Track team burns rubber at regionals

Blair's indoor track team provided stiff competition for its opponents on Feb 4 at the regional meet, placing high in many heats and qualifying one member for the state championships.

Senior Julia Elliott will represent Blair at states on Feb 19 after placing second in her heat and fourth overall in the 55-meter-dash. Elliott's smooth pacing and decisive finish contributed to the runner's impressive 7.02-second time.

Co-coach Carlene Hawkins attributes Elliott's success to her stellar technique. "[Elliott] is running relaxed yet powerfully," according to Hawkins. "She's coming out of the blocks strong with a low-to-high rise that propels her forward and helps her to cover a lot of distance in a little bit of time."

The girls also remained strong in the 1600-meter-run, in which senior co-captain Hayley Wynn secured fifth place in her heat at 5:55 and junior Laurel Jefferson tail-gated the runners in front of her to finish with a time of 5:40, three seconds faster than her previous time in the event. However, Jefferson fell to ninth place at the end of the run.

In the boys' arena, senior Ruben Galbraith placed second and third in his heats in the 800 and 1600-meter-runs. Galbraith's even splits and steady pacing earned him a time of 2:19 in the 800-meter-run and a personal best time of 5:07.51 in the 1600-meter-run.

Senior co-captain Jossi Fritz-Mauer also attracted attention as he strategically rocketed from ninth to third place in his heat in the final 600 meters of the 1600-meter-run.

Co-coach James Short attributed Fritz-Mauer's concluding drive to his crowd-weaving abilities. "Jossi ran a smart race," Short said. "He did a good job of not getting pinned into the pack."