Relays fuel El Dorado’s success on track
The 5A State Track & Field Championships will be held April 29 in Russellville. That might seem a bit off in the distance but not for El Dorado coach John Koonce. After three weeks of track season, the Lady Wildcats have already started positioning themselves for the race at the end of the year.
El Dorado has already successfully qualified three of the four relays for the state meet. The 4x400 ran a 4:13.97 at the Oil Belt Relays to join the 4x100 and 4x200. Koonce said getting those relays into state already should allow the team to focus on individuals to qualify in open events.
“Since we have gotten them in, we have kind of started playing around with the legs to see who we can sub in to keep them from dropping off,” he said. “It relieves pressure in a couple of ways. First and foremost, we don't have to worry about something going wrong at conference like dropping the baton or getting out of exchange zones.”
The Lady Wildcats ran 49.00 in the 4x100 at Oil Belt and a 1:45.93 in the 4x200 at the Benton High School Invitational.
Those relays are interchangeable as far as athletes. The athletes who were on the 4x100 when it qualified were Amariana Harper, Asia Caver, Brianna Ferrell and Zyron Brock. On the 4x200 was Harper, Caver, Rihanna Gray and Brock with Genesis Farley, Gray, DeMecia McDaniel and Brock on the 4x400.
“As the season goes on, we will get a better picture of what it will take to be the best we can possibly be at the end of the year,” Koonce said. “That could mean that we have to take some legs off of the relays to be stronger in the open events which provide a greater opportunity for points.
“These relays being in (state) allows us to play around with the legs to see who can still keep them strong. Being able to play around with our entries throughout the season and seeing what athletes can step up in different areas makes for a stronger team at the end of the year. This also speaks to the depth that we have right now.”
The only relay that has not qualified is the 4x800.
“In regards to the 4x8, we are still a good ways off from the qualifying standard, so we are working on getting better each week to give ourselves a chance of getting through via conference,” said Koonce. “Each week their time has dropped and we are just going to continue and work to get better each week to give ourselves an opportunity at the end of the year to get things done. We really like the young ladies that we have on that squad. They are all young and we have reason to believe that they will continue
and get better each week.”
El Dorado has the bulk of its track season still ahead. Each meet is an opportunity to get better while looking ahead to the final race. The Lady Wildcats, by the way, are the back-toback reigning 5A state track champions.
“The path to state is always more feasible when you get in via conference. This speaks to just how special it is to have three relays qualified before spring break. This is a first for our program,” Koonce said.
“Those three relay teams are currently the only three relay teams qualified in 5A girls. This will change after spring break but I do believe this is a pretty cool accomplishment that the girls should be proud of. However, they still must understand that who you are at the end of the year is what actually matters. We will stress the importance of continuing to keep the relays strong while also finding who can provide consistent state level open event performances.”