Sabrina Palacios Paces
Finley Girls' Track
Sabrina Palacios can do it all. The teenager was a legitimate star for the J. Taylor Finley Middle School track and field team this past spring, excelling in the 200m dash, shot put and discus.
The Falcons finished the year with a 3-3 record under head coach Phil Lowe and assistant Lynn Hefele. The 27 athlete strong team received fine performances from Savannah Richardson (200m, triple jump), Marina Ruzic (55m, 100m, long jump), Kristina Abt (55m, 100m), Cassie Berwick (55m, 100m), Morgan Mitchell (55m, 100m) and Arianna Pereca (55m, 100m, 200m).
Palacios, who is entering her freshman year at Huntington High School, finished first or second in shot put and discus in every Finley meet and proved to be fleet footed, too. "She was the hardest worker on the team," Lowe said. "She's very competitive and athletic."
Palacios, Richardson, Abt and Berwick served as team captains. Many of the athletes of the team possessed raw talent, but most were tough competitors and quite fast. Richardson was a role model for her teammates the coach said.
Team bests were posted by Palacios in shot put (22-feet) and discus (73'5 feet), Richardson in triple jump (31.5 feet) and Ruzic in the 100m (14.2 seconds), 55m (8.0 seconds) and long jump (13.2 feet).
Lowe called his squad a "young team that only scratched the surface of its talent capacity. The team has unlimited energy. It worked hard in practice and was very spirited."
Looking ahead to next year, Ruzic, Mitchell and Pereca lead the list of returnees giving Lowe reason to hope for a very solid spring 2013 campaign.
Finley Notes: Since there is no track at Finley, the Falcons' home meets were held at Huntington High School . . . The Falcons were within a whisker of going 4-2, but they dropped a 51-49 verdict to Kings Park.