Golden hour in Pennsylvania
Published 7:32 pm Tuesday, April 28, 2015
NRHS track reaches new heights
When gold watches are being handed out, many would assume someone was retiring. But last week, the Nansemond River High School girls’ 4×400-meter relay team received them for a very different reason.
The Nansemond River High School girls’ 4×400-meter relay team showcases their gold watches they earned at the 2015 Penn Relays Carnival. From left: Syaira Richardson, Brandeé Johnson, Candice James and Kara Lyles.
It was being honored for finishing as the top American squad in its event at The Penn Relays Carnival, an international meet in Philadelphia.
Warriors coach Justin Byron said this year’s Penn Relays were “a program-changing event” for Nansemond River because of his athletes’ performances.
“They were able to go out there and really make some history,” he said.
The 4×400 team of seniors Candice James, Kara Lyles, junior Brandeé Johnson and sophomore Syaira Richardson took third place, beat out by only two teams from Jamaica. A total of 623 teams competed in the preliminaries.
The four Suffolk girls broke the Nansemond River school record with a time of 3:43.03, which is currently ranked No. 3 all-time in the state of Virginia, just behind Landstown and Western Branch high schools.
Seeing his athletes run like they did, Byron said, “The only word that comes to mind is ‘ecstatic.’”
He said he was researching with MileStat.com to determine the last time a girls’ 4×400 relay team from Virginia had earned gold watches at the Penn Relays. He said it has not happened in at least the last 15 years.
They performed well despite far less than optimal conditions, as the temperature was in the 40s on Thursday, which Byron described as miserable, and it was in the low 50s on Friday, which he described as bad.
He said he just tried to remind his athletes of the even playing field.
“The cold weather’s not just in your lane,” he quipped.
Lady Warriors senior Zakiya Rashid finished fourth in the girls’ discus throw with a 43.85-meter throw. Out of 18 competitors, including six international athletes, she was bettered by only two girls from Jamaica and one from New Jersey.
Brandeé Johnson finished fourth in the girls’ 400-meter hurdles out of 23 competitors, including five international athletes. She produced a time of 1:01.50.
The girls’ 4×100-meter relay team took 22nd out of 616 teams in the preliminaries, even after a very rough transition from Lyles to Johnson. Nansemond River finished with a time of 48.96 seconds.
The team of Lyles, Johnson, junior Dajae’ Goulet and freshman Asia Crocker ended up winning the small school division of the 4×100 with a time of 47.72 seconds.
Nansemond River’s boys earned a medal in their 4×400-meter relay, finishing third in their heat. During the prelims, the team of seniors Kadeem Middleton, Tasheim Theodore and Xavier Williams and junior Jonas Jones placed 84th out of 550 teams with a time of 3:25.88.
Byron said it is scary for his athletes to run this fast this early in the outdoor season because now they need to hold that, but “on the other hand, it’s exciting.”
They will take some time off before returning to action in the Southern Track Classic on May 8 in Richmond.
