Posted on

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!

Posted on

Vloemans Triple PRs at Copper Canyon

macy_400_phoenix_flyers

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!

Posted on

Saving the Best for Last

phoenix flyers at arizona Junior Olympics

phoenix flyers at arizona Junior Olympics

14 Flyers Qualify for JO Region Meet – 18 PRs Set – 9 Club Records

All things being equal, the weather for the 2017 Arizona Junior Olympics meet this past weekend was pretty fair for Phoenix standards. And with this good AZ climate came performances from our Flyers which were quite impressive; as the majority of them who competed over the weekend managed to qualify for the Region Junior Olympics meet that will be held on July 6-9 at Mesa Community College. Teams from El Paso, Colorado, New Mexico and Arizona will all be there competing to make it to the Junior Olympics National meet in late July.

8 & Under Division

Max Columbus managed to make it once again to the finals of the boys 400 meters and in the process set a new club record of 1:20.52, which got him 7th place. After an extremely long day/evening, Max came back bright-eyed and bushy-tailed on Sunday morning to capture the mini-javelin title with a strong throw of 17.56 meters.  Emerson Rhodes competed like a champion and made it to the finals of a very competitive 8 & Under long jump group. While she didn’t PR, she took 7th with a long leap of 2.88 meters. Emerson also competed in the 100 m (19.94) and 200 meters (39.98). We know Emerson will be back better than ever in 2018 to build upon her already amazing leaping prowess. Isa Allison finally managed to find the board in the long jump, which allowed her to set a new club record, PR and a third place medal with a mark of 3.15 meters. Isa also set a new PR in the javelin and is inching closer to a state record with her 1st place throw of 18.23 meters. Isa also had a PR and new club record in the 200 (36.52) even though her “chicken wing” left arm started  flapping in the last 80 meters of the race.  Isa will be competing at the JO Region meet in the javelin and long jump.

9-10 Division 

Micah Newkirk had an amazing meet. He dropped his 1500 meter time by 8 seconds (5:37.54) and took 3rd place to qualify for the JO Region meet. He also ran another PR in the 800 meters the following day (2:45.38), which he narrowly missed qualifying in by taking a well fought 5th place finish. Simon Reynolds, even though his father was sure he had run a sub-6 minute time in 1500 m before, Simon hadn’t reached this mark until Saturday where he shredded his old best time of 6:06.16 to a new personal record of 5:53.05. Simon also ran the 800 meters on Sunday with a strong showing of 3:03.36.

11-12 Division 

Lucy Arana finished up her 2017 season very focused as she ran two great races this past weekend. Lucy just missed a PR in the 1500 m on Saturday by running 5:48.21; but Sunday she was calm and poised and unleashed a stellar 800 meter race (2:48.39), which beat her old PR by over 3 seconds and also broke one of the team’s older club records in the process. Gael Pacheco also finished strong for the 2017 season. He had very good personal showings in the 100 m (16.16) and 200 m (34.73), but this weekend was made for the 400 m. Gael took nearly 2 seconds off his previous best to now have a top time of 1:15.72  Ava Clegg competed hard in her last meet of the season, but came up just a bit short in attaining any new PRs for herself. All of her times and marks were very solid; she ran 16.8 in the 100 m, jumped 3.34 m in the long jump and got over 6 meters in the shot put (6.06).

Benjamin Geist one of the hardest working kids on the team, didn’t find a new PR in the two events he ran but definitely went for it in the 800 m, where he unfortunately ran out of gas at the end to run a 3:01.32. He also ran a 1:16.94 on Saturday in the 400 meters.  Jake Blair set a new club, personal and state record in this inaugural season of the 450-g aero-javelin, with a great toss of 31.05 meters, which got him 1st place and qualified him for the JO Region meet. Jake also PR’d in the discus (16.84 m) to take 5th place and skimmed 2-seconds off his 800 meters to cross the line in 2:53.35. Macy Baerman had never had as good of a weekend in track and field as she did this past Saturday and Sunday. Macy crushed her 400 best time by running 1:15.72, she squeaked out a new PR in the 200 meters (34.13) as well and tied her best long jump ever for the unteenth time (3.52 m). Braden Lolli ran a perfect race on Saturday, but sometimes perfection doesn’t manifest into a victory. Braden ran a very gutsy 1500 meters and took 2nd place by only .19 seconds with a great time of 5:15.50. Although Braden qualified for the JO Region meet, due to his “rock star” travel/vacation itinerary, he is forced to slum it in Antigua and Chicago this summer with the common folk and thus won’t be in town for the Region meet. Maddox Moses with bad foot and all found a way to qualify for the Region meet in the 3000 meters with a time of 12:29.66. Maddox seemed very determined to reach this goal and it showed in his effort in the latter part of the race.

