Wildcats 2008 Season

Nodia Robinson and Deandre Gray named 2008 WAHS Athletes of the Year

The 2008 Wildcat Track team’s top performers show off plaques presented to them during the awards banquet. Left to right are Nodia Robinson,  Amber Caparas, and Gabby Bodison along with Todd Page and Deandre Gray. Not present among the award recipients was boy’s sprinter Dana Brown.
   

Wildcat Track athletes take three of the school’s top four Senior Awards
With the 2007-2008 school year commencing this week, the Wildcat Track team put the finishing touches on their already historic season by winning the lion’s share of West Ashley High School’s top senior awards at last week’s Senior Awards Ceremony attended by the entire class of 2008 and their family invitees. With track & field being a traditional sport for multi-sport athletes, it’s no surprise that the Wildcats’ top runners went on to capture the school’s top annual awards. After her second season as a varsity basketball player and third straight year with All-State honors in track, middle-distance star Nodia Robinson won the girl’s Athlete of the Year award. Robinson advanced to the state finals a school-record 7 times, and earned Al-State honors in both the 800 and the 3200 meter relay (4×800) as a senior. Likewise, All-Region football honoree Deandre Gray clinched the boys’ Athlete of the Year award after earning All-State honors for the 400 meter relay (4×100) with a school record time that qualified his squad for the Nike Outdoor National Championships this summer. Both athletes were also silver medalists at the State Championships. Meanwhile Amber Caparas garnered the girls’ National Scholar Athlete Award presented by the U.S. Army to the top female scholar-athlete each year. In addition to her All-State honors and three-sport status as a senior (track, cross country and swimming), Amber is likely to finish the year ranked 2^nd in her class with a whopping 4.92 grade point average. Being a recent transfer student, Amber doesn’t qualify for Salutatorian honors, but we think she’ll survive disappointment. Also earning Scholar Athlete honors with Caparas were Nodia Robinson for the girls team and Rashaad Mack for the boys. Mack was also a football star and earned All-State honors in the 400 meter relay. At the Track & Field awards banquet, boys head coach Richard Luden and girl’s head coach Jeremy Morris awarded Varsity letters and awards plaques to the team’s top performers. Distance runner Todd Page, still just an 8^th grader, was awarded as the boys’ Most Improved Athlete while Senior pole vaullter Gabby Bodison was honored as Most Improved among the girls. Deandre Gray was honored as the boys’ Outstanding Field Athlete and Dana Brown was named the boys’ Outstanding Track Athlete. To round out the special awards, Nodia Robinson was honored as the girls’ Outstanding Track Athlete and Amber Caparas was awarded as the team’s Most Valuable Player. During the banquet coach Ron Sutton spoke of his 30+ years of coaching experience and said that this year’s combined team was likely “the most talented group of young athletes” he had ever coached.  With many of this year’s team returning for at least one more season, both coach Luden and coach Morris spoke of high expectations for next year’s team. All present were in agreement. Congratulations to the class of 2008, and go Wildcats!   Amber Caparas signs to run College of Charleston Track  

 

 

 

 

As published in the May 19, 2008 Issue of West Of

By Editor Lorne Chambers

Photo Caption: WAHS principal Mary Runyon, Girls’ Track Coach Jeremy Morris, athletic director Richard Luden, andWayne Caparas look on as Amber Caparas signs her letter of intent to the College of Charleston. 

One of the most decorated student-athletes in West Ashley High School history will be staying close to home following graduation this year. Senior track, cross- Country, and swimming athlete Amber Caparas recently accepted a scholarship to the College of Charleston where she will run track for the Cougars for the next four years. She will likely be a part of the  school’s 4×400 relay team and run the 400 hurdles, which is probably her strongest event. “I’m very excited to be running track at the College of Charleston,” says Caparas, who is currently one of the best intermediate hurdlers in the state. “It is just an honor to be a collegiate athlete.” While at WAHS Caparas set personal records of 60.54 (400-meter), a school record 1:06.84 (400-meter hurdles), and 2:28 (4×800 leg). She also shares the school record in the 4×400, 4×800, the shuttle hurdle relay, and the 4×100. WAHS girls’ track coach Jeremy Morris had high praise for Caparas. “She’ll be successful whatever she does. She is a very determined young lady,” says Morris, who knows that Caparas brings more than athletic talent to a team. Her outgoing personality is inspiring and helped meld the WAHS girls’ track team together as arguably the best team in school history. But despite the All-State honors and four gold medals at the Region Championship, Caparas says it is that team atmosphere that she cherishes most. “We established a character as a team that was infectious,” she says. “Amber’s personality and positive outlook excites our staff,” says CofC track & field head coach Amy Schuckert. Other than her achievements in the athletic arena, Caparas will graduate in the top three of her class, maybe even number one once all the final grades are tallied. She was also a South Carolina All-Star cast honoree while a theater major at Charleston County School of the Arts, where she attended until her senior year. While only a student at WAHS for one year, she participated in Wildcat athletics throughout her high school career. “We finally got her to come over here this year,” jokes WAHS athletic director Richard Luden. Many at WAHS will probably remember Caparas as the girl who played guitar and sang in the school library’s café, a job she was hired to do. In addition to earning six varsity letters over her career and all the extracurricular activities, Caparas is also the student leader of the Fellowship of Christian Athletes at WAHS. “I think the secret to Amber’s success is that she’s made a genuine effort to honor God through her high school experience, especially during her senior year and especially in her personal life,” says her father Wayne Caparas. “She stays really busy doing things that really matter. She blows me away.” An obvious workaholic, Caparas is excited about making the transition from a Wildcat to Cougar. In fact, she’ll start her college training regiment this summer before she even sits in a college classroom for the first time. While Wayne Caparas is thrilled to have his daughter close to home. CofC coaches are equally pleased to have such a talented and outgoing person on their track team. “Coupled with a tremendous amount of potential to improve on her already impressive marks, we look forward to her being an integral part of our 4×400 relay as well as being very competitive in the 400 hurdles,” says CofC’s Schuckert.  

