Varsity boys, junior varsity girls finish first at Durham Invitational
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DURHAM >> Lower Lake High School’s boys and girls track and field teams made their mark Saturday during the Durham Invitational, collecting a handful of firsts, seconds and thirds.
The varsity boys 4×100 team of Christian Rincon, Raijhier McKneely, Jeremiah Lopez and Roy Percoats overcame a couple of rough handoffs to top the field in 44.11 seconds.
“I’m incredibly excited to see what this squad can do,” Lower Lake head coach Bobby Landgraf said. “This is a squad that constantly pushes each other, never letting the others quit a rep or miss a practice. It’s the kind of culture change Lower Lake had needed for a long time. They’re so competitive in practice that sometimes they have to tone it down. I love their drive and dedication to the sport, and once we get our handoffs all in sync, we really get down our timing and lane discipline, they should be able to run 43-mid and qualify for the NCS Meet of Champions here in May.”
Percoats, a freshman, also placed second in the 100 meters (11.47).
“Roy ran the No. 8 all-time wind-legal freshman 100 time in Redwood Empire history in only his second 100 meters of the year,” Landgraf said. “Suffice to say, he’s got a lot left in the tank.”
Lopez finished third in 11.82.s
JV boys
In JV boys action, Emiliano Rivera won the 800 meters at 2 minutes, 20.08 seconds and second in the 3,200 at 11:29.10.
“Only thing you can say about Milly is that this kid is an absolute dog,” Landgraf said. “I love the competitiveness I see in him every race.”
Bryan Gonzalez finished second in the boys discus with a throw of 92 feet, 11 inches.
JV girls
Lower Lake’s JV girls 4×100 relay team of Eleyna McTeague, Layla Naredo, Riley Givens and Stella Aleman finished first in 54.85, a time that would make them No. 2 in their own league, the Coastal Mountain Conference, varsity teams included, behind only the Middletown varsity.
Aleman added a first in the 100 meters with a personal-best time of 13.86 and a third in the 200 (29.32).
“Stella is the clear leader of this JV girls squad,” Landgraf said. “They’re a squad that has openly talked about wanting to win another JV girls pennant. She’s a very dominant sprinter and she will spearhead this young girls squad for years to come. I’m excited to see what this young squad can do in the coming years.”
Givens won the 100 hurdles in 17.57.
“This is Riley’s first year doing the 100-meter hurdles,” Landgraf said. “She hurdles last year but only focused on the 300 hurdles. We’ve put a lot of effort into the 100 hurdles and getting her cadence, timing and rhythm, and building the confidence to run the high hurdles. I’m excited to see what her ceiling is this year.”
Lorena Inong placed second in the 3,200 (18:48.14), and Neveah Myer took third in the discus.
“Lorena is a very hard working and determined runner,” Landgraf said. “She can handle anything from a 400 to a 3,200.”
Added Landgraf, “Neveah has come a long with the discus.”
