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Everyone Qualifies!

flyers_high_school_kids

All Flyers Qualify for National Meet

Isa Sails Jav for Win

Coburn Finds the Right Steps in the Triple

Even though the Region 10 Meet was away from the hot sweltering heat of Phoenix, the crazy Colorado weather gave us lightning, mugginess and wind gusts at times – nonetheless, the Flyers performed quite well over that weekend.

9-10 Division

Isa Allison  felt pretty confident that she should make it to Nationals (top 5 in each event qualify), but the question was would she be the victor up in Colorado. Isa proved to be the tenacious competitor as she threw a new club record and PR in the javelin (22.51m), which got her the 1st place victory and an outside chance at becoming an All-American for the second year in a row over in North Carolina (site of the National USATF Junior Olympic Championship).

Simon Reynolds still new to the javelin event, coming into the meet had a better than 50/50 chance to qualify for Nationals. Simon seemed focused and threw nearly his second best attempt of the season (24.50m) to take a surprising 3rd place medal and a spot on the Flyers cross-country flight back east.

11-12 Division 

Braden Lolli had a tough 800 meters on Saturday, where he was not at his sharpest and timed in at 2:29.66 for a 7th place finish. Disappointed, to say the least, “B” still had one more opportunity to get to Nationals in the 1500m on Sunday. Braden ran like a man possessed as he held onto the lead pack and mustered enough distance between himself and the 6th place runner, that once he crossed the line he had run his second-best time of the year (5:06.27) and, more importantly, gotten the final spot to Nationals. Micah Newkirk competed  like a champion in the 1500m, especially after a tough 4×800 the previous evening. Micah clocked in at 5:25.47 – not his best time, but a lot of heart in that race. Jake Blair a true competitor, stayed within himself to take 3rd place in the aero-javelin (32.18m). Jake is ready for great things at Nationals and getting though the Region 10 meet was the second hurdle of three – good luck Jake! Gael Pacheco, Maddox Moses, Jake Blair and Micah Newkirk ran in the boys 4×800 meter relay on Saturday night after a long wait due to lightning concerns in the area. The boys, while technically qualifying to Nationals because they were 2nd out of two teams in their division, didn’t have it that day and ran a sub-par time for them of 11:29.25. This entire 11-12 boys group had a great season in 2018 and with most of them moving up to 13-14 next year, we expect continued success.

15-16 Division  

Leopold Bond is definitely drinking for the Coach Todd Kool-Aid, as he qualified in all four events he competed in and attained club records and/or PRs in all of them. Leo won the triple jump in 12.13m, 3rd in the long jump (6.29m), and 4th in both the 100m and 200m (11.30 and 23.05). Leo will only be jumping at Nationals and we wish him the best of luck!

17-18 Division  

Cameron Peters had to long jump off his opposite foot due to heal issues, but that didn’t hurt him at all. Cameron had a PR in the long jump (6.72m) and found himself with a silver in the process. Cameron couldn’t find many legal jumps, unfortunately, in the triple jump and was just a hair shy of qualifying in that event as well. Kenya Coburn was having a rough Region meet as shes hit the first hurdle in the 100m hurdle final, which caused her to get 7th place and she took the dreaded 6th place in a very closely contested 100m final (12.61). Her last event was the triple jump and she made that worth the whole trip. She skimmed that runway like a smooth stone in a placid lake, and landed with a huge PR of 11.73m, which took first place and a great shot at gaining the All-American moniker in North Carolina.

Most of these Flyers will continue their season at the National USATF Junior Olympic Meet in Greensboro, NC on July 23-29.

Good luck to all!

Go Flyers!

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Great Performances at State J.O. Meet for Flyers

4x800 Flyers 11-12 Boys

Blair Gets Jav-Mojo Back – Junior Olympic State Champion

Boys 11-12 3200-Meter Relay Punches Ticket to Colorado

Bond – Quadruple Threat at JO State Meet

The Arizona weather gods were in kind spirits this past weekend as a light rain lowered the temperatures on Riggs Field at Mesa Community College, which lead to many great performances for our Phoenix Flyers.

8U Division

Antonoio Arana ended his season with two big PRs! Antonio threw 8.81 meters in the mini-javelin, which got him a 5th place ribbon and also ran a blistering time in the 100-meters, as he flew under the 18-second mark with a time of 17.84 seconds.

Auggie Grimm was no ghost this weekend and made his presence felt by all. Auggie ran a phenomenal 14.96 second 100-meter prelim, which got him into the 100-meter final, where he just missed qualifying for the Colorado Region Meet with his 5th place finish. Auggie also sprinted another PR in the 200, where he crossed the line in 31.95. Maybe if we can get more track and less baseball from Auggie next season, we will all be a witness to some even more amazing times than he had this spring. Isaiah Crowder had a good weekend on the track and field. Isaiah ran a new PR in the 100 m with a time of 16.18 and threw a very respectable 20.10 meter mark in the javelin to close out a terrific first season with the Flyers. Isa Allison had two PRs and club records this weekend. Isa threw 21.45 m in the javelin to take 2nd overall and set a new club  and personal record. Isa also jumped 3.46 m in the long jump, which was a huge PR for her and also another club record.  Emerson Rhodes, who due to a scheduling snafu only competed in one event this weekend, but luckily it was her favorite one – the long jump. Emerson “Tigger” Rhodes, as I affectionately call her, didn’t disappoint as she bounced down the runway with an amazing new PR and new club record (which she now shares with Isa) of 3.46 meters. Simon Reynolds was battling some sort of stomach-bug all week, which had me pull him from the 1500 meter on Saturday. But Simon has been wanting to throw the javelin all season and he looked like he had some promise. On Sunday he showed why it was a good decision to put him in the mini-jav, as he snatched the final spot to the Region meet with a great throw of 24.63 m for 4th place. Simon did manage to also run the 800 m on Sunday, where he ran a solid 2:58.31. Max Columbus who just turned 9 this past weekend, had a  great JO meet. Max threw a HUUUUUGE PR in the javelin of 23.97 m for 5th place and jumped another PR in the long jump, where he launched himself 3.34 meters into the sand pit. Max also ran a very good 800 meters in 3:04.62.