Amber Alert: The High School Achievements of Amber Caparas
1. 2008 All-State Honoree
2. Seven time All-Region honoree (Most ever for a Wildcat in any sport)
3. First Wildcat ever to win Region Championship in all four of her events in a single season
4. Nine time County Champion
5. Five-time State Finalist
6. Holds school record in the 400 meter hurdles with elite time of 66.84
7. Holds school record in the 300 meter hurdles with elite time of 48.84
8. Holds school record in the 4×400 relay(with Amami-Antia Obong, Amber Campbell, and Nodia Robinson)
9. Holds school record in the 4×800 relay (with Nodia Robinson, Lauren Bass, and Ashley Wescott)
10. Holds school record in the 4×100 relay (with Germetria Forrest, Morghan Blake, and Breanna Grant)
11. Junior Olympics State Champion in 100-meter intermediate hurdles and 400-meter low hurdles as a freshman (IG Class, freshman and sophomores)
12. Earned six varsity letters over her career and was a three-sport letterman as a senior (Track, Swim team, and Cross Country)

All-State Honorees All: Deshawn Mazyck, Rashaad Mack, Deandre Gray, and Dana Brown (L-R) celebrate their Runners-Up victory with the Gold Medalists and State Record holders from Dorman High, including Marcus Rowland (far right) who is the fastest man in South Carolina high school league history.
Dana Brown leads the boys’ 4×100 relay team to a new WAHS school record and Silver at State
With eventual state champions Dorman High School boasting the fastest team ever assembled in this South Carolina – including  Marcus Rowland who is the fastest man in state history – the WAHS boys 4×100 relay squad stepped onto the State Championship track knowing that it was basically going to be a 7 team race for the silver medal. Entering as the sixth ranked team among the eight state finalists, the boys squad of Dana Brown, Rashaad Mack, Deandre Gray, and Deshawn Mazyck could have felt good about moving up to fourth or even fifth in the state, but they came prepared to prove they were faster than their ranking indicated.  Those who follow Wildcat track know the boys have had many victories and great races throughout the season but had yet to click in all three baton transfers, and with all but Brown being a graduating senior this was their last chance. As expected, Dorman shattered the state record in the race (a record that had stood unchallenged for 13 years), but trailing just one second behind the historic foursome were our Wildcats, who stunned the field with a 2^nd place finish that earned them the silver medal and All-State designations for all four runners. In any other year these Wildcats would have been your state champions, so finishing 2^nd to the fastest team in state history is no minor feat.  Even more, the performance hurled the boys track team to an impressive 9^th place finish overall among the 48 schools in the state’s largest class.  For a team that started the year far out of the top 25, the end results have produced a most remarkable season for coach Richard Luden’s boys. Also contributing to the State Championships point total was sophomore pole vaulter David Melton who finished 7^th; junior discus thrower Donovan Pinckney who also finished 7^th; and senior Deandre Gray who finished 6^th in the long jump. But no one was more impressive or more important to the team’s Cinderella finish to the 2008 season than junior sprinter Dana Brown who also finished 5^th in both the 100 meters and 200 meter dashes and earned nearly half the team’s total points. Also earning All-State honors was the girls 4×800 meter relay squad of Nodia Robinson, Amber Caparas, Lauren Bass, and Jessie Gallagher whose time of 9:59.41 was fast enough to ensure this group of Wildcat legends go down in high school league history with the state’s highest team honor. It was a dramatic race, as Jessie Gallagher fought off the anchor runner from cross-town rivals Wando High for the entire 100 meter home stretch to produce the historic finish, so we can thank the Warriors for pushing our girls to victory. This is the first Wildcat girls’ relay team ever to earn the honor. The resulting group of eight from both squads is by far a record of All-State honorees in WAHS history. Speaking of 800 meters runs, Nodia Robinson was involved in probably the most startling race of the championship meet. Nodia was the silver medalist in 2005 when she pushed current Carolina Gamecock runner Jessica Nichols to break the state record in the event with a time of 2:14.  Entering this year’s finals as the top seed and with a career best time of 2:15.68, it appeared Nodia was poised to win her first state championship and for the first 90% of the race she was dominant. But wen Ridgeview’s Sierra Henderson caught Nodia just before the finish line, history repeated itself as a runner’s gutty effort to beat Nodia resulted a new state record. Nodia shaved a full 3 seconds off her time and ran a national elite time just over 2:14 (which is her personal record and would win at many college meets) but Henderson somehow shaved 5 seconds off her season’s best, which is unheard of in such a short race. So Nodia again takes home the silver, and another All-State designation – a record third time for a Wildcat runner, so all’s well for the Furman University-bound senior. Also scoring well for the girls was the 4×800 relay squad of Amber Caparas, Robinson, Lauren Bass, and Jessie Gallagher who jumped 3 spots in the finals to finish 5^th in the state – the best finish ever for a WAHS girl’s relay team. Rounding out the girls scoring was the 4×400 relay squad of Robinson, Caparas, Breanna Grant, and Gallagher who entered eighth and finished eighth. With a final season ranking of 21^st among 48 schools, coach Jeremy Morris’s girls team also made a big leap in their state ranking, and this was the by far the most girls ever to earn All-State honors, so there are many kudos to go around – especially to coach Ron Sutton who began training these girls since they were freshmen and saw them through to the very end. As any sports fan knows, an athlete will carry their All-State designation with them for the rest of their lives, and it serves our community well to see our young athletes contributing to the legacy of WAHS athletics with such class and style. At the end of the final day of a very long season, one thing is sure, the West Ashley High School track & field program has re-proven itself as a legitimate force in the state, and though many key seniors are graduating to the college ranks, many more underclassmen have proven themselves ready to pick up the torch and keep the proud legacy alive. After the team banquet we’ll give a wrap up of the historic season and post-season honors and also review the career records set by the graduating seniors. Until then, if you see a Wildcat runner, be sure to offer your congratulations for a race well run!

