On Tuesday Apr. 17, the Coral Gables Cavalier track team took on their rivals at the FHSAA 4A District 15 Championship. After a long season of training and practicing, it was finally time to see whether or not all their hard work had paid off as they attempted to qualify for the Regional Championships. The meet was held at the Nathaniel “Traz” Powell Stadium at Miami-Dade College North.

“The girls 4×8 team did really well, dropping the time by 30 seconds this season and keeping up with the group. For Regionals, it won’t be easy, but if everybody tries their best and PRs we can be in the top schools,” senior Abigail Flores said.

The competition was fierce within the district for both the distance team and the sprinting team. The Cavaliers faced runners from Coral Park, Columbus, Lourdes, Miami Beach, American High School, North Miami, Dr. Krop, Hialeah Gardens and Miami High. While it wasn’t the first time Gables had raced against these schools, the pressure of running at the District meet brought out everybody’s competitive edge. All the teams fought hard for placement, but Gables was able to power through, earning several spots at the Regional meet.

For the distance team, both the girls’ and boys’ 4×800-meter relay teams performed extremely well at the meet—they reached new season bests and were able to advance to the Regional meet. For the two-mile event (3200-meter), senior Cavan Wilson blew right past the competition placing first, and sophomore Colin Wilson came in right after placing second. Cavan Wilson also placed second in the mile (1600-meter).

“The 4×800 team did really good at districts. Jordan ran a PR which helped us out a lot. The team looks really good heading into regionals. Colin and I ran a little slower than our PR due to the strong wind at the 300-meter mark, but at Regionals, if the conditions are good, we will run a really good time,” junior Sebastian Escobar said.

The sprinting relays also ran noteworthy performances; the boys’ 4×400-meter relay and girls’ 4×100-meter relay qualified as well. In the 200-meter dash, senior Quinton Curry advanced from the preliminaries to the finals, where he placed third, securing him a spot at the Regional meet. Even though sophomore Laia Gonzalez was the only hurdler representing Gables, she didn’t let that stop her and went on to place third in the 300-meter hurdles.

Gables also achieved significant successes in the field events. Sophomores Gabriela Rudd and Na’Kiaya Lane both took home first place medals in pole vault and discus, respectively. The Cavaliers were additionally successful in the jumping events; freshman Terrance Huggins and sophomore Laia Gonzalez qualified for high jump, sophomore Jermaine Witherspoon qualified for long jump and triple jump and junior Samuel Oyon qualified for triple jump.

After accomplishing so much at the district meet, the Cavaliers are ready to give it their all at Regionals. Regionals will be held back at the Traz Powell Stadium on Apr. 26. We wish the Cavaliers luck at the Regional meet!