13-14 Division 

Charlie Allison knowing he was going to be taking a month long sabbatical in Honduras this summer for a myriad of reasons, knew this meet would be his last for the 2017 campaign. He performed admirably with a 1st place throw in the javelin (38.33  m), a new PR in the long jump (5.19 m) and managed to get over 10 meters again in the triple jump to take 2nd place (10.02 m). Sebastian Arana showed us all that he really has teeth as he managed more than once to reveal his pearly whites and smile this weekend. His smiles may have something to do with him setting two new PRs for himself – 6.28 meters in the shot put and 20.67 meters in the javelin – or it may have to do with the fact the season is over…We are hoping it’s for the two PRs. Peyton Burnside put in a good effort and did manage to qualify for the JO Region meet in early July. While Peyton was not thrilled with her time (12:43.55), we know her desire to be a strong runner will continue as her running focus will now be aimed at the high school level as she enters Corona this fall.

15-16 Division 

Maddy Shoemaker came back to the Flyers and competed in the 1500 after getting over a bad knee. She ran tough and took 2nd to qualify for the JO Region meet with her time of 5:33.47. Kenya Coburn set a new club record in the 100 m (12.59) and placed 2nd overall. Kenya also managed to win the triple jump (10.42 m) and place 3rd in the long jump (4.88 m) to round out a quite successful weekend.

17-18 Division 

Chynna Simmons, who is 0ne of our four high school graduates heading out to college to continue their track and field journey next year, took 3rd in the triple jump (10.83 m), 3rd in the long jump (5.30 m) and was on the winning 4×100 team (51.46 seconds). Brittany Patterson, our second collegiate bound athlete, set two new club PRs for herself in the triple jump (11.36 m – 1st) and the long jump (5.36 m – 2nd). Brittany also rounded out her weekend by being on the winning 4 x 100 meter team. Catera Lee, was the last piece of the puzzle for the girls’ 4 x 100 and guaranteed success for the lady Flyers as they took first. Nura Muhammad, back from injury managed to jump 10.85 meters in the triple jump for  a silver medal, jump 5.13 meters in the long jump and was also a member of the victorious 4 x 100 relay squad.

Good job Flyers!

The Region 10 Junior Olympics Meet, will be held at Mesa CC on July 6-9.

Posted on

West Siiiide Meet at Youngkers Good for Flyers

isa and emerson youngkers HS regulation Meet

macy jumping for phoenix flyers track club  simon running 1500 for phoenix flyers track club  Diego running for phoenix flyers track club  Charlie jumping for phoenix flyers track club

Ribbons, Club Records and PRs Abound at Youngkers HS

We thought the last meet was impressive for the Flyers, but on Saturday there were 18 personal records and 11 club records set at the March 18th USATF Regulation Meet at Youngkers High School in Buckeye. With it being so early in the season and so many great performances from our athletes, the future looks quite bright for the ladder part of the 2017 campaign.

8 & Under Division

Isa Allison feeling back to her old self had some impressive performances on Saturday. Isa crushed the competition in the javelin with a new best throw of 17.82 m, which would have been good enough for 2nd at Nationals in 2016. Isa also took 7th in the 100 meters with a new club record of 17.03 seconds and placed 5th in the long jump with a mark of 2.47 m. Charlotte Faltis, a new member to our team this year, competed hard in her first ever 100 meter race with a good time of 20.58 seconds. Emerson Rhodes has those hops, baby! She once again set a new club record  in the long jump (beating her own one from two weeks ago) by taking 2nd overall with a jump of 2.79 meters. Emerson also ran the 100 meters in 18.78 seconds. Brooklyn Bowman improved her 400 time to 1:31.34, which was over 3 seconds better than her time from two weeks ago. Max Columbus had a solid day on Saturday. He placed 2nd in the javelin with a throw of 11.08 meters and ran a 1:28.3 400 meters in the sweltering heat.