 

David Melton, Nodia Robinson, and Dana Brown (clockwise) remind us why the universal symbol for the sport of Track and Field is the winged-foot, as they lead a record number of Wildcats to this Saturday’s State Championships in Columbia.

Nodia Robinson and Dana Brown lead unprecedented 11 Wildcats to “State”
The largest 48 schools in South Carolina compete in the class AAAA, which is by far the state’s most competitive class. So in every sport the Wildcats begin each season in a 48 team elimination tournament with a single purpose; to win their way to the State Championships – the Super Bowl of their respective sports.  With South Carolina being among the top Track & Field states in the nation, earning the title of ”State Finalist” is a tremendous accomplishment. At Saturday’s State qualifying meet, where the top 32 performers from eight regions competed for the honor,  senior star Nodia Robinson and boys’ junior sprinter Dana Brown led their combined team for a single-season record number of Wildcats to advance to State. Robinson is clearly peaking at the perfect time, as her 2:17.10 in Saturday’s  800 meter run is nearly a second faster than any time run by any runner this year, and she also advances in the 3200 meter relay (4×800) and the 1600 meter relay (4×400). Brown also advances in all three of his events with impressive performances in both the 100 and 200 meter dashes and a crowd-pleasing run as the anchorman in the 400 meter relay (4×100), proving himself among the fastest men in the state. With their prolific outing, Robinson and Brown join WAHS legends Keith Graham and Ty Williams (both class of ’06 and both State Champions) as the only Wildcats ever to earn State births in three events over a single season. But with seven career births to State, Robinson becomes the all-time leader in that category. All the two-time All State runner needs now is the elusive State Championship ring. It certainly appears to be her year. Earning two births to State are senior star Amber Caparas and junior star Jessie Gallagher who join Robinson as the core of both relays, and senior Deandre Gray who advances in both the long jump and the 4×100 relay.  This is Gallagher’s and Gray’s first two trips to State, while Caparas is enjoying her fifth birth in her impressive four year career. Also returning for her second State birth is senior Lauren Bass (4×800 relay) who joins Robinson and Caparas as school record holders in the event. Making her first trip to the big stage is junior sprinter Briana Grant for the 4×400 relay, who barely missed advancing in the 200 meter dash and is also peaking at the perfect time. Also earning their first State births are pole vaulter David Melton, who is a rare sophomore to accomplish the feat in the sport’s most technically difficult event; junior strongman Donovan Pinckney (discus); and senior sprinters Rashaad Mack and Deshawn Mazyck for the elite 4×100 relay. Ironically, the most impressive performance of the meet may have been turned in by senior Gabrielle Bodison, who missed advancing by the narrowest margin possible, but still finished the season as the 9^th ranked pole vaulter in the state despite entering the season as a rookie.  It’s also worth noting that having three of a possible six relay squads advance to State is an extraordinary team accomplishment, and is the clearest indicator of the overall strength of the WAHS Track program. For many schools around the state the season is already over, and many others will be represented by a number of athletes that could ride to Columbia for Saturday’s State Championship meet in a single minivan, but with eleven athletes and a full staff of coaches, the WAHS Wildcats will once again need to fire up the bus. You can be sure that Athletic Director/Bus Driver Richard Luden doesn’t mind at all.  Word is he’s trying to break the 2000 mile mark for the season.  Congratulations athletes and coaches! 

Click Here to see photos from the State Qualifying meet

Caparas and Robinson “team up” for sweeps and team record All-Region honors

 
Seniors and four year lettermen Amber Caparas, Lauren Bass,
and Nodia Robinson celebrated their final races in Wildcat
Stadium by leading the Wildcats to a rare triple-crown sweep of
the relay events at the region 8AAAA championships