11-12 Division 

Ava Clegg had a great weekend in the throws. Ava set a new PR, club record and took 3rd place in the discus (16.32 m) to qualify for Colorado. Ava also took third in the shot put, where she found a mark over 7 meters (7.24), which is her 2nd best throw all-time. Braden Lolli had some stiff competition in the middle-distance events, but “B” came up smelling like roses in both the 800 and 1500 events. B got out-kicked in the 1500 to take 2nd place and had a gutsy finish in the 800 to nudge out a 3rd place and qualify for his second event of the weekend for the Region 10 Championships. Micah Newkirk ran hard in the 1500 and he managed to hold off enough competitors to snatch the 3rd place medal with a 5:18.44 finish. Micah also lead the team’s 4×800 relay, which qualified easily, but showed it would not be outrun by any 11-12 girls’ teams, as the boys managed to win the race outright. Ginger Money had a very good weekend to end her 2018 season. Ginger ran a sold 3:13.95 in the 800 m, but really showed her stuff in the 1500 m, where she ran possibly her fastest 1500 m of the year with a time of 6:26.24 (which equates to a 6:55 mile). Jake Blair has got his jav-mojo back as he won the boys’ aero-javelin with his second best throw ever (34.30 m) and Jake also ran the second-leg of the boys’ 4×800 relay with a sound split. Alex Columbus had such a great track season this year – his first with the Flyers. And in his first ever season doing the javelin, he took to it quite admirably. He was laser focused in the boys’ javelin on Sunday, where he threw a great PR of 28.76 meters to take 6th place and is poised to throw even better next season with the 600-g javelin. Lucy Arana definitely ran hard both Saturday and Sunday, but unfortunately fell a bit short in grabbing a qualifying place in either the 1500 m or 3000 m races. Lucy ran 5:56.96 in the 1500 and 12:53.52 to wrap up a good season, but we know she’ll have even more fire in her eyes come her 2019 track campaign. Gael Pacheco just keeps getting faster each week. We had him at a 2:41.99 split in the boys’ 4×800 and on Sunday came back ran a 2:46.73, which is his official new open 800-meter PR for him as well. Maddox Moses ran in the boys 4×800 meter relay, but really showed his mettle in the 3000 m early the very next day, where he almost pulled off an amazing qualifying run by gaining ground on the 4th place runner, but Maddox unfortunately ran out of real estate and had to settle for 5th (12:02.34), but believe me he left everything out there on the track!

13-14 Division  

Macy Baerman  ran a scorching 15.74 100-meter, which is the first time Macy has ever run under 16 seconds! Macy also had another first for her, which was competing in the triple jump. Macy showed great promise as she hopped-skipped-and-jumped 8.08 meter for 5th place. Macy also long jumped 3.61 m and ran 34.12 in the 200 m to round out her weekend. Sebastian Arana had a puncher’s chance at breaking into the top 4 in the boys’ javelin, but unfortunately he couldn’t put all of the elements together to get that last qualifying spot and ended up throwing 26.50 meters, which is still his second best throw ever. Seb also threw the shot put on Saturday with a strong personal mark for him of 8.49 meters.

15-16 Division  

Maddy Shoemaker was on pace for an overall PR (high school or club) through the mile of the 3000 m, but after a long track season, her legs got a bit heavy and she crossed the line 1st in her age group, but short of her goal. Her time of 11:28.68 is still a club PR and club record – so that’s not too shabby, baby! Leopold Bond was able to qualify in four events, which is pretty impressive at any level. Leo took first in the triple jump (11.30 m), 4th in the long jump (5.61), 2nd in the 100 m (11.41/11.74) and 2nd in the 200 m (23.88/23.4). Leo has an excellent chance to go all the way to nationals in a number of his events – way to go, Leo!

17-18 Division  

Kenya Coburn is really feeling her groove now, sista! Kenya took 3rd in the 100-meter hurdles and ran a big PR of 15.29. She jumped another PR in the triple jump (10.99 m) for 2nd and ran a third PR in the 100 m (12.44 in prelims) for took 3rd place in the 100-meter finals on Sunday in 12.94. Cameron Peters another one of Coach Todd’s Tempe Buffaloes came out to join the Flyers and qualified for Region in two events. Cameron jumped 12.73 m for 2nd in the triple jump and 6.20 m in the long jump for a 2nd place finish as well. Cameron did make the finals in both the 100 (11.58) and 200 (23.70), but wasn’t able to capture a 4th place slot in either.

Some of our Flyers will continue their season at the Region 10 USATF Junior Olympic Meet in Aurora, CO on July 5-8.

As always, it’s been a pleasure coaching all of you. Thank you this year to our great coaches (Elam Pacheco, Kim Mays, Maria Arana and Coach Larry Todd). It’s truly wonderful to see how our kids improve over the course of 4-5 months. We are lucky to have great parental support and kids with great attitudes (well…usually)…Seriously, to all of you whose season is finished – congrats on a great 2018. Hope to see you all next year. To the remaining athletes, let’s keep pushing for greatness!

Go Flyers!

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Flyers Find Flashes of Fierceness at State

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Allison, Bond & Lolli – State Champions

As the weather starts warming up so does the competition for USATF AZ. The Flyers last week competed in the Arizona Association USATF State Championship meet at Mesa Community College with many PRs, state titles and breakthroughs.

8U Division

Antonoio Arana focused on making it into the finals once again in the mini-javelin, succeeded and managed to nab 8th place overall with a strong attempt at 6.93 meters. Antonio also ran a blistering personal best in the 100 meters, where he is now flirting with the sub-18-second barrier as he has now a new fastest time of 18.03. Although Rajah Morris took a page out of Auggie Grimm’s playbook of whisking in and out of the competition without being detected by Coach Allison, he did hustle down the straightaway as he produced a new PR in the 100 meters with a time of 20.76 seconds.

9-10 Division

Emerson Rhodes had quite a weekend. Emerson set three PRs for herself, including one new club record. Emerson ran a blistering 16.85 time in the 100, a swift 36.86 in the 200 and flew through the air like the Greek Goddess Nike with a mark of 3.33 meters, which got her into a very competitive long jump finals group. Max Columbus couldn’t find his track mojo last weekend, but gave his best effort nonetheless. Max ran a 1:19.81 in the 400 m, a 2:59.23 in the 800 m and threw 15.42 meters in the javelin. Isa Allison took the top place in the girls’ javelin with a strong throw of 20.75 meters. Isa also ran her best 100 meters ever with a new PR and club record of 16.30 seconds. Isa also jumped 3.01 m in the long jump. Simon Reynolds attained two 8th place finishes in the middle distance events last weeeknd. Simon ran a 2:54.60 in the 800 m and a 5:53.95 in the 1500 m, both times were just a hair away from Simon’s personal bests and sets him up well for a good chance to grab that 4th place spot in the State JO meet in three weeks.  Italia Eason got a bit hampered by the heat as she couldn’t find her best marks or times over the weekend, but put in a great effort anyway. Italia jumped 2.99 m, ran 17.86 (100 m) and 42.07 (200 m).  Auggie Grimm slipped in and out of the meet as seamless as a London fog, but left his mark by running a new PR in the 100 m (15.18) and also running a strong 200 m as well (33.06). isaiah Crowder had a terrific day throwing the javelin. He had a huge PR of 20.74 meters and took 7th place overall in a very deep field. Isaiah also ran 16.46 in the 100 meters and 34.53 seconds in the 200 meters.

