The Manchester Valley girls took a big step toward their state track and field title defense Thursday at Morgan State, while the Century boys still have some work to do after a strong start to their championship bid.
Over the first day of the Maryland state track and field championships, Carroll County schools mostly dominated the field of Class 1A and 2A schools. The Mavericks girls are tied for first with Smithsburg in 1A competition with 44 points, while the Mavericks boys are third. In 2A, the Knights boys are first with 47.5 points, ahead of Oakdale and Frederick Douglass, while the Liberty girls are second.
"I think our chances are very good right now," said Manchester Valley's Katie Leisher, who earned a gold medal in the 3,200-meter run (11 minutes, 19.24 seconds). "Our girls are phenomenal. Each one of them has special talents, and they contribute well to the team."
The Mavericks girls also got a victory in the triple jump from Erin Sallee (34 feet, 7.75 inches) as well as a second-place finish from Katie Krebs in the discus. The team also finished third in the 4x800 relay.
For the Knights, Nick Neral earned his first outdoor state title in pole vault with a 15-foot mark. The senior, who won the event at the indoor state meet, was shooting for longer, but a rainy afternoon left most surfaces at Hughes Stadium wet.
"The conditions today made the runway really rough, and I had some trouble moving the poles in, so I was on really small poles compared to normal," he said. "Really happy that I won and was able to pull those last couple of jumps out. Little sad I couldn't make 15-4 and get the record."
Century's Matthew Kane was a double winner, running a leg in the victorious 4x800 relay (8:09.28) while finishing first in the 3,200 (9:31.07).
In a crowded 2-mile race, the senior remained with the pack for much of the first few laps while others went ahead. But as the race wore on, Kane started moving back to the front.
"I thought, 'This is an eight-lap race; I've got a ton of time,'" he said. "I'm just going to take it easy, sort of work my way up, so that when it came to the final lap, I had a good kick in me."
The Knights will try to maintain that lead through Saturday, when the remainder of the 2A and 1A events conclude, including finals for sprints, hurdles and a few field events.
Liberty's girls 4x200 team was victorious in 1:44.40, and Leah Wolf added 10 more points with her winning 126-foot discus throw. The Lions have 25 points in the 2A standings, one behind leader Oakdale.
"It's going to take a little luck for us to be in the driver's seat by the end of the meet," Liberty co-coach Donnie Richmond said.
Winters Mill's Tyler Cox bested Hereford's Mike Nash with his 51-4.5 mark in the shot put in 2A competition as well, though the Bulls did capture the girls 4x800 in 9:31.97.
Nathan Gill was first in the high jump (6-0) for Manchester Valley, while Northwestern's boys 4x200 team was first in 1A competition (1:32.46). Fort Hill leads the boys 1A standings with 29 points.
Manchester Valley's girls still have an uphill battle to climb, especially with 1A West Region rival Smithsburg matching them point for point. Mavericks coach Eric Baumgardner, whose team is aiming for its third consecutive track state championship, including indoor, knows just how important getting those few extra points can be.
"I won't sleep much between now and Saturday," he joked. "But I love these girls and I wouldn't change anything."
For expanded results, go to mpssaa.org.