With just the top 4 in each event advancing to the State Championship qualifying meet, and with region 8AAAA being one of the toughest in the state, it was finally time to see if the grueling regular season schedule would pay off. Senior stars Nodia Robinson and Amber Caparas (both four year veterans) rose to the occasion to lead the Wildcats to their most prolific regional performance in school history, as both the girls and boys teams produced the largest number of region champions ever. While both girls won their marquee individual events – 800 meters for Robinson and the 400 meter hurdles for Caparas – the real magic was produced as the two led the girls to a very rare “triple crown” in the relay events. For perspective, consider this: in the school’s entire history, the girls had won a relay event at the regionals a total of three times over seven seasons and had never won the elite 4×100 relay, so the sweep is an incredible accomplishment. In response the boys 4×100 relay squad also won their first ever 4×100 relay at region, giving the Wildcats victory in an astounding 4 of the 6 total relays. That left just two relays for the other 5 schools in the region. When one team so dominates the relay events, unprecedented things happen. Robinson joined Caparas, Omega Crook and Ty Williams (both class of ’06) as the only Wildcats ever to garner All-Region honors in three events in a single year, and Caparas became the first ever to garner the honor in all four of her events – the maximum allowed by state rules. In doing so, Amber also became the first Wildcat in school history to earn All-Region honors seven times in her career. Ty Williams and Catheryn Porter (class of ’04) both earned the honor six times, and both went on to win State in their senior seasons. Junior star Jessie Gallagher entered the regionals poised to also sweep her four events, but after suffering a deep contusion to her knee during the 100 meter hurdle preliminaries Gallagher instead played the role of over-comer, as she ran through obvious pain to anchor the victorious 4×400 squad in the final race of the day. Clearly inspired by the gritty performance, both the boys and girls teams met her at the finish line for a heartwarming celebration that was symbolic of the historic season. Gallagher also earned All-Region honors with Robinson, Caparas, and senior Lauren Bass in the 4×800 relay, but her injury denied her victory in the hurdles and the high jump, though she still advances in both events. With 10 days of rest before the state qualifier, coaches expect a full recovery. Also earning All-Region honors in two events was junior sprinter Breanna Grant who anchors the 4×100 relay and has proven herself to be the missing link in the 4×400 relay. Grant is also advancing in the 200 meter dash. Another inspiring performance was turned in by 8^th grader Todd Page who with his strong 4^th place finish in the grueling 3200 meter run made history as the youngest Wildcat ever to advance past the regionals. Page is also a Cross Country letterman, so coaches expect big things from him over the next four years. As anticipated, sophomore pole vaulter David Melton won the regional, but what wasn’t expected was that he will be joined at the next level by senior vaulters Gabrielle Bodison (2^nd) and Kristine Rollings (4^th). This is the first time in school history that three athletes have advanced past the regional in the high-flying event. To round out the field event honors, junior thrower Donovan Pinckney easily won the Discus. Pinckney is currently ranked 5^th in the state and is clearly within range of winning the ring. Rounding out the unprecedented list of 13 region champions are speedster Germetria Forrest (4×100) who also qualified in the 100m dash; sophomore Morgan Blake (captain of the girls’ 4×100 squad); junior speedster Dana Brown (4×100) who also advances in the 100 and 200 meter dashes; and also for the boys 4×100 relay senior sprinters Deandre Gray (also advances in the long jump) Rashaad Mack (squad captain), and Deshawn Mazyck (also advances in the 110 hurdles) round out the All-Region honorees.

Region 8AAAA Championships Results

While the full article will be coming soon, here are the complete offical results:

Click Here for Girls 8AAAA Results
Click Here for Boys 8AAAA Results

The 4×200 squad of Aja Peterson, Breanna Grant, Morgan Blake, and Germetria Forrest celebrate their school-record breaking performance and 3^rd place finish at the University of Tennessee’s Volunteer Track Classic last weekend.

With a big showing at the Charleston County Championships and an eventful trip to the Volunteer Track Classic at the University of Tennessee, the West Ashley track team closed out the regular season by breaking several records that may one day be matched, but will likely never be broken by any Wildcat sport or other competitive team anytime soon. In a single 16 day stretch the team competed on 8 of those days in 5 different meets against approximately 250 high schools from more than a dozen states while driving more than 1600 miles across the borders of 5 states. And for every mile of the odyssey Athletic Director and boys head coach Richard Luden was behind the wheel. The West Ashley Wildcats are widely known as South Carolina’s traveling track team, and the tradition began in the late 80’s when Luden and long-time girls team counterpart coach Ron Sutton put the former St. Andrews High School track team on the same road weary map, gathering numerous state championships along the way. “Exposing the athletes to the highest caliber of competition at the highest quality meets pays off when it matters most… it’s also a great recruiting tool, as the kids get to go places and see things they’ve never seen,” said Luden, speaking also for Sutton and new Girl’s head coach Jeremy Morris.“It’s awesome,” said senior sprinter/hurdler Amber Caparas. “During my four years here I’ve competed in five states and I’ve run against national record holders who I believe I’ll watch compete in the Olympics someday… it’s inspiring,” added Caparas. With the Region 8AAAA Championships this Wednesday (hosted by the Wildcats), it’s do or die from here on, as only the top 4 in each event advance to the state qualifier meet on the May 3^rd.

As for this week’s performances, senior Nodia Robinson continued on her collision course with the top of the podium at state by winning the gold medal in the Volunteer Classic’s 800 meters race. She was one of two South Carolinians to win gold at the meet. But the big surprises of the week were produced by the girls 4×200 meter squad of Morgan Blake, Aja Peterson, Breanna Grant, and Germetria Forrest who broke the school record in the event while finishing third at the meet, and senior pole-vaulter Gabrielle Bodison who earned her first major medal. Also medaling was senior long jumper Deandre Gray who is currently ranked 3^rd in the state and the boy’s shuttle hurdle relay squad (Deshawn Mazyck, Zach Brown, James Megget, Gray) who finished second overall and also set a new school record in the event.