9-10 Division 

Simon Reynolds had a great meet on Saturday. Simon set a new personal best in the 100 meters (16.95) and then ran his first 1500 meters of the season with a strong effort of 6:18.51 to take 5th place overall. Seth Henry also had another strong outing on Saturday. Seth set a new PR (and club record) in the 200 meters (30.40) for 7th place, had a new farthest jump for himself of 3.5 meters to take 6th place and then ran his first 400 meters, which got him 4th place overall and a new club record as well! Diego Mendoza was able to make a meet and he did a great job. Diego ran a nice 1:25.93 in the 400 meters and then later in the hot sun crossed the line in the 200 meters in 37.48 seconds. Micah Newkirk held back a bit in the first 200 meters of his 800-meter race and it played out beautifully. Micah took fourth overall and slashed his best time by nearly 7 seconds with a 2:46.88. Micah also competed in the 400 meters later in the day and ran a strong 1:15.81, just missing another personal best for himself.

11-12 Division 

Khaleb Henry is getting more and more comfortable in the throws. Khaleb took 4th in the shot put with a new PR of over 1.5 meters (7.70 meters) and a new club record. Khaleb started out his day with a 2-meter PR in the discus, taking 2nd, with a best throw of 16.96 meters. Macy Baerman running her first 800 meters of the season, ran a new personal best of 3:04.94, dropping 3 seconds from her previous best time. Macy was close in getting new two PRs in the long jump (3.47) and 200 (34.42), but was just a smidgen off  of both. Braden Lolli had his wheels revving on Saturday as he set a new PR in the 100 meters (14.72), dipping under 15-seconds for the first time ever. He then ran his first 1500 of the year and demolished the competition after the 1000-meter mark, running a new personal best of 5:21.94, which got him 1st overall and a new club record. Ben Geist got off the line fast in the 100 meters and had a strong finish with a new personal best of 15.72 seconds. When it came to the running his first 1500 m, Ben put in a good effort but perhaps the sun was just too strong. He finished in 6:18.76, which doesn’t compute when you compare his other strong times this season. But we know Ben will bounce back being the determined kid he is.

Jake Blair played soccer all morning and made it  to Youngkers HS just in time to run the 400 m and throw the aero javelin for the first time in competition. Jake won his heat in the 400 m with a solid effort of 1:22.52 and then took 3rd in the javelin with a nice mark of 20.90 meters. Maddox Moses got some good turnover work first as he crossed the line in the 100 meters in a time of 16.6 seconds. Later in the day, Maddox hit the 1500 meters and ran to a 7th place finish in a time of 5:46.92, a good start to the early season. Landon Day made it out for his first track meet ever and did quite well. He jumped 3.86 in the long jump, which is a great start and then was looking forward to throwing the aero javelin for the first time as well; he competed quite admirably with a good toss of 13.62 meters, which got him 7th place overall.

13-14 Division 

Sebastian Arana had a good strong throwing day at Youngkers. Sebastian PR’d in the shot put with a new best mark of 6.18 meters and then threw the real 600 gram javelin quite well with a best throw of 16.09 meters. Charlie Allison, competed in 4 events and found 4 club and personal records on Saturday. Charlie took 6th in the long jump (4.97 meters), ran 1:02.94 in the 400 meters (winning his heat), triple jumped a new best of 10.52 meters and won the javelin with his best toss of 33.77 meters. Peyton Burnside didn’t have the time she wanted in the 1500 m (6:04.72), but she ran valiantly to keep her focus. We know Peyton, with the work she has put in this season, thus far, will see her times drop in no time flat.

Our next meet is in two weeks (April 1-2) at Mesa Community College – The Phoenix Invitational. This is one of the biggest and most competitive meets of the season. It’s also a two-day meet. The Flyers will be ready to rock.

Go Flyers!

