The boys’ and girls’ squads coached by Larry Martin and Bill Bivans along with the girls’ soccer team have been road warriors throughout the first month of the spring season. That is because of the continuing work being done toward installing a new track surface at Pinecrest.
The upgraded facility made possible by a $40,000 contribution by the John Williams Fund, plus other money provided by the county, is scheduled to be the site of the Mid-Southeastern Conference and regional meets in late April and early May.
Martin says that prospect makes this an especially exciting season, but there have been problems related to the construction.
“We have a couple of good opportunities to kind of show the quality of our teams,” he said of being the host school for the two major meets. “The construction going on at the track has been a challenge. The kids have done well working around that so we’re still having a good season in spite of that.”
Martin talked about some of the specific problems his athletes have faced, including not being able to do the regular speed work that requires a finished surface.
“It makes it difficult to get into the details of a quality workout,” he said. “If you can’t go out and put the hurdles on marks, how can you know your steps between the hurdles? And how can you practice exchanging batons in change zones if you don’t have them marked?”
He says that the rubberized surface is scheduled to be installed this coming week. Under a best-case scenario, the facility could be available for practices the following week. Just in case, the next two home meets have been moved to another home away from home, Union Pines.
One of the spectators watching the Patriot boys finish first and the girls second in the four-team meet held on the two-year-old UNC-Pembroke track was Pinecrest principal Dr. Beverly McAnulty.
“This is my first track meet,” said McAnulty, who is in her first year at the school and is a regular attendee of Patriot athletic events. “They (Patriot athletes) say they like it here. Since our track wasn’t ready it’s great we have something like this for the kids.”
The histories of the Pinecrest and UNC-Pembroke track and field programs are intertwined. Former Patriot track and cross country star and coach Jeff Moody is a member the UNC-Pembroke Wall of Fame. His son, Jeff Moody III, is currently a member of the Braves’ track team. Braves’ coach Larry Rogers, who showed the Patriot coaches the ropes Thursday, knows Martin well.
“Larry (Rogers) and I ran together at Pembroke,” Martin said. “We were on the team that beat Duke, North Carolina, East Carolina and N.C. State in the North Carolina Championship. They stopped having it after that by the way.
“They have a fine facility. Larry Rogers was gracious to let us come here.”
Both Patriot teams returned much of the talent from the squads that finished first in last year’s conference meet. The girls went on to capture a regional title. The Patriot boys have stayed on course winning each of the early four-team league meets, including the one at UNC-Pembroke. Injuries and illness and other happenstances have added up to a slow start for the girls who came in second on Thursday.
In the afternoon’s first event, the Patriot girls’ 3200-meter relay team of Erica Powell, Amanda McKinney, Minolta Araya and Allie Sanders finished second to eventual meet winner Scotland County. The Patriot boys’ quartet of Sam Franklin, Jed Black, Steven Beattie and Jordan Rickard took first in the boys’ version of the relay.
One of the objectives of the small conference meets is to qualify individuals for the regional meet based upon times (distance requirements for field events) set by the North Carolina High School Athletic Association (NCHSAA). The top four finishers in the regional meet qualify for the state meet.
Among the other early finishing events Thursday, Scott Martin won the pole vault with a jump of 11-foot-0 and the girls’ 800-meter relay team of Molly Wilcox, Ashley Dickerson, Satara Cain and Tiffany Sealy took first with a time of 1:54. Both results are close to the regional qualifying marks of 11-6 and 1:52.5, respectively.
The 1600-meter Patriot boys’ relay team of Jonathan Galberth, Carlos Kelly and Chris and Tim Jefferson was first with a regional qualifying time of 3:31.
The 114 points for the Patriot boys were followed by Scotland 86.5, Hoke 50.5 and Westover 16. The Patriots swept all five places in the pole vault and 1600-meter events.
Multiple winners for the Patriot boys were Martin in the pole vault and 3,200-meter run, Jordan Rickard in the 1,600-meter run and as a member of the 3,200 relay team, Tim Jefferson in the 400-meter dash and as a member of the 1,600 relay team and Galberth in the 300-meter hurdles and the 1,600 relay. Also finishing first was Jonathan Stone in the 800-meter run. He finished second in the 1,600.
Other seconds went to Travis Grasso (pole vault), Brandon Ringgold (long jump), Rickard (800) and Matt Lang (110-meter hurdles).
Five of girls’ coach Bivans’ experienced runners are members of the Patriot soccer team. Reliable point producers from a year ago like Jessica Bush, Tina Horne and Aritia Solomon graduated. Injuries and illness scratched several others for the early meets. He has had to rely on versatile performers like Tiffany Sealy, who placed in four events at UNC-P, including two relays.
“She has so much potential,” Bivans said of the 6-foot tall junior, who also plays varsity volleyball and basketball. “She’s one of the few sprinters that can also do the 400. We need her in so many areas. We should probably be using her in the long jump, but we need her in the relays. I’d also like to get her some practice on the high hurdles because she is so tall and because of her speed. Unfortunately, you can only do four events.”
Scotland scored 100 points in the girls’ meet followed by Pinecrest 69, Hoke 60 and Westover 20. Besides the 800 relay team Sealy was a member of, the only other Patriot first went to Allie Sanders in the 3200 run.
Another versatile Patriot, Ashley Dickerson, took second in the high jump, third in the triple jump and was a member of the first-place 800 relay team and the third-place 400 relay team.
Others earning second-place finishes for the Pats were Cain (100 dash), Araya (1,600), Brittany Galberth (400) Lauren Chu (3,200) and the 3,200 relay team.
In last week’s meet in Fayetteville, the Patriot girls won all three relays. Most of the runners are members of more than one relay team. It is a group that seems to enjoy what they do.
“We’re a team,” Sealy said. “We work well together and we have fun doing it every meet.”
Bivens talked about the contributions of some of his other athletes.
“Lauren Chu came in second in the 3200 and third in the mile and she’s been running hurt,” he said. “Amanda McKinney has been a surprise. Suddenly she has become one of our best milers and two milers. Minolta (Araya) came real close to qualifying in the mile. Ashley Dickerson continues to score points for us in a number of events.”
Martin, also the boys soccer coach at Pinecrest, said that he looked with envy at the full-size, soccer-only field that serves as the infield for the combination track-soccer facility at Pembroke.
“I was drooling a bit looking at the top quality track surface and the soccer field inside,” he said. “We’re going to have a real nice facility at Pinecrest, and one I’m going to be real happy with once we get it.”
In the meantime, home for the Pinecrest track and field teams will have to be a home away from home.