 

At the Charleston County Championships, junior thrower Donovan Pinckney stole the show by winning the boys’ field event MVP with wins in both the discus and the shot-put. The other MVP winners were James Island’s Raymond Urie (boys’ track), Academic Magnet’s Kiera Gabe (girls field) and Jame’s Island’s Taylor Stubbs (girls’ track). Along with Pinckney, the following Wildcats earned the title “Charleston County Champion” at last week’s meet: Germetria Forrest (100m, 4×100 relay), Jessie Gallagher (100m hurdles, 4×400, 4×800), Amber Caparas (400m hurdles, 4×100, 4×400, 4×800), Nodia Robinson (800m, 4×400, 4×800), Breanna Grant (4×100, 4×400), Morgan Blake (4×100), Lauren Bass (4×800), David Melton (pole vault), Deandre Gray (long jump, 4×100), Deshawn Mazyck (110m hurdles, 4×100), James Meggett (400m hurdles), Rashaad Mack (4×100), and Dana Brown (4×100).
Click Here to view photos from the Charleston County Championships
Click Here to view photos from the Volunteer Track Classic

Wildcat senior Noda Robinson (in the lead) put her All-State stride on display against many of the top 800 meter runners in the Southeast at the 17^th annual Taco Bell Classic.

The Taco Bell Classic at Spring Valley High School in Columbia is one of just 12 invitational meets where athletes can qualify for the Nike National Championships, so the level of competition was as high as it gets below the NCAA level.  For this, the Wildcats needed their A game if they hoped to medal, and senior runner Nodia Robinson did not disappoint. The all-state honoree won the bronze in the girls’ 800 meters with a time of a 2:18.75, the third best time of her career. With the performance Nodia has gained the number 2 ranking in the state AAAA for the third year in a row, and most believe this will be her year to reach the top spot at the state championships.  Also making big moves this weekend was senior sprinter/hurdler Amber Caparas  who is now ranked number 4 in the state AAAA in the 400 meter hurdles. This is Amber’s highest ranking in her career, though she  finished 7th in the state as a sophomore. Amber’s personal best would move her within hundredths of a second of the number one spot, so her chances of winning the ring are also within reach. The best all-around Wildcat performance was again posted by Junior star Jessie Gallagher who finished 8th in the high jump and was impressive in the 100 meter hurdles among an elite class of 67 hurdlers. The event was by far the most talent-laden of the meet, as the finals produced the fastest 3 performances in the nation for 2008 and showcased senior Jacquelyn Coward (Tennessee) and sophomore Jasmine Stowers (Pendleton, SC),  two of the fastest high school hurdlers in American track history. Gallagher is now ranked 8th in the state AAAA for both of these events, so her chances to earn her way to state are looking very good (only the top 8 advance). Gallagher also joins Robinson and Caparas in the 4×400 and the 4×800 meter relays. The Wildcat girls are on the verge of breaking into the top 5 in both of these events, so there is a good chance the three ladies could each advance to the state finals in three or more events. That would be an extraordinary accomplishment at even the most established schools in the state, so the potential speaks well of the program athletic director Richard Luden and girls head coach Jeremy Morris (with predecessors Ron Sutton and Bob Williams) have assembled in 8 short years of school history. On the boys side, senior sprinter/jumper Deandre Gray long-jumped to the number 3 ranking in the state AAAA with a personal best of 21’7”, good enough to finish 8th among the elite field of Southeastern jumpers.  Gray has consistently medaled and scored in every meet this year and is emerging as the Wildcat boys’ best shot for a state champion since the triplets of Graham, Williams, and Godfrey each won rings in 2006. Also showing well were fellow sprinters senior Rashaad Mack and junior Dana Brown who both advanced to the elite 16 man finals in the 100 meter dash, and sophomore pole vaulter David Melton who again topped 13 feet to  finish 12th. Melton is still ranked 2nd in the state AAAA and also has a shot at the ring. The Wildcats are in the middle of a globe-trotting 16 -day stretch that includes 8 days of competition and overnight stays in three states (FL, TN, SC), so “hats off” to the coaching staff and the athletes for continuing to improve as they march toward the “do or die” Region Championships next week.

Click here see the photo gallery from the Taco Bell Classic 

Coming up this week are the Charleston County Championships at Wildcat Stadium this Wednesday, followed by a three day trip to Knoxville, Tennessee for the Volunteer Track Classic. Be sure to check back next week as we follow our track stars on their march to the state championships. 

Melton breaks Vaulting record, Forrest breaks 100 record, Wildcats Shine at Florida Relays

