charlottesville meet. The two times Greene has held it, there has been less than 20 participating.

Next Meet

With the boys having a middle school meet Saturday, May 1, it looks like the following weekend's lineup (May 8) will be the earliest possible USATF meets. The Potomac Valley has the Glen Arden Invitational at the Prince George's Complex. Virginia Association has the Real Deal Classic in Suffolk. Registration for the Real Deal is done on CoachO.com and the deadline is May 4.

Last Note on Sonic Boom

The posted pictures will probably scroll off the main page - just hit older posts at the bottom to continue. By clicking on each photo, it should enlarge (I hope). Thanks Sasha, I editted the Boom Boom Boom post to include Syndey's long jump award. Thanks to all that attended.

400 m - Kiana