11-12 Division 

Our largest age group, 11-12, saw nearly everyone attain a new PR over the weekend. Alex Columbus who showed great sportsmanship after his 800 with a fellow competitor, ran a new PR of 2:52.17 and also got closer to that sub-30-second barrier in the 200 m with a new PR of 30.35. Ava Clegg is becoming discus dynamite as she threw yet another PR, club record and finished 4th with a distance of 16.01 meters…do I smell 20 meters around the corner? Ava also placed 4th in the shot put with a mark of 6.27 m. Lucy Arana is on the comeback trail and it showed over the weekend, as she put in two very strong and gutsy performances. Lucy ran 2:49.96 (800) and 5:46.21 (1500), which are not her best times of the year but are trending now in the right direction after a bit of a medical set back over the past two to three weeks. Gael Pacheco another one of our up-and-coming 800-meter-studs ran a big PR as he crossed the line in 2:48.03 – his first time going under 2:50 in this event. Gael also ran 1:13.70 in the open 400 meter race. Maddox Moses is slowly but surely getting is speed back, as he managed to edge out Gael in the 800 m with a 2:47.50 (best time of this season) and also ran the 1500 meters in 5:54.33 to complete a very solid weekend on the up slope. Braden Lolli didn’t want to slow down in the 1500 meters, but he did apply the brakes ever-so-slightly to save some energy for his 800 m on Sunday. Braden managed an easy win in the 1500 m (5:10.19) and ran a very impressive 800 m in 2:26.65, which got him 2nd overall, a PR and a new club record. Micah Newkirk tried to take advantage of the fact that Braden wasn’t going to go full bore in the 1500 meters, but while he couldn’t catch Braden he did manage a commanding second place finish with a new PR by nearly 10 seconds (5:17.11). Micah also PR’d in the 800 m, where he took 5th overall and ran a quick clock of 2:34.74. Jake Blair is really showing his stuff in the 800 meters this year as he ran a wonderful personal best of 2:40.52 and also showed he’s finding his way back in the javelin as he placed 4th with a launch of 29.66 meters. Seth Henry’s looked comfortable out there in the 400 m, where he almost made it to the finals with a new PR of 1:08.36. Seth also ran 28.78 in the 200 meters for an extremely nice weekend effort.

13-14 Division  

Khaleb Henry had a tremendous foul in the discus, which would have gotten him close to 29 meters, but he still threw well with a new PR, club record and 5th place mark of 27.54 meters. Khaleb also took an 8th place ribbon in the shot put with a mark of 8.38 m. Robert Vloemans had a very good day. While he didn’t PR in any of his events, he was a whisper away from personal bests in each of them. In the 200 m Robert ran 29,72, in the discus he threw 22.19 m and in the shot put he got it 7.23 meters out there if the dirt. Charlie Allison in the events you were confident he’d do well in Charlie had a rough day. Charlie due to a myriad of issues only managed a 4.12 m long jump and 8.98 m triple jump – both way under his best efforts. But in Charlie’s first attempt at the 200 meter hurdles he seemed like a fish to water as he ran a blistering 28.53 race to take 3rd place overall. Matty Braun after a few weeks of being under the weather had a good weekend at State. Matty made finals in the long jump for 8th place with his best jump ever of 4.25 meters. Matty also PR’d in the 200 m with a time of 28.14 and lastly he ran 14.06 in the 100 m to round out the meet. Macy Baerman  PR’d in the 100 m with a time of 16.14, yet again showing some speed improvement as the season progresses. Macy jumped a solid 3.53 m in the long jump and nearly PR’d in the 200 m with her time of 33.16. Sebastian Arana threw strong and consistent in the javelin on Sunday as he had a huge PR of 27.38 m, which got him a 6th place ribbon. Sebastian was a little off his game in the shot put with a 7.82 m mark, but looks ready for State J.O. in a few weeks.

15-16 Division  

Maddy Shoemaker is back with us after her high school season and she came out looking strong and poised. She ran two PRs and club records – 2:34.26 in 800 m, where she placed 4th and 5:19.99 in the 1500 m, where she took 2nd. Maddy will be trying to qualify for the Region J.O. meet in three weeks as she moves up to the 3000-meter distance. Who is Leopold Bond? That’s what many of our younger kids were asking as they saw Leo speed around the track in the 100 m (1st – 11.54) and 200 m (1st – 23.13), as well as place first in the triple jump (11.36 m) and second in the long jump (5.89 m). All of those were club records by the way. So who is he? One of Coach Todd’s high school athletes from Tempe…Glad to have him with us.

17-18 Division  

Kenya Coburn is also back with us after her high school season at Tempe and she looked strong. Kenya jumped 4.82 m in the long jump (3rd), 12.76 in the 100 m (1st), 16.02 seconds in the 100 m hurdles (3rd) and leaped 10.37 m in the triple jump (2nd).

The Flyers will continue their season at the Arizona State Junior Olympic Meet on June 16-17 in three weeks at Mesa Community College.

Go Flyers!

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Middle Distance Runners Move to Faster Times

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Khaleb Henry & Ava Clegg Throw for New Club Records

With Coach Allison at Penn Relays and Coach Todd in the middle of a home move, our outstanding parents and awesome assistant coaches of the Flyers took control of the situation last Saturday for the final regulation meet of the season at McClintock High School in Tempe. There were over a dozen PRs set and a couple of club records in the hot Saturday sun.

8U Division

Rajah Morris is loving the 100 meters and showed that on Saturday as he set a new PR with a time of 21.01. He has a couple of more chances to get under the 21-second mark before the season ends, and we think he can do it! Antonoio Arana made the finals in the mini-javelin and took 8th overall with a solid throw for himself of 7.42 meters. Antonio also got close to his 100-meter PR with a fast time of 18.34.

9-10 Division

Max Columbus running 79 seconds in a 400 meter race would have been a good time for him, but when it is the first lap of his inaugural 800-meter race then it becomes more of a “Houston, we may have a problem” sort of situation. Max ended up taking 6th overall in the 800 m with a good time of 2:56.23. Max also ran 16.88 in the 100 m and threw 19.62 in the  javelin. Simon Reynolds was one of many who had triple distance duty on Saturday.  Simon ran a PR in the 400 of 1:19.37, a 5th place 800 m (2:55.16) and a 6:00.51 2nd-place 1500 m for a full and rewarding day.  Italia Eason, had a good day out on the track. While no PRs were had, she came close in two of her events. Italia jumped 2.93 m in the long jump, ran 17.94 in the 100 m and 40.65 in the 200 meters.  Auggie Grimm was given the mighty task of running his first 400 meters and he got by it unscathed. Auggie ran 1:25.03. Auggie came back to run the 100 m in a zippy time of 15.56 seconds.  Emerson Rhodes jumped big time on Saturday as she took 6th place with her best jump ever of 3.25 meters. Emerson also ran the 100 m in 17.23. Isa Allison also had a nice jump day at McClintock as she placed 8th with a mark of 3.22 meters. Isa also ran the 100 (17.11) and 200 (37.14) to wrap up a very long and hot day.

