Today is Region and the nerves are running high on all accounts. I was just as nervous for all the athletes as I am when I have a race. The kids had a fun time driving up, they warmed up together as a team, and had a great time together at the meet cheering each other on. They are a very close group and are always there for each other. It was beautiful out, a little cold and windy, but beautiful... Coach Thompson gave his motivational speech before the meet and the kids (and coaches) were really inspired and pumped up by it.
Despite all the nervous energy, the team came out today and competed!!! They did what they had to do and then some (they went the extra mile :)). Our entire team looked strong and confident and went for their goal.
As for the distance runners... The guys took 1st and 3rd in the mile to score some big points for the team. It was an exciting race to watch. It was an all out sprint for 1st, and RJ won by a fraction of a second (he leaned a little more forward than the 2nd place person to beat him out). The other boys ran well and some PR'd even in the wind. It was fun to watch them race well and give it their all. We had HUGE performances in multiple events--especially the field events! We scored 24 points in the Boys High Jump, 19 points in the Boys Javelin, 11 points in the Girls Long Jump, among other point scorers. We also qualified a lot of kids in many sprint races for tomorrow's finals.
We (the coaches) were in charge of running the long jump... That was nice for us because we were able to cheer on the runners while they were racing. Well... Coach Warr had to keep burying Coach Hughes' foot every single time in the sand. She came home with half the sand from the pit. :/ Gary (our most faithful fan and bus driver) insisted on helping to with the long jump. We love him! By the end of the meet... Our boys were in 1st place and the girls in 2nd, I believe. But as Coach Thompson stated... No one cares who is ahead the 1st day, it all comes down to the 2nd day. It will be tough to hold onto both positions (from the males and females) because there is tough competition! But, if everyone does what they are very capable of doing, they should be able to hold on! Now another day to be anxious and nervous! ;) We love coaching and love the feeling of being nervous for the kids. It's a joy sharing their triumphs and even their disappointments! They have helped us, as coaches, grow in so many ways.
2nd Day of Region:
It was off to the 2nd day of our Region (finals) track meet. It went as well as it could have gone!!! The boys did everything that they had to and then some to pull off a #1 Place In Region. They beat the 2nd place team by 72 points (we had 171 points total and the next team had 98 points... We were only supposed to win by about 10 points over the 2nd place team). The guys did well!
(As you can see... We as coaches were in charge of long jump again ;)). It was so fun to watch our athletes in this event.)
The team left our coaches speechless on many accounts. Every one of them performed amazingly! As coaches, we've never been more proud of a group of teenage kids. They truly rose to the occasion!
Another BIG shout out to RJ and Tate... They raced to compete and to win! In the 2 mile, that is just what they did. Tate took 1st and RJ took 2nd on a battle against each other to the finish. They were not even a second apart. They ran it very smart and pulled away from the pack the last 400. These 2 have been back and forth throughout the entire season and have helped each other grow mentally and physically!
For the 800's today... 4 of our distance runners placed in the top 8 to score the boy's team more points. It was exciting. I will say that about the sprints and field events as well... Many placed, where on paper going into the event, they shouldn't have. The 4 x 100 took first and their 4 x 400 took 2nd barely missing the 1st place by a fraction of a second. The throwers (disc and shot put), did well and the long jump guys all did well. They gave it their all the past 2 days!!!
For the girls... It was the same. They went out to compete and they did well! The entire meet was exciting to watch. We had one of the high jump girls take 1st when going into it she was supposed to take 4th... There were a couple more that scored points and qualified for state. The javelin girls threw well and scored high in points and qualified in State. The throwers and long jumpers held their spot and did what they were supposed to do to PR and earn team points. Our sprinters raced so well, taking 1st in the 4 x 4, and breaking their own PR's, school records, qualifying for State, etc. (Both the male and females we had many qualify for State... very exciting.)
The team came together and helped each other out! I do want to say that that was the best part... Watching the entire team cheer on their teammates. This is A great group of kids!
We love coaching and seeing all the athletes through their journey... Every runner/field event person on our team made us (the coaches) proud today! Nice job and Good times!!!