University of Florida – Gainesville, Fl

Following a two year break, the West Ashley Wildcats track team returned to the University of Florida to participate in the south’s most prestigious track event and “represented” in high style. The Pepsi Florida Relays is a rare collegiate meet that invites Olympians, professional track athletes, and high school teams alike to compete with the college athletes on the same track at the same time, as the events for each class are woven together to create a spectacle that the many thousands present could instantly appreciate. “It was an honor to stand on the track preparing to race and see Olympic gold medalists and NCAA Champions standing just a few feet away,“ said senior Sprinter Deandre Gray. “Running in front of such a huge crowd was definitely exciting, but all I was thinking about was that I wanted to show the colleges what I could do, and I feel like I ran the best I’ve run all year. I hope they noticed,” said Deandre. I’m pretty sure they did. With more than 40 universities and nearly 5000 competing, the high school athletes knew their performance was both a privilege and an opportunity to prove themselves and possibly earn a closer look when scholarships are awarded at season’s end. Whatever the cause, Gray’s 4 by 100 relay squad (including Deshawn Mazyck, Rashaad Mack, and Dana Brown) was clearly inspired, as the foursome drew praise from the play by play call announcer en route to routing the other teams in their heat. It was pretty cool to hear “West Ashley is in the lead” so many times, but especially exciting when they were announced to have won the heat. Not to be outdone, the girl’s 4 by 100 squad of Germetria Forrest, Jessie Gallagher, Amber Caparas, and Breanna Grant produced one of the most exciting races of the day, as Grant executed a near perfect blind handoff with Caparas and found herself in a dead tie for the lead before racing the most impressive 100 meters of her track career. As the much taller runner from Eastside (Florida) initially gained a small lead, Grant seemed to find a new gear as she blew past her opponent and wowed the crowd to ensure the girls also finished first in their very competitive heat. “At first I didn’t think I could catch her,” said Grant. “I just focused on sprinting all the way to the finish. It was so exciting,” exclaimed the junior sprinter. The girl’s time also makes them the 9th fastest team in South Carolina (AAAA). So within a 30 minute span the massive crowd of spectators and athletes from all over the country (the Bahamian Olympic team was there too) twice watched our Wildcats run their best times of the year and heard “West Ashley finishes first”. Also representing well was junior discus star Donovan Pinckney who finished an impressive 7th overall among the elite field. “Throwing in a college stadium was very different for me, and it made me a bit more nervous than usual because I felt like I really had something to prove,” said Pinckney. Representing in historic fashion was the girl’s 4 by 200 relay squad of Forrest, Robinson, Caparas, and Grant. This particular race is not run in South Carolina and it was the first time ever this foursome had run a relay together, facts that made their school record breaking performance that much more impressive. Unseated from the record were Wildcat legends Amami Antia-Obong, Omega Crook, Tracy Simmons, and Danielle Deas. But of all the girl’s sprinters, Forrest had the biggest overall outing by also recording the fastest 100 meter time ever by a lady Wildcat, unseating Omega Crook as the fastest girl in school history. Still just a junior, the Garrett High transfer student has instantly fit in, and coaches have high hopes for her future. Finally, the best individual Wildcat performance of the meet was turned in by Sophomore pole vaulter David Melton, who found himself among a field of elite Seniors at the biggest meet of his young career and performed well enough to draw interview requests from the Florida media. Melton clearly thrives under pressure on the biggest stages, as he not only vaulted a full 12 inches higher than his previous best, but he also dethroned Matt Hill as the school record holder with a mark of 13’6 ¼”, good enough to take 7th overall. More importantly the performance makes Melton the 2nd ranked AAAA vaulter in South Carolina with just one month to go till the State Championships. So with one big leap the sophomore has put himself on the major college recruiting map. “It feels incredible to have done so well at such a big meet, and to get my name in the record books so soon is a huge accomplishment for me. It’s incredible,” exclaimed Melton. As a West Ashley resident I can honestly say that our home town kids represented us well, and they certainly made all of us proud. Next up for the Wildcats is a home meet this Wednesday and then another major national meet, the Taco Bell Classic next Saturday. For video of the key performances mentioned above, check our video page frequently as new videos are posted daily. Click Here to see the full 600+ image photo gallery from the event. Cheers!

New 100 meter record holder Germetria “Meechie” Forrest explodes from the blocks in the girl’s school record breaking 4×200 at the 2008 Florida Relays

Nodia Robinson Outraces the Storm to win Gold at Azalea Invitational

For the second Saturday in a row, severe weather affected the sport of Track and Field in South Carolina, but this week it was the top weather event in the nation as the same storm that shut down the SEC basketball tournament in Atlanta sent 23 schools packing with two races yet to run at Summerville’s Outback Azalea Invitational. Not since the 2005 Florida Relays have the Wildcats participated in a meet cancelled or curtailed by severe weather, so the first two (of nearly a dozen) road expeditions for this record setting travel team have certainly been interesting. From the home town perspective, the “storm out” seemed to catch the Wildcats looking forward to

 spring break, as girl’s star Nodia Robinson (shown in photo) was the only athlete to bring her A game. In one of the final races before the teams were sent scrambling for the buses, the all-state runner rebounded from last week’s subpar outing to win the gold medal in the girl’s 800 meter run and return to her expected place at the top of the podium. Fellow seniors Amber Caparas and Lauren Bass joined Robinson and Junior star Jessica Gallagher to win bronze in the 4 x 800 relay to round out the full slate of Wildcat medalists at the abbreviated meet. To round out girl’s scorers, Gallagher also advanced to the finals in the 100 meter hurdles but fell short of the medal podium for the first time this season. On the boy’s side the storm played its part, but the team’s first medal shutout of the season was due primarily to errors and subpar performances across the board. Coming off their major gold medal victory at last week’s Diamond Hornet Invitational, the 4 x 100 relay squad strutted onto the track as a clear crowd favorite, but their well-founded confidence couldn’t cure a fatal error in the first handoff. Anchor man Dana Brown again was impressive as he gained ground on the pack during the final leg, but the team still fell far short of medaling on the day. Similarly, last week’s gold medalist long jumper Deandre Gray advanced to the finals and scored points but was more than a foot below his personal best and likewise failed to medal in the event for the first time this season. On the bright side, senior Deshawn Mazyck returned from his minor knee injury and advanced to the finals in the 110 meter high hurdles. Mazyck has barely run the highly technical race a dozen times, so his climb to this elite level in such a short time is impressive. Next up for the Wildcats is a Wednesday night home meet and then the only off-week of the season during spring break, leading up to Bishop England’s Father Kelly Classic on March 29^th. The season is still in its infancy, and with athletes still working to find their stride, all the coaches agree that this outing was mostly the product of the law of averages, and sprits remained high for everyone wearing the WAHS black and silver as they look forward to a rare Saturday break.

