Winged F Newsletter - April 2013

FORK UNION TRACK AND FIELD NEWSLETTER

APRIL 2013

On the first hot day of the year, Fork Union Track took advantage of the ideal conditions and squeaked by Midlothian by a half point to win the 2013 Gus Lacy Track Classic. Tyron McDade won the 110 high hurdles and was second in the high jump to lead the Blue Devils. The 4x800 took on big competition and did not disappoint with 8:00.47 clocking. Senior Clyde Gross shook off the test taking blues to win the 300 intermediate hurdles. FUMA was solid in the field events thanks to Charlton Larkins and Rains Mayfield. Larkins won the discus and was second in the shot while Rains Mayfield vaulted to 13’6 and a second place. Arnel Combs continues to have an amazing season in the jumps. The FUMA team for 2013 is proving to be quite tenacious with so many close wins.

4x100 IS BACK IN TOWN—42.63!

Inside this issue:

A ferocious second leg by Andrew Odenyo was just one part of a magical performance by the FUMA 4x100 at the Milestat.com Invitational. The effort of Malcolm Cook, Odenyo, Clyde Gross and Charles Clardy took the season’s best down by over a second.

WFS / BRIAN WATKINS

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DOGWOOD CLASSIC

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TOP MARKS

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TRI CITIES

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MILESTAT.COM

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ALUMNI NEWS

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PHOTO GALLERY

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WFS INVITATIONAL

BRIAN WATKINS I 95 INVITATIONAL FUMA FINDS THE MEET—THEN WINS

A FAMILIAR ORDEAL Just five weeks removed from the titanic battles of Indoor track, FUMA and brother boarding school Woodberry Forest locked horns again in the WFS Invitational. Both powerhouse teams sat key individuals but both left just a enough to once again produce an exciting finish. Larkins and Gross both had double victories. The big three in distance running (Lomong, Lomong and Garver) all ran fantastic and helped wrap up the team title by a point with a season’s best in the 4x400. FUMA found a potential contributor in the hurdles with the emergence of Junior Christian Davis. FUMA will see the Tigers four more times this season. Get Ready!

A nightmare for any team nearly took down FUMA in the season opener of Outdoor 2013. The annual Brian Watkins I 95 Invitational usually takes place at Potomac High School. Not this year. Due to construction, the event was moved to nearby Brooke Point High School. Throw in D.C. traffic and to say the least there was a little stress. Not to worry, thanks to Coach Brown’s smart phone the Blue Devils found the meet and proceeded to win it. Led by Clyde Gross and Charlton Larkins 2013 is off to a great start. Gross ran an early season leading 39.2 in the 300 hurdles and Peter Lomong ran two personal bests in the 400 and 3200. Now if the Coach will just read all the directions.

Clayton Strickland and Antonio Wherry used the 4x800 to warm-up in the 37 degree weather.

DOGWOOD TRACK CLASSIC ALL DAY LONG

MALCOLM COOK AND CHRISTIAN DAVIS GET IT DONE AT U.V.A.

I often tell people that it isn’t easy to be on the Fork Union Track team. The 2013 Dogwood Track Classic proved my point. One week after a spectacular performance at the Milestat Invitational it was back to work for the Blue Devils. FUMA produced a workmanlike performance to claim a sixth Dogwood title and bragging rights in central Virginia.

The sprint relays were solid with a pair of third places and a victory in the sprint medley. Clyde Gross continued his dominance over AAA Champion Travis Phillips in the high hurdles and was a close second in the intermediates. Tyron McDade produced a second place in the high jump and was a scorer in the high hurdles as well. Peter Lomong continued his upward climb this season with another podium finish in the 800. The unusual double of the day belonged to senior Russ Garver. Garver placed in the 3200 early in the day and came back to help the Blue Devils to a fourth place finish in the 4x400.

