Relay teams highlight successful day for Hampton at Mars Invitational

By: HSSN Staff
Friday, May 4, 2018 | 1:48 AM

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At the Mars Invitational, the Hampton boys and girls relay teams were off to the races … and nobody caught them.

Amongst many storylines for the day that yielded 13 trips to the podium for the Talbots, none may have stood out more than the dominance of the 1,600 and 3,200 relay teams on both sides, which nearly swept the intermediate and long-distance events. The girls took first in both events, while the boys took second in the 1,600 and first in the 3,200.

“That's one of our best showings at the Mars Invitational,” said coach Derek Brinkley, who has been a part of Hampton track for 15 years.

“We always like to show out at Butler, Mars and Pine, but ultimately it's just a stepping stone for where we want those kids to be a month from now. Complacently is not an option.”

Brinkley's message has gotten through to both teams — maybe for different reasons. The girls, consisting of standout junior 400 runners Cambell France and Valerie Fischer, the latter of whom made states last season — were joined by freshman Olivia Bianco to form what Brinkley predicted would be a competitive base of three.

Sophomore Riley Obringer runs in the 3,200 relay, while sophomore Logan Nicklas rounds out the 1,600. Peyton Wheeler serves as an alternate in the latter.

“The girls, I was a little more confident in them, and they just continue to get better. The big thing with them, we weren't sure what are capability was in the 4-by-8. But they were able to run with the pack (at the Butler Invitational on April 20).”

The boys' teams were hardly considered frontrunners coming into the season. Though Brinkley knew there was talent, he wasn't sure how it would come together. Both units have answered.

Senior Jonah Wyzomirski and freshman Corey Letterle perform on both squads. Distance runners Matt Gust and Joey Cafaro comprise the rest of the 3,200 relay, while Ben Brandeis and Gage Galuska represent the 1,600 relay.

“Those guys have really stepped up,” Brinkley said. “We had some inexperience there, and the question was, could we do it? They're proving they definitely can. It's not like anyone's putting in more effort now. We were just leery on what they were capable of. What they've shown the last couple weeks has been awesome.”

Brinkley also noted the future potential of all four teams. Only Wyzomirski and Brandeis stand to graduate in the spring.

The track teams had successful seasons. The girls finished a perfect 5-0 in their section and made the WPIAL team playoffs. The boys finished 3-2, with both losses by a combined five points.

Other standouts at Mars included hurdlers Mike Yakich, Colton Trush and Brandeis, which all finished top five in the hurdles events while setting personal records.

Yakich, who is chasing another trip to Hershey, broke the school high hurdles record en route to a first-place finish.

Devon Moore is a freelance writer.

Tags: Hampton