On a South Carolina day when March weather roared so loudly that the Greenville/Spartanburg Relays was cancelled, the hometown Wildcats traveled instead to Lower Richland H.S. outside Columbia where the 35 MPH wind gusts weren’t enough to shut down the Diamond Hornets Invitational. With 45 degree temps the weather was bitter indeed, but the very competitive field of 26 schools kept things interesting throughout, and none shined brighter than the West Ashley boys 4×100 relay team. With star sprinter Deshawn Mazyck out with a knee sprain, freshman sprinter Roemelle Mack stepped in at the leadoff spot for a rare opportunity at this level. With big brother Rashaad “Feisty” Mack (senior) in the 2 spot, Roemelle should have felt a bit more at home despite the intimidating moment, and so he was. With the Wildcats being among the fastest relay squads in the state, they were seeded in the final heat with the other elite teams at the meet, so a strong start was a must for young Roemelle. And he was clearly tied for the lead when he handed off the baton, but with the next two handoffs being subpar, senior Deandre Gray handed off to anchor man Dana Brown deep in fourth place and at least 10 meters behind the leader. But that’s when the Dana Brown show riveted the stadium with the most explosive burst of the day, as Brown “blew up” the three men in front of him for a crowd pleasing come-from-behind victory and the Gold medal in the prestigious event. Click the player below for video of the race – it was truly amazing. In a day he surely will never forget, young Roemelle proved he’s a star of the future by also taking the silver medal in the JV 100 meter dash. Deandre Gray later conquered the wind to also win the Gold in the long jump for a very rare double gold day. For the girls, junior star Jessica Gallagher had to jump the 100 meter high hurdles while powering directly into the wind, and was very happy to win the Bronze medal. Jessie was the lone medalist of the day for the girls squad. The weather hit the girls hardest, as the conditions led them to pull out of the 4×400 relay (one of their strongest events) and definitely hampered the performances of seniors Amber Caparas and Nodia Robinson who have never failed to medal on the same day at a meet of this size. Next up is the only Wednesday night home meet leading up to the Outback Azalea Classic in Summerville this Saturday. Pray for warm weather!

Click above to watch the 4×100 race from the Diamond Hornet Invitational

Click above to see Deandre Gray’s Gold Medal Long Jump at the Diamond Hornet Invitataional

Now that all results are final, Meet Director Richard Luden today announced the MVP honorees for the 2008 Sandlapper Classic. For the girls, Northwestern’s Mary Kate Dubard staked a convincing victory for the girl’s Outstanding Track Athlete Award by taking the gold medal in the 1600 meter run and also the 3200 meter run, where her time of 11:30.64 broke both the meet record and the Wildcat Stadium record. By leading her Northwestern team to the ‘08 Sandlapper Girl’s Team Championship, she was surely the top victor of the meet. In the field, the girls MVP race was rare and unusual as Fort Dorchester teammates Searra Jones and Keri Emanuel traded Gold and Silver in both the long and the triple jump, with the senior Jones taking the triple and sophomore Emanuel taking the long. The tiebreaker for the top award went to Emanuel for breaking the meet record with a jump of 17′5″. Jones won the top award at last year’s Sandlapper, and is the reigning AAAA State Champion in both events, so she seemed content watching her protege take her turn in the spotlight, but “just once,” quipped the smiling Searra. For the boys, Woodland’s Andrew Johnson won the gold medal in both the long jump and the triple jump to win the boy’s Outstanding Field Athlete Award. And of course, as noted below in the full event article, James Island’s Raymond Eurie (pictured above with his award) shattered the stadium records in both the 200 and 400 to take gold and the boys Outstanding Field Athlete Award. For honorable mention, Pendleton’s Jasmin Stowers broke her own Stadium record in the 100 meter high hurdles and would likely have repeated as MVP this year had she not bowed out of the 400 hurdles due a cold she’s been fighting, an event for which she also holds the stadium record. It was announced at the meet by Pendleton’s Coach Moses that just last week Jasmin set a new National sophomore record in the 60 meter indoor hurdles. With the Nike Indoor National’s just days away, Jasmin seems primed to again make history, and possibly take the National Crown. We’ll keep you posted. Meanwhile defending State Champion and Sandlapper ‘07 MVP Marcus Pope also failed to repeat as MVP after false-starting his way out of the 110 high hurdle finals, but went on to successfully defend his gold medal in the 400 nonetheless. He still holds both meet and stadium records set from his ‘07 performances. Congratulations to these great athletes, their teammates, their coaches, and their schools!

Pendleton High School made another strong showing

Here are the early returns on photos from the pros… enjoy, and be sure to check back daily for more!

1. Slideshow By Kyle Nowlin
2. Gallery By Kyle Nowlin
3. Visit KyleNowlinPhotography.com to purchase full quality images from Kyle Nowlin
4. Gallery at www.SCrunnners.com
5. Slideshow by SCrunners.com
6. Video interviews by SCrunners.com
7. Slideshow by WildcatTrack.com
8. Gallery by WildcatTrack.com
9. Slideshow by D. Keith Driggers
10. Gallery by D. Keith Driggers
11. Visit KeithDriggersPhotography.com to purchase photos by D. Keith Driggers

Much, much more to come… including our own professional video productions by Charleston Media Productions… check back often!