Posted on

The West Side is a Good Side for Flyers

april-13-blog
The day before Easter brought a smaller number of athletes than usual from the Flyers to the west side of town for the April 4th USATF AZ Regulation Meet at Millennium High School. But the kids who made it out had some very good performances to show for their travel.

8 & Under Division


isaIsabella Allison is moving up the ranks in the 8 & Under girls javelin, taking 3rd place on Saturday with a new personal best throw of 8.25 meters. Ijade 1sa also had a new best in the long jump, where she took 8th place and landed with a 2.13 meter jump. Jade Elcock, although she missed the 100 meter race due to the meet’s time change from 8 to 7 a.m., did make it to the 200 where she blasted her personal best by over 4 seconds, with a very solid 49.63 seconds.

9-10 Division

ava shotAva Clegg is becoming quite a well-rounded track & field athlete, competing in the shot put, 100 m and long jump on April 4th. Ava came away with a new PR in the long jump (2.52 m), a PR and a 3rd place finish in the shot (3.87 m) and dipped under 19 seconds in the 100 m (18.88). Brynn Pickavance another one of our multi-event athletes, mirrored Ava’s events with resounding success as well. Brynn took 8th in the long jump (2.77 m – also a PR), 4th in jake throwthe shot (3.60 m) and almost broke the 18-second barrier in the 100, with a new personal best (18.03). Jake Blair showed why he qualified for nationals last year in the mini-javelin with a 1st place toss and new PR at Millennium (24.41 m). Jake also dipped under 90-seconds in the 400 for the first time, with another personal best of 1:28.40.

Levi Shoemaker put it all together on Saturday to get some very nice throws in the mini-javelin that both earned him a 6th place ribbon and a new personal best of 14.74 m. Levi also dipped macy 400under 18-seconds again in the 100 meters (17.94) for a very solid overall day. Macy Baerman came ready to compete on the west side with two new very convincing personal bests. Macy dropped below 39 seconds for the first time in the 200 (38.11) and crushed the 400 with a new PR of 1:26.98.

11-12 Division

rado hhColorado Stanley had two new PRs on Saturday. He squeaked out a PR in the javelin with a new best of 18.99 (8th) and also jumped over 3 meters for the first time ever (3.04). Reece Johnson came out to run the 100 meters for the second time in her career and just missed besting her time with a 18.18 finish. Peyton Burnside, after a week off of running came out and ran a tremendous PR in the 1500 m( 6:10.50) and came back to run a very strong 800 (3:07.97).

13-14 Division

Emily Hancock came out and showed effort in the 100 meter (15.45), 100 meter hurdles (20.99)and 400 meter dash (1:16.44). Cole Shapiro competed in his first track meet for the Flyers withcole 100 some great success. He took 2nd in the long jump (4.53) and showed some flash in the 100 meters with a strong time of 14.02. Megan Griffith, who has been out sick for some time came back to the track with some nice performances. Megan took 8th in the long jump (3.40) and took 3rd in the triple jump (8.13).

The Flyers next meet is the Phoenix Invitational – one of the biggest meets of the season – on April 18-19 at Mesa Community College.

Posted on

Overcast Skies Don’t Deter Flyers at Westwood

overcast sky

overcast sky

A cloudy day that teased of rain never brought precipitation at the February 28th USATF AZ Regulation Meet held at Westwood High School. Our Flyers, many their first meet of the season (or first meet ever), preformed admirably in Mesa.

8 & Under Division

Jade Elcock and those tiny legs of hers had a new PR in the 200 meters with a time of 52.32 and also ran the 100 meters for the first time of the season with a solid finish of 23.6 seconds. Isabella Allison, who was one of only two of our Flyers who earned herself a ribbon on Saturday, had a personal best jump of 2.08 meters in the long jump and took 5th place.

9-10 Division

The largest division of our team this year had many first time athletes put in some very nice performances. Basketball stud and newcomer, Anderson Lim, took to the 100 meters where he ran a fast 16.39 seconds and then came back in the 400 meters where he had a  valiant effort with a time of 1:25.06. But bragging rights in the Lim family will be going to Toby Lim, who eeked out his brother Anderson’s time by .02 seconds in an earlier heat of the 400 with a finishing time of 1:25.04. Toby also took to the 100 meters where he crossed the line in 17.44 seconds.