11-12 Division 

Gael Pacheco is another one of those runners who had triple duty. Gael had three good performances with times of 34.85 (200 m), 1:16.71 (400 m) and 2:56.56 (800 m).  Alex Columbus didn’t get DQ’d this week in the 800 and posted an official new PR for himself of 2:57.02. He also continues to throw well, as he took 3rd place in the aero-javelin (21.66 m) and ran a 1:15 400 m to round out his day. Braden Lolli coasted to victory in his first (and maybe only) 3000 m of this year, as he ran a PR and club record of 11:23.72. Braden came back nicely to take 3rd in the 800 m (2:32.82) and then found the strength to run a PR and club record in the 400 (64.32) to take 2nd place overall. Micah Newkirk had a terrific day. Micah had two PRs and a first place finish. Micah won the 1500 in 5:28.17, ran his best time in the 400 (1:11.62) and yet another best time in the 800 m (2:36.38) to take 4th.  Maddox Moses is putting the work in and getting his legs back. Maddox took 5th in the 3000 m (12:22.65), ran 79.21 in the 400 m and ran a season’s best in the 800 of 2:50.38. Jake Blair when he doesn’t come right from the football pitch to the track can really get those feet moving. Jake ran a strong PR in the 800 (2:44.83) and took 2nd in the aero-javelin with a mark of 28.71 m. Seth Henry’s ran a PR in the 400 m on Saturday (1:10.81) as well as running 30.53 in the 200 m and 14.53 in the 100 m. Ava Clegg is liking these throwing events as she set a club record and PR in the discus (15.75 m), while also taking 3rd place overall! Ava also took 4th in the shot put with a distance of 6.13 meters.

13-14 Division  

Khaleb Henry flexed his muscles and launched the discus 24.80 meters for a 4th place showing, as well as a PR and new club record. Khaleb also took 4th in the shot put with a thud of 8.44 meters.. Matty Braun fighting a cold all week did come out to perform admirably. He jumped a PR of 3.90 meters in the long jump, ran 15.03 in the 100 m and a 1:11.74 400-meter time. Macy Baerman  last meet ran a 200-meter PR, and on Saturday ran a 400-meter PR of 1:16.75. Macy jumped one of her better marks of the season (3.62 m) and also came through in 16.26 in the 100 m. Robert Vloemans thought running the 400 was optional, so he ended up just throwing – but throw well he did. Robert sliced the air with a new PR in the discus (22.71 m) for 5th place and took 7th in the shot put with a dust settling 7.85 m throw.

The Flyers are now into “Championship Season” with the USATF AZ State Meet up next on May 19-20 at Mesa Community College.

Go Flyers!

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Javelins Soar For Flyers at Phoenix Invitational

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Lolli Takes 3rd in 1500 Meters

The first two-day meet for the Flyers was last week as over 8 states were represented at the 54th Annual Phoenix Invitational at Mesa Community College. Many great performances and PRs were had by our Flyers over this two-day span.

8U Division

Antonoio Arana had a great meet.  He dropped over a second in his 100 meter time to run a season’s best of 18.25 and he also is getting a firm grip on the javelin (literally and figuratively) where he was one of many Flyers who threw for a PR. Antonio launched his rubber-tipped spear nearly 5 meters longer than his last performance with a strong mark of 8.05 meters.  Rajah Morris got to the meet on time and was able to compete in the 100 meters as well, where he ran close to a PR with a finishing kick of 21.49 seconds.

9-10 Division

 Isaiah Crowder keeps improving in the latter part of the season as he ran a new PR in the 100 meters with a time of 16.29 seconds. Isaiah also ran the 200 meters for the first time with a solid clocking of 33.86 and finished his meet up with the javelin as he threw 11.97 meters.  Emerson Rhodes had a nice PR in the 200 meters, as she sped by in 37.20. Emerson also jumped a solid 3.10 meters, but she has her eyes on a farther distance next time around. Emerson also ran a strong 100 in a time of 17.50. Isa Allison just missed a PR in the long jump with a 3.26 mark, but was still quite pleased with her performance. Isa had a huge PR (and club record) in the mini-javelin as she took 3rd place with a 21.35 m toss. I think it was a little early for Isa in the 200 as she ran with great effort, but her turnover got her a time of 35.30, which is a bit off off her fastest time for the season.  Max Columbus had a great weekend of competition. Max broke through the 80-second 400-meter barrier with a huge PR of 1:17.28. He also jumped great, as he learns this new event, with a new PR of 3.12 meters. Max also threw the javelin 18.82 meters to round out a fun and rewarding weekend. Italia Eason, due to a house move could only make one of her events last weekend, but the one event she made was worth the trip. Italia leaped a new PR and club record in the long jump with a great mark of 3.27 m – nice going!  Auggie Grimm was in and out of the meet due to other obligations, but the time he was there he made it count. Auggie sprinted a new PR in the 200 meters in a time of 32.57 seconds.

11-12 Division 

Braden Lolli was not too happy with his 800 meters at first because he was last in his heat; but when he found out that he had set a PR and new club record (2:27.73) his frown turned upside down. With this new confidence, he came out and ran a very strong 1500 meters in 5:04.49, which was again a PR, club record as well as a 3rd place overall finish. Braden was also part of the 4×800 team (Micah Newkirk, Jake Blair and Maddox Moses) that took 3rd overall in a time of 11:05.95. Micah Newkirk was still asleep on the first day, I think, as he ran his open 200 in 33.69, but he was definitely up and ready the following day in the 1500 meters. Micah took 7th overall in a tough field and ran a new PR of 5:26.82. Gael Pacheco each week gets faster and faster. Gael had two great personal performances. He ran a 4-second PR in the 800 with a time of 2:53.39 and came back the following day to run an over 1-second PR in the 400 (1:11.07). Gael also ran the 100 meters in 16.30.  Alex Columbus is figuring out the javelin each week more and more. He proved this on Sunday when he threw for a 2-meter PR (27.27 m) and took 9th overall in a very competitive field. The previous day, Alex’s 800-heat, due to an early cut-in by many of the runners, all got DQ’d, but unofficially we had Alex down with a time of 2:50, which would have been a huge PR. Alex did come back on Sunday to run the 400 and ran a gutsy lap in 1:12.73. Lucy Arana, after being sick for the past week, ran two races on fumes, unfortunately. Lucy clocked a 2:49.05 800 m and a 5:47.36 1500 m over the weekend. Once Lucy regains her strength, we know she’ll see those times fall dramatically. Maddox Moses slowly but surely is getting his legs back. He ran a 16.66 100 m, a 2:53.66 800 m, and ran a 2:51 split in the 4×800 relay. Jake Blair had a very nice PR in the open 800 m with a time of 2:45.16 and continues to improve in his  javelin throwing as he launched one for 31.83 m for a 5th place finish. Jake also ran a 2:52 split in the 4×800. Ava Clegg continues having a very strong and productive season. Ava took 6th overall in the discuss as she threw a PR and club record of 15.28 meters. Ava ran a PR in the 400 with a smooth time of 1:23.86 and also finished 7th in the shot put with a mark of 6.87 m. The timers mixed up Seth Henry’s time in the 100 m; but after looking at it, we saw that Seth crossed the line in 14.10 seconds. Due to breathing issues, both Seth and Khaleb didn’t come back to compete on Sunday, unfortunately.

