WINCHESTER — With rain pouring down on a cool Saturday and James Wood senior Alina Kieffer making her way to the finish line for the 3,200-meter run, public address announcer and Colonels cross country coach Matthew Lofton declared to the crowd and participants that Kieffer would tell you just how much the conditions suit her.
Kieffer’s hair was flattened against her head after being drenched for eight circuits around the Kelican Stadium track. But the smile on her face showed she definitely had no issues with the weather.
“I love it when it’s gruesome and it’s the most extreme,” Kieffer said. “I have fast times that come from that.”
Kieffer won the 3,200 by 24.1 seconds on Saturday, one of her two event wins on a dominant day for the host James Wood girls’ track & field team at the 10-team Apple Blossom Invitational.
For the second straight year and the fifth time in six years, the Colonels kept the 57th ABI championship trophy in their possession. James Wood scored 153.5 points, a whopping 66.5 more than runner-up Millbrook (87).
James Wood won seven of the 16 events. Senior Isabelle French also won two events (the 100 hurdles and long jump), senior Kate Konyar captured the 800 and anchored the 4×800 team to victory one day after returning from a trip to Ireland and junior Erin Link repeated as the shot put champion.
The Colonels scored points in every event except the high jump and still took second in the 4×100 even though it didn’t use the foursome that set the school record the previous week at Rocktown High School.
“I’m really happy we get to host a meet and show that James Wood’s superior,” said Kieffer with a laugh.
It’s the third time in four large Saturday meets this season that the Colonels have bested the entire field.
“The girls have just been continuing to crush it,” James Wood head coach Danielle Koelker said.
The Pioneers were led by meet MVP Janiah Washington, who won the high jump by two inches with a mark of 5 feet, placed second in the long jump (14-9.5) and 200 (26.12) and took fourth in the 400 (1:01.00).
Local schools earned five of the top six places. Double winners EJ Mullins (200 and 400) and Mercedes Silver (100 and triple jump) led Handley and Sherando, respectively. The Judges placed third with 79.5 points and the Warriors took fifth with 70.3 points. Discus winner Haley Foltz led Clarke County to sixth place with 59.3 points.
Kieffer led throughout both of her races. She started her day with a victory in the 1,600, recording a time of 5:29.89 that was 0.7 off her season best. Junior teammate Claire Snell was the runner-up in 5:36.22.
Kieffer said she probably could have run faster if she had people around her to push her, but she was pleased.
“I really just wanted to take first and score points for the team,” Kieffer said. “And I was hoping to pull my teammate Claire along with me, because she’s hoping to go sub-5:30.”
In the 3,200, Kieffer said she was a little fatigued from running the 1,600, so her goal was to run under 12 minutes. She accomplished that by picking up the pace on her final lap.
“At the end of indoor, I was just really in my head in every race,” Kieffer said. “I was just struggling to break 12. So knowing I was able to do that after running the mile was a good confidence-booster.”
Kieffer was glad she did both the 1,600 and 3,200 on the same day. She doesn’t plan on trying to run that double at the state meet, but she wants to do two longer events on the same day in college when she goes to NCAA Division I Longwood University.
Konyar began her day by teaming with Lauren Thompson, Ally Oliver and Katelyn Palmer to win the 4×800 in 10:07.22, a 17-second improvement over the team’s previous best time this year. The Colonels won by 24.71 seconds over the team of Caydence Bayne, Marisol Lara, Aubrey Steinmetz and Adilyn Steinmetz (10:31.93).
“That’s very good progression since we’re still kind of at the beginning of the season,” Konyar said. “We definitely felt good about it.”
A year ago, Konyar broke the school record in the 3,200 at the ABI. The 3,200 wasn’t on the table for Konyar on Saturday because of a weeklong trip to Ireland for a cousin’s wedding. She got back around 6 p.m. on Friday.
“I’m jetlagged,” Konyar said. “This was kind of a shake it off and get back into it type of meet.”
Not surprisingly, Konyar — who ran in the rain — still went out and did something most girls couldn’t do under any circumstances. In her third-best event, Konyar set a personal record by more than three seconds with a time of 2:24.76 to beat Strasburg’s Hannah Logan by 5.49 seconds.
“I feel great [about that 800 time],” Konyar said.
The defending Class 4 state champion in the 3,200, Konyar will run that race for the first time this outdoor season in her next invitational meet. Repeating as state champion will be a difficult task. Konyar ran her fastest time ever at this year’s Class 4 indoor meet (10:47.82), but she took second to Hanover freshman River Smith (10:44.36). Konyar enjoys having Smith as competition, though.