Our “old timer”, Ava Clegg, came out blazing in her 100 meters on Saturday with a new personal best of 18.56 seconds, as well as jumping 2.12 m in the long jump and turning in a strong performance in the 200 with a time of 43.99 for a long day’s triple. Another strong and the most gutsy performance of the day is for our own Braden Lolli, who looked confident in the 800 meters before falling hard on the second turn. Not to be discouraged, Braden bounced right back up and held the lead through the first lap, but then by 500 meters he started feeling the effects of his fall in his back and arm, which slowed him down a bit, but he still managed to cross the line in a very respectable 3:13.05.

Brynn Pickavance, one of our first-time track athletes, was a bit nervous at first in the girls’ long jump, but pulled herself together with a 1.99 meter jump and then came back roaring in the 100 meters with a very good first time run of 18.7 seconds. Camila Cornejo-Farmer, one of our returning Flyers from last year, had the fastest 100-meter time for our 9-10 girls, with a personal best of 16.88 seconds and also leaped 2.27 meters in the girls’ long jump.  James (“Jay”) Nergard may have had the most fun at his first ever track meet where he competed in three events. In the 100 meters he ran an 18.84, in the tough to figure out mini-javelin, he had a blast and threw 8.38 meters and then finished his long day with a 200 in a time of 43.7 seconds.

The tight-lipped Lucy Arana, who ran many of our Time Trial Tuesdays last year, came out officially this year to become a Flyer – and we are glad she did. Lucy ran a strong 800 meters in 3:18.48, then came back and ran a tough-minded 400 in 1:28.96 and interspersed the long jump in between the two running events with a nice opening mark of 2.38 meters. Macy Baerman, who was so nervous had only brought her spikes and no training shoes to warm up in, settled down in the long jump where she made the finals and jumped a very solid 2.89 meters. Macy also competed in the 100 and 200 where she ran 18.52 and 39.49, respectively. Taylor Pinteric, after her long day up in Flagstaff a few weeks back, settled on just running the 100 meters on Saturday in a very strong time of 17.32 seconds.

11-12 Division

Although Colorado Stanley couldn’t find his steps in the long jump on Saturday, he looked awfully strong in the mini-javelin and 100 meters where he claimed two personal bests. Just missing the finals in the javelin, Colorado threw a nice dart of 17.34 meters and before that ran a time of 17.33 seconds in the 100. Sebastian Arana, who, like sister Lucy, doesn’t say too much, spoke with his actions on Saturday with a new personal record in the mini-javelin (12.88 meters) and a nice first go at the long jump this season with a top mark of 2.64 meters. Our last 11-12 athlete for the Flyers on Saturday was Peyton Burnside, who is chomping at the bit to run a 1500 or 3000 meter race, but is still working on her turnover. Peyton turned in two strong efforts in Mesa with a 1:25.29 400-meter time after competing in the 800, where she ran a solid 3:06.92.

13-14 Division

Our 13-14 girls are coming along nicely in the early track season. Track enthusiast, Emily Hancock, ran two good early season times in the 100 meters and 400 meters, where she crossed the tape at 15.42 and 1:17.55, respectively. Maddy Shoemaker just keeps setting personal bests this season with two more on Saturday, where she ran 1:15.03 in the 400 and a nearly 10-second PR in the 800, where she ran 2:44.44. Megan Griffith, who seems to want to try every event out there on the track, on Saturday competed in the long jump, high jump and 100 meters. Megan had a new PR in the long jump with a mark of 3.83 meters and just missing making the finals; she also took 3rd in the high jump with a mark of 1.15 meters and finished strong in the 100 with a time of 16.14 seconds.

The Flyers will be heading to the west side in a couple of weeks for their next meet and look to improve on some already strong performances in 2015.

Posted on

Flyers Travel North and Have Positive Start to 2015 Season

NAU skydome

NAU skydome

Although technically the second meet of the season, a handful of Flyers traveled up to NAU last Sunday to compete in the only indoor meet of the year – 2015 Youth Zonal Indoor Track & Field Championships. This meet is both a great chance to run on a collegiate indoor track (NAU’s Skydome) and also compete against many of the top club athletes in Arizona.