13-14 Division  

Macy Baerman darted to a new PR in the 200 with a 33.11 effort. She also ran 16.55 in the 100 m later in the day and jumped 3.45 m in the long jump. Robert Vloemans dashed to his fastest 200 meters of the year with a strong finish of 29.27. Robert also placed 8th in the discuss (20.24 m) and thew 7.47 m in the shot put to round out his weekend in Mesa. Khaleb Henry due to the aforementioned breathing issues, only threw the shot put this past weekend and was a bit off his game as he launched it 7.45 meters Charlie Allison while not overall thrilled with his own performances this past weekend, did show some signs of improvement. Charlie ran a PR in the 400 m (62.16) and beat his own club record in the process. Charlie still is figuring out technique in the long jump, but did manage a 5.10 m 4th place finish there. Charlie showed good progress in the triple jump (10.10 m) where he took 1st and lastly, Charlie won the javelin in 40.04 m, which is a bit away from his best throw, but he did throw with an injured finger. Sebastian Arana had two strong 7th place finishes. Sebastian threw over 25-meters for the first time ever (25.02 m) in the javelin and threw another PR in the shot put (8.50 m) for a very good weekend.

The Flyers will be back to the track on April 28 at McClintock HS for the last regulation meet of the year.

Go Flyers!

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New Uniforms Brighten Flyers Performances

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Allison & Newkirk Win Javelin & 1500 Meters

Bright colors were all the rage for the Flyers on Saturday, as most of our athletes were donning our new neon green uniforms at the March 31st USATF AZ Regulation Meet at South Mountain High School. Although it was the first really hot day of the season (over 90-degrees) our Flyers were still producing their own winning heat on the track and in the field on Saturday.

9-10 Division

Isa Allison was hoping to take the day off from the javelin on Saturday and run the 100 and 200 instead. Luckily, this didn’t happen because Isa ended up with a PR, club record and winning the mini-javelin with a 20.05 meter blast. Isa also PR’d in the 200 by almost two seconds with a 34.73 time and had a good mark (off the wrong foot) of 3.01 meters in the long jump. Simon Reynolds doing his best Jim Whittaker impersonation on Friday by going on supposedly a “light hike”, still had enough gas in the tank on Saturday to run not one, but two PRs. Simon ran a 6th place 2:53.79 800-meter race and came back later in the afternoon screaming down the straightaway in the 200 meters (head bobbing and all) with a 35.41 finish.  Max Columbus was sooooo close getting three PRs on Saturday. He had a .01 improvement in the javelin (19.91 m) for 6th place, a 34.60 PR in the 200 and missed a third PR by .01 seconds in the 400 where he ran a gutsy 1:20.53 in the 400 – great job Max! Italia Eason jumped like a champ with a new PR in the long jump with a strong mark of 2.89 meters. Italia also ran the 100 in 18.17 to round out her day.  Auggie Grimm, who I honestly didn’t see the entire day, managed to make it out to the 100 meters to run a pretty fast 15.65 time and then vanish once again into the ether. Isaiah Crowder came out to his first track meet and seemed to have a blast. To quote Isaiah, “I want to run the 200 meters next meet!”. Isaiah did run the 100 meters and ran well in his heat with a 16.98 time. Isaiah also threw the javelin for the very first time and did so quite admirably with a toss of 12.55 meters.  Emerson Rhodes is getting some serious wheels as she flew both in the 100 and 200 with two new PRs. Emerson broke 17-seconds for the first time in the 100 (16.98) and improved by about one second in the 200 with another great personal best of 38.45. Emerson’s legs also reached 2.84 meters in the long jump for a sizzling Saturday.

11-12 Division 

Micah Newkirk said he wasn’t feeling too great the past couple of days, well maybe he should feel “not so great” more often as he completely decimated the 1500-meter competition with a great season opener, PR and first place time of 5:30.71. Micah also ran a speedy 200 in 33.44 at the end of the afternoon. Gael Pacheco who has been training at sea-level in the Seattle area for the past week, ran a great personal best of 2:57.26 in the 800 meters and came back in the 200 meters in 34.47. Alex Columbus managed the triple-PR day. Alex started by running a 1:10.73, which was a five second PR. He then sent the javelin soaring and crushed his old javelin best by almost three meters to take 4th place overall in a deep field (25.04 m). Lastly, he showed some nice foot-speed by running 31.78 in the 200 meters – what a day Alex! Ava Clegg not only had two PRs, but two club records! Ava took third in the discus with a PR and club record of 13.72 meters. She then threw over seven meters for the first time ever to have another PR and club record in the shot put (7.48 m). And she just missed a third PR for the day by running a great personal time of 1:25.26 . Seth Henry, if we could only get him to practice a little more often he would be doing even better than the strong times he has already been producing out on the track. Seth ran a fast 100 meters in 13.88 and then came back in the 400 meters with an ever-so-close PR of 1:12.47.  Maddox Moses, who has been on medical IR for the first part of the season, finally got cleared to run and run he did! Maddox smashed the first heat of the 800 to run a solo-2:50.82 and then sped around half the track in the 200 at the end of the afternoon in a nice time of 33.87. Jake Blair needs to take a deep breath, exhale and remember he is a champion. Although he took third place in the javelin with a throw of 30.05 meters, let me remind him at the Phoenix Invitational last year he was happy throwing 24.06 meters. The season is young and we have many meters yet to throw. Jake also ran the 400 with a club PR of 1:15.02.

