STEPHENS CITY — On April 11, the Handley High School boys’ track & field team showed what it’s capable of against a strong field by winning the 21-school Handley Invitational.
Now that its state champion sprinter is back in the mix, the Judges’ future prospects feel as bright as Friday’s sun.
Led by 100- and 200-meter champion Rylan Stribling, Handley captured the 12-school Northwestern District meet title on Friday at Sherando by 23 points for its first district championship since 2022. The Judges scored 131 points, with the host Warriors taking second with 108. James Wood was fourth with 73 points and Millbrook placed 11th with 22.
“I’m just proud of the team, and everybody putting their best foot forward,” Handley coach Lloyd Phillps said. “A lot of [personal records], a lot of kids doing what they need to do.”
The Judges won five of the 17 events and might have won a sixth If Timmy Campbell (area-best 6-foot-6 mark in the high jump) was not at his sister’s college graduation. (The winning mark was 6-0 on Friday.) Will Thomas (800), Isaiah Baxter (triple jump) and Triston Darling (discus) also won titles.
Friday marked Stribling’s first meet since the Handley Invitational, and the defending Class 4 champion in the 100 and 200 and future University of Virginia runner made it count.
With a strong tailwind to work with, Stribling set the only boys’ meet record of the day by winning the 100 in 10.72, eclipsing the mark of 10.81 of James Wood’s John Simms in 2011. Stribling won the 100 by 0.46 over Sherando’s Wyatt Grimm (second in 11.18). Stribling then easily won the 200 as well, recording a time of 22.01 to runner-up Trey Thompson of Fauquier’s 22.36.
Prior to the Handley Invitational, Stribling had limited activity for 10 days because of a hamstring strain. He was cleared to run four days prior to it and turned in times of 11.17 and 22.15. Stribling’s career-best times are 10.43 and 21.21.
Stribling wanted to run at the Handley Invitational because he figured people would want to see him compete at the Judges’ home meet, but in hindsight, he feels like he might have rushed his rehabilitation process. But his mindset since then was that he wasn’t going to take the track for a meet unless he felt completely healthy. This week, he was ready to go.
“I keep straining my hamstring,” Stribling said. “It’s been very frustrating. I’m glad I’m back to healthy now. The smartest thing was to listen to my body. If I was ready, then I’m was going to run. If I had any type of doubt, I wasn’t going to run.”
Stribling figured he could run a fast time in the 100 because of the tailwind, but he said he still has work to do to be at his best.
“It’s my first meet back, so my form and my execution hasn’t been the way I want it to be,” Stribling said. “But I definitely think I’ll be at 100 percent by states.”
Stribling said his 200 on Saturday definitely could have better. As he looked at the scoreboard near the finish line he thought he’d finish well under 22 seconds, so he shut himself down with several meters to go. When the scoreboard flashed 22.01, he realized he had made a mistake.
Stribling said he hadn’t even run a 200 in practice since the Handley Invitational, much less in a meet, so his time was still reason for optimism.
“I’m actually surprised by the execution I did, especially on the straight end,” Stribling said. “I wish I didn’t let up the end, but I won. That’s all that matters.”
Stribling can’t wait to show what he can do once the postseason starts. The Region 4D meet is at 1 p.m. on May 26 at Eastern Mennonite University in Harrisonburg.
“I know I’m way better than what my times show,” Stribling said.
Phillips said it was good for Stribling to get some confidence after being out of competition for so long.
“He looked good,” Phillips said. “He looked clean. He’s got some things he wants to work on. But overall, it was a good day for him.”
Thomas led throughout the 800 and finished with a 2.42-second win, recording a 1:57.46 to fellow senior Thomas Miles of Sherando’s 1:59.98. Handley junior Noah Meleason was third in 2:05.37.
Thomas — who was just off his season-best time of 1:57.39 — was hoping Kettle Run’s Brady Leitenberger (1:57.23) would run and push him to a faster time, but Leitenberger didn’t compete for health reasons.
“I went out, knowing I was going to go solo,” said Thomas on a day where runners faced a headwind on the backstretch and occasionally difficult winds on the curves. “I wanted to go out fast and see what I can do. That third 200, I was really feeling that, but the tailwind at the end was really nice.”
Thomas said he asks everyone in his heat before each of his races, “Who wants to pray?” He said it meant a lot to him that everyone in his 800 heat joined him in a prayer circle on Friday.
Thomas has earned state-qualifying times for the 800, 1,600 and 3,200. Thomas figures he’ll run the 800 and 3,200 on the second day of the state meet, and if the 4×800 team qualifies for states at the Region 4D meet, he’ll do that on the first day.
He thinks he has the potential to do best in the 800 if he runs against faster competition, but he’d also love to finish his career strong in the 3,200. He qualified for freshman nationals in 2023 and was 11th in Class 4 in the 3,200 in 2024 before his injury-plagued junior year. He was eighth at this year’s indoor Class 4 meet, but that was with a 9:52.37.
Thomas’ confidence in the 3,200 has increased significantly after recording a 9:25.46 at the Dogwood Classic in Charlottesville at the start of the month.
“I think that’s one of the happiest feelings I’ve had after a race,” Thomas said. “I’m going into the senior championship season at peace, which I think is the biggest thing I can do. Not be anxious. I know the times will come.”
Phillips is looking forward to his future.
“Will’s been dominant,” he said. “He’s been really picking it up these last couple of weeks.”
Darling improved on his PR by 4-7 to win the discus and achieve a state-qualifying mark of 145-3. Sherando junior Tate Martin was the runner-up with a 139-10. Baxter captured the triple jump with a mark of 42-10.5, 5.5 inches ahead of runner-up Jackson Ogle of Sherando (42-5).
Handley was also led by Carson Green (shot put, second, 46-7); Reece McAlister (pole vault, second, 11-6); the 4×100 team (Omaree Lofton, Baxter, Grayson Phillips, Brock Ashe), second, 44.76; Joaquin Pearce-Gonzales (high jump, tied for second, 5-10); Everett Otto (1,600, third, 4:31.23); Ashe (300 hurdles, third, 41.64); and ZeQuon Williams (shot put, third, 46-5).
Martin was the lone individual champion for Sherando, taking the shot put with a 48-0, a PR by 1 foot, 5.5 inches. Ogle earned three silver medals, also taking second in the long jump (21-7.5) and tying for second in the high jump (5-10).
All three of Sherando’s relay teams earned bronze or better. The 4×800 took second in 8:53.44 (Huntley Combs, Gus Barbe, Seth Rudolph, Hatcher Smith) and placing third each were the 4×100 (Eli Piper, Grimm, Vincent DiVittorio, Donovan Blackwell) in 44.95 and the 4×400 (Gavin Flynn, Nate Lloyd, Piper, Miles) in 3:33.65.
James Wood’s lone individual winner was senior Eli Baltimore in the 110 hurdles (a season-best and state-qualifying time of 14.97 to win by 0.32). The Colonels were also led by the 4×400 team of Ivan Andrews, Riley Malone, Baltimore and Connor Kenney-Fitzner (second, 3:31.98); Kenney-Fitzner (200, third, 22.58; 400, third, 51.40); and Sawyer Speet (discus, third, 137-0).
Millbrook was led by Samuel Lapp (3,200, second, 10:24.48).
For more coverage of the meet, see Tuesday’s edition of The Winchester Star.
— Contact Robert Niedzwiecki at rniedzwiecki@winchesterstar.com
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