Blue Devils Rocketing Around Track
After losing so many seniors to graduation, Ron Wilson felt some apprehension entering this winter’s indoor track and field season. That’s understandable. But, the Huntington boys’ coach has quickly whipped his team into a competitive unit that is giving opponents all they can handle.
Two recent crossover meets at Suffolk Community College’s Brentwood campus highlight just how far the Blue Devils have come in a relatively short period of time.
Juniors Damon Dash and Matt Peollnitz, and freshman Tyriek Johnson all performed well in the long jump. Dash jumped 20’3. Johnson didn't want to give him bragging rights so he went ahead and soared 20’3 ½ on his next jump. Poellnitz had a jump that would have beaten out the two of them, but he was called for a foul after the official saw his foot edge just over the line. He did, however, record a jump measuring 18’9.
In the triple jump senior Tyre Brown took off for the first time with a leap of 35’7. Senior Luis Lopez was even better, turning in a jump of 39’9. In the shot put, junior Richie Fernandez continues to improve, as he launched a personal best of 39’8.
The running events saw Johnson on fire. He came through with another personal best in the 55m hurdles. In the semi-finals he darted the distance in 7.92 seconds and lowered that in the finals when he flew across the finish line in 7.86.
Wilson said that Johnson’s performance in the event “may be a new school record. We’re just awaiting confirmation from [former coach] Dennis Walker.” Needless to say, Johnson finished first in a field of more than two dozen hurdlers.
In the 55m dash Lopez, Brown, Poellnitz, and sophomores Conor Reilly, Danny Plant and Trayvon Toney continue to be the team’s leading sprinters. They all ran under 7.4 seconds, finishing in the top 15 out of more than 40 sprinters.
In the 600m dash sophomore Jared Thorbourne finished the long sprint in 1:33, good for 10th place, while teammates Stevenson Gabriel (1:35) and Brad Dwyer (1:44) finished not too far behind. Wilson was pleased that all of Huntington’s runners finished among the top 20 in a field of more than 50 competitors.
Sophomore Ryan Ackerman continues to improve, too. His goal is to break the five minute mark in the 1600m run and he’s closer than ever after finishing in 5:01 and placing eighth our of more than 40 runners.
The Blue Devils’ 4 x 200m relay team (Johnson, Dante Allen, Lopez, Brown) finished fourth in 1:40, while Huntington’s “B” team relay (Reilly, Poellnitz, Ricardo Caballero, Dash) finished close behind in 1:43.
With a slate of meets and relays scheduled over the next two weeks, Wilson is looking for continued improvements in all events.
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