13-14 Division  

Charlie Allison almost gave this blogger/coach/dad a heart attack as he had a freak accident, which saw Charlie fly sideways high in the air and land with a thud into the long jump pit, after his right foot slipped on a buckled long jump board. Thankfully, Charlie is alright, but that ended his competition for the day. Before the long jump fiasco, Charlie did run the 100 meters in 13.19 and did get one jump in of 4.96 meters, to take 3rd overall. Matty Braun not a novice to track and field, but new to the Flyers this year, ran a 13.97 100-meter time  and also a zippy 28.90 200-meter clocking. Macy Baerman saw some overall speed improvement, as she managed a PR in the 200 meters with a good time for her of 33.89 seconds. Macy also competed in the long jump where the sand touched her toes 3.52 meters into the pit. Robert Vloemans tied a PR in the shot put (7.72 m), had a PR in the discus, where he went over twenty meters (20.67 – 6th place) and just missed breaking 30 seconds in the 200 with a line crossing of 30.46 ticks.  Khaleb Henry, who has great potential to be a great thrower, only needs to get to practice a bit more often to hone his mad field skills. Khaleb threw a club record in the discus to take 5th place (21.82 m) and is knocking on the door of the shot put club record, as he threw a PR of 8.71 m for a sixth place ribbon.

The Flyers will be back to the track on April 14-15 at Mesa Community College for one of the largest meets of the year, The Phoenix Invitational.

Go Flyers!

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Vloemans Triple PRs at Copper Canyon

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Lolli, Arana and Reynolds Set Two PRs Each

The Flyers traveled westward again for the second outdoor regulation meet of the season at Copper Canyon High School in Glendale, Ariz. Our birds flew fast and strong on Saturday as we saw many personal records and even some clubs records fall by the time the afternoon was complete.

8U Division

Antonio Arana who is “not aggressive” according to him, did compete in the mini-javelin for the first time of the year and threw it straight for 3.45 meters. We will see if we can get a smidgen more umph out of him the next time he tosses the spear because we can see he’s figuring out the technique well. Antonio also ran the 100 meters for the first time this season with a very solid time of 19.51. Rajah Morris, came out for his first ever meet and was adorned with speed suit and shiny black spikes as he cruised down the straightaway in the 100 m in a good time of 21.19 seconds.

9-10 Division

Simon Reynolds’ parents found the bandwidth to confirm to me that Simon would indeed be competing at Copper Canyon and we are glad they all came out. Simon set a new PR in the 800 m (2:57.78) and took 5th overall. Simon also showed his overall speed is getting better as he ran a PR in the 100 meters in 16.66.  Max Columbus is getting his legs back as he came awfully close setting a new PR for himself in the 400 meters (1:21.81) and I am sure he will be busting through the 80-second barrier perhaps even before the end of March. Max also had some good throws in the mini-javelin (18.94 – 3rd place), but still feels like the “electric-slide” technique is the way to go rather than using his forward gait to add more momentum to his throws. Max also attempted the long jump for the first time ever and did a pretty good job as he got close to 3-meters (2.89). Isa Allison likes to throw, but maybe likes throwing more when there is tough competition. When Isa saw the top competitor, Jerzy Robinson (Do Right), throw over 23-meters, Isa became laser focused and put up a 19.41 m throw of her own, which was a PR, club record and got her a second-place ribbon. Isa also competed in the 100 m (16.77) and long jump (2.56 m) to round out her day.

11-12 Division 

Gael Pacheco is fun to watch each week because you see how much he enjoys running and how he gets better and better with almost every stride. Saturday was no different, as Gael crushed his PR in the 400 by over 3 seconds with a strong 1:12.65 finish. Gael also got extremely close to setting a new PR in the 200 as well by running a 2018 best of 33.80. Gael started the day in the 100 m, where he leaned back a little too much, but worked hard for a 16.24 time. Alex Columbus continues to show great improvement in the aero-javelin, where this neophyte thrower was finding more of a rhythm with his technique as he took 3rd with a 22.22 meter mark. Alex also had a rapid trip around the track, as he set a new PR of 1:15.85 and got out of the blocks in the 100 m with a final lean of 15.22 seconds. . Ava Clegg, while she didn’t set any new PRs for herself on Saturday seemed to be taking the warm breezy spring day in quite nicely as she placed 3rd in the shot put (6.56 m), ran a satisfying time of 35.74 in the 200 and jumped 3.18 m in the long jump. Seth Henry ran 28.71 seconds in the 200 and he looked pretty smooth doing it. That time was both a PR and a new club record. Seth also ran the 100 in 13.87, which was close to another new PR for him as well. Braden “The Ice King” Lolli had temporary amnesia on Friday night, obviously, as he surely thought that the winter Olympics were still going on as he skated for a few hours for his quest for gold in the men’s figure skating competition. But even though he was a bit haggard from the previous night’s Ice Capade, Braden still somehow managed to run a new PR and club record in the 1500 meters (5:12). Braden also gave distance runners a good name as he was pretty close of holding sole possession of the 200-meter club record with a new PR of 28.94, which as I mentioned previously went to Seth after his strong 200 performance. Jake Blair was signed up for three events, but due to his busy soccer schedule, made it in time for just two of the three. Jake had a nice PR in the long jump (3.61 m) and started off the season with an impressive opening throw of 32.19 m in the aero-jav, which got him 2nd place overall.  Lucy Arana I know believes now she can run with virtually anyone in her age group. Lucy ran her first 1500 meter of the season and looked like an old pro, as she placed 5th, set a club record and PR with an excellent time of 5:40.63. Lucy then came back at the end of the day and shredded her old 200 best by screaming around the turn to finish with a 32.56 clocking.  Ginger Money, who is in the midst of middle school track season, had a chance on Saturday, due to spring break, to compete for the Flyers. She ran a new PR in the 800 with a 3:09.94 crossing and should be getting down to that sub-3-minute barrier in the not-so-distant future.

13-14 Division  

Robert Vloemans, who I may start referring to as our “gentle giant” had three big PRs: 29.78 in the 200 (his first time breaking 30 seconds); 7.72 m in the shot put for 4th place; 19.39 m in the discus for a 6th place. Robert is a hard worker in practice and it’s good to see how he is being rewarded with great times and marks come competition days. Charlie Allison is starting to get into shape as he broke the 13-second barrier in the 100 meters for the first time ever (12.91). Charlie did take care of business in the javelin (41.55 m) with a first place ribbon. Charlie’s jumping is slowly getting back into gear, as he took 2nd in the long jump (4.87 m) and 1st in the triple (9.81). Khaleb Henry is still tossing some good marks in the shot put as he had yet another PR in this event (8.14 m) and took 3rd place. Khaleb also threw the discuss for a distance of 18.99 meters. Macy Baerman’s overall foot-speed is increasing as she had a new PR in the 100 m (16.16), but now we need to translate that down the long jump runway, as she landed 3.39 meters for her best mark of the day. Macy also ran the 400 in a hair’s breath under 80-seconds (1:19.99) to complete a solid day on the west side of the valley.

17-18 Division  

Kenya Coburn came out on Saturday to compete in the women’s 100 meter hurdles. Kenya came out ready to go, as she got over the barriers pretty quickly and efficiently with a final first place time of 17.74 seconds.