2nd Annual Sandlapper Classic exceeds the Inaugural

With more than 1000 athletes in attendance, Wildcat stadium had seldom if ever hosted so many competitors in a single day, and the equally large crowd of fans easily got its money’s worth. With more than 50 teams and numerous male and female state champions on the roster, the 2nd Annual Sandlapper Classic produced thirteen new meet records and a whopping nine new stadium records. While Pendleton H.S. sophomore “Team USA” hurdler Jasmin Stowers was again the media darling, James Island’s Raymond Eurie stole the show on route to winning the Outstanding Boy’s Track MVP Award. Eurie won gold medals in both the 200 meter 400 meter dashes and added a bronze medal in the 110 meter high hurdles. Even more impressive, Eurie shattered the stadium records in both gold medal events, beating the silver and bronze medalists soundly in each race. Last year’s MVP, Marcus Pope from Andrews, again made a great showing but after being disqualified for a false start in the 110 hurdle finals the perennial gold medalist took a rare back seat to the James Island star. Pope is the reigning state champion in both boys hurdle events and also holds the Wildcat Stadium record for each, so Eurie’s MVP victory should fuel him well in the race for the state crowns in his top events.In the team competitions, both the 2007 boys and girls team champions were forced to settle for second this year. The Wando boys team flexed considerable muscle to outrun Atlanta, GA’s Miller Grove High School (86.5 to 66) and the Northwestern girls edged the Summerville girls by just one half a point (86 to 85.5). But with a strong third place showing by the Greenwave boys team, Summerville High School repeated as Combined Team Champions. Meanwhile the West Ashley Wildcats’ boys and girls teams finished a strong 6th and 7th respectively.

On the hometown front, the lady Wildcat’s put familiar faces on the track to win a fist full of silver medals. Individually, two-time All-State honoree, Nodia Robinson (Sr.) took the silver in the 800 meter run and Jessica Gallagher (Jr.) took the silver in the 100 meter hurdles. Gallagher looked especially impressive running side by side with 6-time State Champion Stowers for a good portion of the race, and though Jasmin pulled away over the final hurdles, all agree that finishing second to the nation’s 3rd ranked high school hurdler is certainly an achievement to celebrate. Robinson and Gallagher joined 3-time State Finalist Amber Caparas (Sr.) to lead the girls to silver medals in both medium relays, with state finalist Lauren Bass (Sr.) and Breanna Grant (Jr.) each earning a silver medal as the fourth member of the 4×800 and 4×400 meter relays respectively. For the Wildcat boys, Jr. Donovan Pinkney won the silver medal in the discus, sophomore David Melton took the silver in pole vault, Sr. Deandre Gray took the bronze in the long jump, and the boys 4×100 relay squad of Deshawn Mazyck (Sr.), Rashaad Mack (Sr.), Gray, and Dana Brown (Jr.) won the bronze.

Check back soon for complete final results sheets, photo galleries, and video!

 

The Day after the BIG event…

What a day. If you attended the meet as an athlete or coach or spectator or sponsor, surely you are resting today! Wow.  Due to the computer issues that sprung up late in the afternoon, we hope you can bear with us as the Meet Directors take the day to ensure the accuracy of their scoring and work towards publishing the final results, hopefully later today. Meanwhile photo galleries and video clips will be posted across the week, with some photos going online later today, so please be sure to check back throughout the week. We have more than 1000 images to post, and we want you to see every shot… especially the one’s that show you or your favorite team in action. Congratulations to Wando H.S.  for winning the Boy’s team Championship trophy,  to Northwestern H.S. for winning the Girl’s team Championship, and to Summerville H.S. for defending their Overall School Championship with a 2nd consecutive victory. MVP award winners will be named after all results are confirmed, so please check back Wednesday when these honors are finalized. Until then, enjoy the beautiful Southeastern weather! Here in Charleston, our perspective is still very golden. Cheers!

Concessions Menu…

Back by popular demand, Andolini’s authentic NY style pizza (pepperoni or cheese) should dominate the plate of most attendees, but here are the other foods that will be served from the concession stand: Hamburgers, Cheeseburgers, Chili Burgers, Hot Dogs, Chili Dogs, Chili by the Bowl, Hard Boiled Eggs, assorted Whole Fruits, Italian Ice, Chips, assorted popular Candy, and of course Gatorade, sodas, and bottled water. Something good for everyone!

Perfect Weather Expected!

Take a look at Saturday’s weather forecast for Charleston from Weather.com. This is perfect track weather — for the athletes AND the specators. Bring your best sunning chair and lots of sunscreen! Nothing could be finer… than to be in Carolina!

Planning to attend the Classic?

We hope you and your friends are planning to attend this awesome event, so here’s the important info for you.

Admission/Tickets: $5 at the gate, good for all day, and you will be banded to come and go
Food: Concessions are provided by Andolini’s, Charleston’s premier pizzeria. They will of course be serving a complete lunch menu and most high-demand cooncession items all at normal stadium prices. But if you came last year, you already know that Andolini’s Pizza alone was worth the drive to Charleston! Yummmm!
Restroom Facilities: We take great pride in the cleanliness and expansiveness of our stadium facilities. We have a well appointed field house in the stadium that was built just 8 years ago, and the Restrooms are impressive components of this field house. 
Carry-ins Allowed? Yes! If you can carry it, chances are you’re welcome to bring it in… Lawn chairs, tents, all cameras and video devices, coolers, picnic blankets, etc., etc… are all welcome!
Tent placements: If you navigate to our Stadium page you’ll see that the stadium grounds offer two different wooded areas on either end of the home side that make for the perfect camping environment. But for teams that like to have their tent right in the thick of the action, both curves of the track offer excellent tent placements against the fencing that butts right up against the track. You can also set up your tenting in the grandstands, but if you choose these locations you must set up your tent at the highest rows along the top of each grandstand.
Other Questions? Post a comment or contact us!