“Both of us used each other to the max,” said Konyar of the state meet. “I don’t think she could have run that without me, and I don’t think I could have run that without her.”
French had a season-best time of 16.52 in the 100 hurdles to lead a sweep of the top three spots for James Wood. Fellow senior Alexandra Van Meter was second in 17.46 and freshman Jordan Bowes was third in 17.70.
French’s best time last year was a 16.18, and she’s hoping to go well under that.
“I’m really wanting to go sub-16, but I’ve had some hip issues recently,” French said. “I’m focusing on rehabbing that and taking the long road to peak at the end of the season. That’s what’s best for me. I need to not stress about the little things and just think about the bigger picture.”
French won the long jump with a mark of 15-1, 3.5 inches ahead of Millbrook’s Washington. French jumped 16-5 last week at Rocktown, so she could be a good source of points for the Colonels in that event in the future.
“I kind of just go wherever my coach puts me,” French said. “I’m pretty versatile. I did high jump today, and I never do high jump. It wasn’t great, but I’m willing to try it.”
James Wood’s 4×100 team is what French is most excited about right now. The Colonels went with Kelsey Russell, Alyssa Richards, Bowes and Ana Ramos on Saturday (they took second in 53.09), but the ‘A’ team of Alexis Brown, Sierra Nicole-Wimer, Melanie Padilla and French is red-hot after breaking the school record last week at Rocktown with a time of 50.12. The previous mark was 50.56 set in 2016.
Padilla — who runs cross country for the Colonels — is the one newcomer from last year’s state-qualifying team.
“I love the team so much,” French said. “Last year, when we had Olivia Boyce, it was such a close, close team. Having Melanie join us is great, because we love her just as much. She’s so amazing and a really hard worker. She’s so determined. She’s never really been a sprinter, so this is something new for her. She’s really showed up and done what’s good for the team.”
Link won the shot put with a mark of 33-9.5, 2-10.75 inches ahead of Clarke’s Foltz. Link also placed seventh in the discus (91-11).
Other top performances for James Wood: Brown (second in 100, 13.02, fourth in 200, 26.88); Bowes (third in 300 hurdles, 52.68); the 4×400 relay team (Grace Thompson, Peyton Sinasac, Mallory Juvinall, Reese Lessard), third, 4:25.06; Lauren Thompson (fourth in 800, 2:33.20); Palmer (fifth in 800, 2:33.54); and Oliver (fifth in 3,200, 12:56.96).
Millbrook was also led by Keri Hecker (second in triple jump, 32-3; third in long jump, 14-7); Adilyn Steinmetz (third in 1,600, 5:39.43); Bayne (fourth in 1,600, 5:41.74); McCullough (fourth in shot put, 30-4.5); Ella Mannarino (fourth in 300 hurdles, 53.35); and the 4×100 relay (fourth, 54.58).
Handley’s Mullins won the 400 by 3.02 seconds in 57.39 and the 200 by 0.73 over Millbrook’s Washington in 25.39. The 4×100 team of Keila De La O Granado, Leilah Ferrel, Monet Thomas and Jordan Coats won by 1.73 seconds over Wood in 51.36. De La O Granado was third in the 100 in 13.04. The Judges were also led by Sage Welpott (second in 3,200, 12:22.35); Seneca Welpott (third in 3,200, 12:28.10); Reagan Edsell (third in shot put, 30-8.75); Ella Warren (third in 800, 2:32.24) and Bella Hines (tied for fourth in long jump, 14-3).
Sherando’s Silver (32-4.5) won the triple jump by 1.5 inches over Millbrook’s Hecker and the 100 (13.00) by 0.02 over Wood’s Brown. Silver also tied for second in the high jump (4-10). The Warriors were also led by Ashley Smith (third in triple jump, 30-1.5); Emma Messick (third in discus, 110-0); Callie Walters (fourth in discus, 104-11); Loraine Goka (fourth in 100, 13.25); and the 4×800 relay (fourth, 11:51.41).
Clarke’s Foltz won the discus by 9 feet with a 128-4. The Eagles were also led by their 4×400 team (Grace Gerenski, Paige Stemberger, Mia Timberlake, Lyla Gerenski), second, 4:23.25; Emmalene Morris (tied for second in high jump, 4-10); and Grace Gerenski (tied for fourth in long jump, 14-3).
For more coverage of Saturday’s meet, see Tuesday’s Winchester Star.
— Contact Robert Niedzwiecki at rniedzwiecki@winchesterstar.com
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