The Flyers will be back to the track on March 31st at South Mountain High School in Phoenix for the next USATF AZ Regulation Meet.

Go Flyers!

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Flyers Throw Team Improves on Saturday

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Lolli, Allisons and Columbus Win

Now that the Arizona “indoor” season is over, on Saturday, March 3rd the Flyers headed to Alhambra High School for their first of many regulation meets for the 2018 outdoor track and field season. As a team, we had many great personal and meet accomplishments. The Flyers throwing crew (shot put, discus and javelin) came to compete on Saturday with many strong marks throughout the afternoon.

8U Division

Antonio Arana who is toying with the idea of throwing the mini-javelin this year, stuck to the track as he streamed around the red-rubberized oval in the 200 meters with a finishing tick of 41.35 seconds.

9-10 Division

Italia Eason was registered for the 100 meters and the long jump on Saturday, but she seemed to only compete in the long jump. Her long jump debut was a good one as she leaped 2.48 m. Emerson Rhodes, a top 8U long jumper who has moved up divisions this year, had a 2.62 meter best attempt. While that isn’t Emerson’s best jump, we did see some awesome improvement with her overall speed down the runway. This was proven as she set a new PR for herself in the 100 meters by over one second (17.47).  Max Columbus had to be reminded more than once that he still needs to run forward when throwing the javelin. When he did finally decide to take his first three steps forward the javelin came off his hand like a missal for a  new PR (19.90 m) and a 4th place ribbon. Max also had another big PR in the 200 m (35.02) and ran 16.61 in the 100 m to round out his day. Isa Allison was having a hard time breathing all week, so was relegated to just throwing the javelin. Luckily, that’s Isa’s best event. She took first with a throw of 18.36 m, which was also a new club record.

11-12 Division 

Alex Columbus had his debut in the aero-javelin on Saturday and took 1st place. Alex threw with conviction and landed a top distance of 22.33 meters for the day. Alex also PR’d in the 400 meters dropping below the 80-second barrier (79.20) and looked like he’s getting into shape with a strong time of 14.95 in the 100 m as well. Ava Clegg continues to show signs that she is going to be a beast in the throws. She threw the discus for the very first time and took third with a very impressive distance of 13.06 meters. Ava also took 4th in the shot put (6.42 m) and ran a 1:28.66 to finish up her Saturday. Braden Lolli didn’t set a PR in the 800 on Saturday, but who cares! Braden had a gutsy kick as he dug deep and sped past another top 800-meter runner, Zuri Glenn of the AZ Burn, to take a one-second victory (2:30.75). Braden had an even more impressive run in the 400 (66.05), which was a new PR and  just missed a top-8 place. When Micah Newkirk figures out he’s a bada– on the track, we all better watch out! Micah once again set a new PR for himself (2:41.29) in the 800 meters, slicing three more seconds from his last week’s PR. Micah is still 10 years old (he turns 11 on Sept. 5th) and is competing with some kids more than two years older than himself. He ran a taxing race and just missed out on a ribbon with a 7th place finish.  After the hard 800, Micah came back a couple hours later to run a new PR in the 400 (1:13.06) to put a nice bow on this great running day.  Lucy Arana was told to get out fast in the 800 and to keep contact with the rest of the runners. She did that well and came away with a new PR and club record (which she already owned) in 2:44.78. Lucy, like Micah, came back to run the 400 and set another PR and club record by turning her legs over rapidly in 1:12.69. Gael Pacheco is learning to run the 800 meters and was rightly aggressive in the first lap. Gael did feel the second lap, but still ran a 3:00.48, which was a one-second PR. Gael came back strong as well and ran a good 400 time for him as he crossed the line in 1:18.40. Seth Henry ran hard on Saturday, but definitely needs to begin doing some block work to help him with his first few steps. He ran 14.29 in the 100 meters and 29.90 in the 200 m to complete his day.

13-14 Division  

Every one of our 13-14 athletes had not one, but two PRs on Saturday. Robert Vloemans had great personal success in the shot put, which he PR’d with a new high mark of 7.28 meters. In the discus, Robert found even larger improvement, when he threw a new best distance of 16.76 meters. Robert finished the day with the 200 meters, as he continues to flirt with low-30-second times (31.11). Khaleb Henry is feeling the power as he is a young’n in his new 13-14 division this season. Khaleb just missed the 20-meter threshold, as his discus sliced the air and landed 19.59 meters away from him for a 6th place ribbon. Khaleb also PR’d in the shot, where he got over 8 meters for the first time with a 8.06 m toss. Macy Baerman who is not one of our throwers, showed some sweet improvement with her speed on Saturday as she ran a 16.21 PR in the 100 meters and is obviously getting her wind back because she ran a new PR of 1:17.40 in the open 400. Macy also competed in the long jump, where dirt was displaced at 3.63 meters. Back to our throwers, Sebastian Arana’s new favorite number might be five as he took 5th place in both the shot and javelin, with two new PRs of 8.46 m and 21.95 m, respectively.  The saying “talk softly and carry a big stick” is proving to be Seb’s new mantra as each week he improves in the throwing events, while hardly uttering a single syllable. Charlie Allison after an early season departure last year to Honduras for over a month, was back for his first meet of the 2018 season and took advantage of it. Charlie won the javelin by over 17 meters with a PR and club record of 42 meters-even. He then matched is best 100 meter time of last year with a 13.19 second dash and while he couldn’t find his mark in the long jump, still managed a legal jump of 4.68 m to take 2nd place.

The Flyers will be back to the track on March 17th at Copper Canyon High School in Glendale for the next USATF AZ Regulation Meet.

Go Flyers!

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February Results Signify a Strong 2018 for Flyers

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 Coburn, Lolli & Henry with Fast Early Season Times

The 27th Annual Arizona Classic, which is usually held up at the NAU Skydome, was “indoors” in name only this year as the meet was held at Mountain Pointe High School on Saturday Feb. 17th. The Flyers who came out to compete on Saturday continued to show great promise with some strong early season marks and times.

8U Division

Antonio Arana had his debut on Saturday where he ran the 55-meter and 200-meter races. “Oso”, as he’s lovingly called within his family, was a bit nervous in the 55, but managed a solid time of 10.89. Antonio looked a lot more confident in the 200, where he ran a quick 40.83 as he closed up his day.

