Warhill’s Christopher Short and Lafayette’s Kathryn Tomczak surpassed the qualifying standards for the New Balance Nationals Indoor track championships at the highly competitive Virginia Tech High School Invitational over the weekend.
Short, a middle-distance runner, beat the national standard in the boys 1,000-meter dash — 2:31.04 — with a time of 2:27.13, which was enough to earn him first place.
Tomczak, a pole-vaulter, crushed the national standard in the girls pole vault — 11-foot-9 — with a jump of 12-foot-6, which was good for second place at the meet.
While Short and Tomczak were the only Historic Triangle athletes to achieve national-caliber performances over the weekend, 16 state-qualifying marks were earned by local athletes.
In the boys 1,600-meter run, Tabb’s Baron Kieffer secured his place at the state championship meet by winning first place in a time of 4:20.61. Also earning a spot at states was Lafayette’s Konrad Steck, who finished in third place with a time of 4:27.32. Grafton’s Dylan Lorio-MacNamara, who finished 11th with a time of 4:31.85, also punched his ticket to the state meet.
In the boys 4×800 relay, Warhill posted a school record time of 8:08.49, which earned the Lions relay team third place at Virginia Tech, as well as a spot at the state meet. Lafayette’s relay team finished slightly behind in seventh place with a time of 8:11.85, which was also good enough to qualify for states.
Tabb’s Lindsey Blanks had a solid fourth-place finish in the girls 3,200-meter run with a time of 11:02.61, breaking the state-qualifying mark with ease.
Grafton’s Rachel Bloxom earned a state bid by finishing sixth in the girls 1,600-meter run with a 5:18.58.
Kieffer doubled up on his state qualifications by finishing ninth in the boys 3,200-meter run with a time of 9:36.90.
The Lafayette girls 4×400 relay team posted a respectable 11th-place finish with a time of 4:03.26, which was good enough for a state championship invite.
The Warhill and Lafayette boys 4×400 relay teams each earned spots at the state meet by finishing 12th and 15th, respectively. The Lions finished with a time of 3:27.66, while the Rams crossed the line with a 3:28.56.
Lafayette’s girls 4×800 relay team earned a spot at states with a 15th-place finish over the weekend, logging a 10:00.84.
Warhill runner Miriam Buscher set a personal-best mark of 3:08.95 in the 1,000-meter run. Her personal record was good enough to qualify for the state meet, as well as a 25th-place finish at Virginia Tech.
Lafayette’s 4×200 relay team finished 25th with a time of 1:35.26, just earning the Rams a spot at the state meet.
The Virginia Tech Invitational served as one of the last tuneups for Historic Triangle athletes before their respective regional meets.
The 4A South meet, which will feature Grafton, Jamestown and Tabb, will be held Feb. 18 at the Boo Williams Sportsplex. The 1A-2A East meet is scheduled for Feb. 17, and will also take place at the Boo Williams Sportsplex.
The 3A East meet will run from Feb. 20 through 21 at the Arthur Ashe Center in Richmond.