In the 8 & Under division, Isabella (Isa) Allison  was the sole participant from our squad. Being one of the younger participants in the meet (6 years old) she definitely held her own. In the 55-meter dash, she bettered her time from last year from 12.35 seconds to 11.39 seconds on Sunday. In the long jump she started out the year just a bit away from her PR (personal record) with a jump of 1.75 meters and taking 11th place out of 20 girls.

Taylor Pinteric, is a new member to the Flyers in 2015 and performed admirably in the girls’ 9-10 division. Taylor ran the 55-meter dash in 9.70 seconds and showed some good leg speed. In the 200-meter dash she ran a 38.63, which is a great start in the longer sprint events. We see good things on the horizon for Taylor this year.

Another new member to the Flyers this year is Megan Griffith who is in the 13-14 girls’ division this spring. Megan had an early start on Sunday with the pole vault being the first event; she set a new PR with a vault of 2.28 meters (7′ 5.75″). Megan also participated in the girls’ long jump where she placed 6th and jumped 3.80 meters, another good start to her early season.

We had a handful of high school kids head up to Flagstaff on Sunday to compete for the Flyers and Kayleigh Conlon was one of those athletes. Kayleigh is a sophomore at Mountain Pointe and was a state qualifier in the shot and discus her freshman year. On Sunday, still coming off of an injury, took 1st place in the shot put with a throw of 11.22 m (36′ 9.75″).

Another Mountain Pointe Pride track up and comer who joined the Flyers late last season is Chynna Simmons – also a sophomore. She had a very strong day up at NAU with a 2nd place finish in the 55-meter dash (7.43), 1st in the long jump (5.07 m) and 1st in the triple jump (10.85 m).

Rees Young, who was on the Flyers last season and also a Pride athlete, took 3rd place in the girls 17-18 division long jump with a leap of 4.91 meters. Rees, unfortunately didn’t get a legal mark in the triple jump, but we expect this to be a strong event for her this spring as well.

Many of our athletes moved up in age divisions this year, and Braden Lolli was one of those athletes. Now in the 9-10 boys division, he ran the 200 meters (where he won his heat) in a strong 34.30 seconds, placed right in the middle of the pack in the 400 m (1:21.52) and just missed making the finals in the long jump with a vault of 2.96 meters.

Two of our athletes, Charlie Allison and Colorado Stanley, both moved up to the boys’ 11-12 age division this season. Charlie managed to better his 55-meter dash time by nearly .5 seconds with a solid effort of 8.62 seconds, and Colorado, in the another heat of the 55 -m dash, was working on his turnover for his distance races with a time of 9.59 seconds. Colorado also ran the 400 m dash where he clocked a 1:36.24. But Colorado’s best performance of the day was his long jump, where he kept improving both form and distance with each jump, ending with a best of the day of 2.98 (tying his PR from last season). Charlie was able to make finals in the long jump, but having not even practiced long jump yet this season still had a respectable 3.58 jump for the day.

We had 5 high school young men compete for the Flyers on Sunday up in Flagstaff – all with strong results. Nic Sibley (6.56  sec.), Isaiah Banks (6.67 sec.) and Raymond Caayon (7.00 sec) took 2nd, 5th and 16th in the qualifying round of the 55-meter dash. Tyrek Cross, due to him turning 19 before August of this year, had to race in the open division, where he took 3rd place with a 6.92 sec time. Isaiah and Nic both came back in the long jump and triple where they took 1st and 2nd in both events, respectively. Isaiah jumped 6.51 m and 12.94, while Nic was able to muster 6.28 m and 12.85 m jumps. Alonzo Wilson, another high school Pride athlete, but who also turns 19 before August, jumped in the open division. He had a mark of 5.36m in the long jump and unfortunately fouled in the triple jump with no legal mark.

It was a good competitive meet for all of our athletes and showed good signs of the next 4 months to come. This weekend (Feb. 28th) the Flyers will be competing at Westwood High School in Mesa for a regulation meet.