9-10 Division

Simon Reynolds ran his first race of the year, but due to being under the weather only managed a time of 3:21.20, which is far from what Simon expects from himself; but knowing Simon, he’ll be back with vengeance when he steps back on the track again.  Italia Eason now in her second-ever meet, came out strong in the 55 m (10.45) and 200 m (41.75) to wrap up her Saturday at the track. Max Columbus left track early on Thursday due to a bad headache and then combine that with a Friday night flag football game (which his team won!) Max’s times on Saturday in the 55 m (9.65) and 400 m (1:30.22) were a tad bit off his norm. But as we move into javelin throwing season, Max will definitely get his swagger back and show the 9-10 boys who to watch out for in 2018 . Isa Allison realizes she’s not in 8U anymore as girls in her 55-meter heat got away from her pretty quickly as she ran 9.65. But when it came to the jumps, Isa showed she’s not missing a beat as she took 3rd place overall with a great early season mark of 3.05 meters. Emerson Rhodes, who just turned 9, was a bit excited about her horse riding party on Saturday, managed to hit the 2.80 meter-mark in the long jump.

11-12 Division 

Seth Henry, although he just turned 11 the other day, is showing he is going to be a force in the 11-12 division all year. Seth ran a PR in the 200 m (29.19), which also tied the club record and took 5th overall. Seth also made the finals in the 55-meter dash with a new PR and club record of 8.08 seconds. Good job Seth! Ava Clegg ran a terrific PR in the 400 m, as she took nearly 4 seconds off her time with a finish of 1:24.98. Ava had another strong throw in the shot put (6.78 m) as she took 3rd overall there. Ava also got out fast in the 55 m, where she ran a 9.33 . Braden Lolli “warmed up” with the long jump, which he hadn’t done in years, and found he was pretty springy as he took 5th place with a 3.69 meter jump. Braden then moved to the 800 m, where he ran a great race to set a new PR and club record (2:30.39) to achieve 2nd place. He finished up his day with a strong 200 m in 29.27.  Alex Columbus is slowly getting his legs and fitness back as he dropped almost 2 seconds in his 200 meter (33.78) and ran a solid 1:20.64 in the 400 for the first time this year.  Lucy Arana who is bound for some awesome things on the track this year, showed us all how to get it done with two PRs and one club record (which she already owned in the 800 m). Lucy ran a 2:48.38 basically by herself in a competitive  800-meters, where she will be dipping under 2:45 in no time flat. She then looked quite aggressive in the 200, where her other PR was made in 34.08. Gael Pacheco ran two very good races on Saturday. His first attempt at the 800 got him a 3:01.5 with pretty much even splits. He then came back to run the 200 in 34.18. Gael is sure to break the 3-minute barrier in the very near future.

13-14 Division  

Sebastian Arana even with an injured leg, still managed to throw another PR in the shot put (7.87 m) and take 4th place. Khaleb Henry is now in the “big boys” division, but held his own with a sixth place mark of 7.21 m with the new weight of 4K vs. the 11-12 division 6 lb weight. Macy Baerman had a great jump, which just missed the 4-meter mark (3.98 m), but was an enormous PR for Macy and a 5th place ribbon. Macy also ran her first 800 of the season with a time of 3:12.20.

17-18 Division 

Kenya Coburn is getting ready for a strong junior year at Tempe High School. She showed she will be a young woman to be reckoned with as she put out some solid performances on Saturday. Kenya set a club record in the 55 m, to take 1st overall (7.36). Kenya also PR’d in the long jump at Mountain Pointe, where she jumped 5.16 meters and took another 1st place medal. Kenya finished her day in the triple jump with a 9.49 m best, which got her 2nd overall.

The Flyers will be back to the track on March 3rd at Alhambra High School for the next USATF AZ Regulation Meet.

Go Flyers!

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Flyers Put Up Some Good Results at Youngker HS

ava shot put

Clegg & Arana “Put” in High Places with Their Throws

Grimm Makes it to 55-meter Finals and Takes 3rd

Although the journey was a bit far to Youngker High School on Saturday, it was a good trip for our Flyers all around.

9-10 Division

Auggie Grimm showed it was no fluke two weeks ago when he took 3rd in the 100. On Saturday, Auggie made it to the finals in the 55-meter dash and ended up placing a speedy third with a great time (and new PR) of 8.74 seconds. Auggie also had his first go at the 200, where we ran a quite respectable time of 33.74. Max Columbus took a break from the 400 to work on some short speed. He ran a nice PR in the 200 (36.37) and ran his very first competitive 55 meter in a solid mark of 9.47 seconds. Isa Allison found a new PR and club record in the 55-meter dash (9.6 seconds), ran another PR in the 200 (36.35) and began her season off nicely with a powerful take-off of 2.87 m in the long jump. Emerson Rhodes, who I fondly call “Tigger” leaped to a great season opener in the long jump of 3.01 meters and is on her way to another great season in the jumps this year. Emerson also ran 10.3 in the 55 m and 40.62 in the 200. Italia Eason, a third member of our lady 9-10 amigas, had a very successful day as well. She ran 10.23 in the 55 meters and got under the 40-second mark in the 200 with a 39.28 clocking.

11-12 Division 

Ava Clegg is having one heck of a year thus far. Ava blasted a 6.82-meter mark in the shot put to take 2nd place and set a new PR and club record in the process; Ava also ran another PR in the 55-meter dash (9.14) and finished up her day, even while trying to keep her heat/lane sticker from falling off, with a third PR of 35.69 in the 200 meter race. Braden Lolli is also looking sharp thus far in 2018. He cruised to winning his heat in the 800 with a 2:38.79 (taking second overall by missing out on first by only .05 seconds because of the winner of heat 1), but then showed some real wheels when he flirted with breaking 29 in the 200 (29.19) and took 5th overall, which was both a PR and club record. Micah Newkirk started out quite strong in early February in the 800, by taking 3rd overall and running a new PR of 2:44.36. Alex Columbus, older brother of Max, ran his first track meet and did so admirably. He ran a 3:04.03 800-meter, and is sure to break the 3-minute barrier in the not-so-distant future and then came back to run a solid 35.55 in the 200-meter race. Ginger Money, who was a bit nervous before the 800 m, had no reason to be as she ran a very strong race in 3:10.31. She then came back in the 200 m with a time of 38.18.   Lucy Arana, showed some great poise on Saturday. She ran a terrific opening time in the 800 in 2:52.23 (6th) and had a spirited 200 meter race with a good time of 34.49. Gael Pacheco looked like a wily veteran in the 400, where he ran a great opening season time of 1:16.95 and will sure to be under the 70-second mark by season’s end.

13-14 Division  

Sebastian Arana is growing up right before our eyes and looked quite confident on Saturday as he took 3rd place in the shot put and set a new PR with a throw of 7.39 meters.

15-16 Division 

Maddy Shoemaker ran the 800 m, where she crushed the competition and cruised to a 2:40.6 1st place victory, setting herself up for a great 2018 high school campaign.

The Flyers will be back at our home track (Mountain Pointe HS) on Feb. 17th for the 27th Annual Arizona Classic & Arizona Association Indoor Championship. Once again, only indoor events will be competed at this event.

Go Flyers!