HIGH SCHOOL TRACK AND FIELD FPC relay team headed to state meet

    Over the last decade, one of the strengths of Flagler Palm Coast’s vaunted track program has been the excellence in relay events, and it looks like the Class 4A state meet will be no exception.

   The Bulldogs’ 4x400 relay team of Vijay Weeden, Brandon Kalasnik, Marcus Freeman and Matt Flint took second place in photo finish fashion May 1 at the Region 1-4A track meet at FPC’s Sal Campanella Memorial Stadium. The foursome ran the final event of the region meet in 3:21.58, and for the second week in a row was nipped at the wire by DeLand, which won in less than a half second at 3:21.24. Lake Mary made it an exciting 3-way finish with a time of 3:21.61  

    Both teams were entered in the fast heat of the meet-ending 4x400 and could be set up for a rematch at states May 8 at Hodges Stadium at the University of North Florida in Jacksonville. DeLand also edged FPC at the District meet two weeks earlier.  

   The FPC girls’ team will be represented in two events by Jada Williams, a junior distance runner. Williams took third place in the 3,200-meter run at a time of 11:28.14 and finished fourth earlier in the meter in the 1,600, timed at 5:12.37. Williams is an outstanding three-sport athlete running cross country and on the Lady Bulldogs’ girls’ soccer team.

    FPC had other athletes place at the regional meet, but no one else in the top four of their events. The 4x100 relay team (Freeman, Marcus Allen, Isaiah Joseph and Dennis Murray) took sixth, timed at 42.52 seconds, and Freeman was sixth in the high jump at 6 feet, 3 1/2 inches. Aaron Gallon jumped 42-1 for eighth in the high jump, and Josh Terry also claimed eighth in the pole vault with a top vault of 12-9 1/2.

    The girls team had entrants in three other events at regionals including two relay teams, but javelin thrower Candice Schweizer was the only athlete scoring points, chucking the javelin 93-9 for seventh.

Matanzas at District 1-3A

   Jayce Friendly was the only Pirate athlete scoring at the May 1 meet at Orange Park by taking eighth in the boys 400 meters. Friendly sprinted to a 51.48 second finish in the event, but was not able to qualify.

    Matanzas’s boys team just missed scoring in the 3,200-meter run when Zach Spooner ran 10:19.98 for ninth place. The girls team also had ninth-place finishes from Taylor Washington in the 100 hurdles at 16.48 seconds and the 4x100 relay team, clocked at 51.37 seconds. Washington was also entered in the 300 hurdles and the high jump and Elektra Engblom entered in the 200 meters and long jump, but neither athlete registered a top 10 performance.