TOP MARKS LONG JUMP ARNEL COMBS 20’9 1/4 SHOT PUT CHARLTON LARKINS 50’4 TRIPLE JUMP ARNEL COMBS 40’2 3/4 HIGH JUMP TYRON MCDADE 6’0 POLE VAULT RAINS MAYFIELD 13’6 DISCUS CHARLTON LARKINS 157’1 4X800 LOMONG, LOMONG, GARVER, OKAAH—8:00.47 110HH CLYDE GROSS 14.51 100 CLYDE SINKLER 11.30 1600 ALEX LOMONG 4:30.04

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4X100 400 300IH 800 200 3200 4X400 2000SC 4X200 DMR

PETER LOMONG 1:58 / 50.9 DOUBLE

COOK, ODENYO, GROSS, CLARDY PETER LOMONG CLYDE GROSS RUSS GARVER CLYDE GROSS PETER LOMONG LOMONG P, GARVER, OKAAH, LOMONG A JONATHAN STONE COMBS, DAVIS, CLARDY, GROSS LOMONG P, DAVIS, LOMONG A, GARVER

42.63 51.67 39.12 1:57.15 22.41 10:01.51 3:27.34 7:39.03 1:33.01 10:49.11

VOLUME 8, ISSUE 4

GROSS TAKES TWO ODENYO STUNS FIELD

Clyde Gross and Andrew Odenyo both took on strong headwinds to claim straightaway titles in the inaugural Tri-Cities Track Classic at Science Hill High School in Johnson City, Tennessee. Gross took the high hurdles and came back later in the day to claim the 300 intermediates as well. For Odenyo, the meet served as a great comeback in a year plagued by injury. It was Odenyo’s first ever win in an Invitational 100 meter dash. Thrower Charlton Larkins scored a personal best in the discus (152’) as did junior Marc Uptegraff ( 127’). The 4x100 picked up its first victory of the year using yet another combination. This time the quartet consisted of Andrew Odenyo, Arnel Combs, Charles Clardy and Chrystian Brown.

Consistent with the entire year, the meet came down to the final event, the 4x400. This time FUMA came up just short despite running a season’s best 3:29.

The Blue Devils lost the team title by one point to Spring Valley.

FUMA WINS VIRGINIA’S BIGGEST MEET In the fall of 2001 this editor helped a certain young man (Brandon Miles) with a novel web page organize a small cross country invitational. The web page has now sparked a track and field revolution in Virginia. The xc meet is now a track meet and Virginia’s biggest to be exact. Fitting that FUMA’s first trip to the event would net a team title.

FUMA relays were scintillating on the first day. The 4x100 shocked the field with a 42.63 in the penultimate heat and claimed second overall. The 4x400 finished fifth with a 3:27 clocking. The chilly night ended with FUMA grabbing two places in the high jump. With over a 100 schools in attendance scoring was at a premium but personal bests were not. Clyde Gross shocked the number one seed with 14.51 clocking. Later in the day Charlton Larkins tossed the discus 157 feet for an all time best. The performance would prove to be the clincher for FUMA. As impressive as the scorers were, some nonscorers may prove big for FUMA as well. Russ Garver and Peter Lomong both went 1:57 for 800. While Alex Lomong cruised to a 4:30 pr in the 1600.

CLYDE GROSS 14.51 22.41 IN THE 200

MALCOLM COOK - 6TH IN HIGH JUMP

ALUMNI REPORT DENVER WRIGHT 10.65!

JORDAN ROACH ON A ROLL While several former FUMA standouts took flight this spring as athletes, the Winged F is happy to announce that one of its own has returned from combat duty in Afghanistan. Jonathan Buckland ( FUMA ‘06) finished up earlier this winter, we welcome him home. Jordan Roach continues to be tough in the discus and has taken up the hammer throw. Denver Wright destroyed his personal best from FUMA with a 10.65. Go FUMA!

THE WINGED F

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FUMA TRACK AND FIELD NEWSLETTER

COACH BROWN FUMA BOX 278 4744 JAMES MADISON HWY FORK UNION, VA. 23055 Phone: 434-842-4289 Fax: 434-842-4299 E-mail: brownw@fuma.org Follows us on Twitter @TheWingedF

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