Nike Outdoor Nationals - Story

See post from 20 June for links to photos, videos and results.

Story and photos by Jennifer Reed

Newton Centre Athletics 4 X 1 Mile Girls’ Relay National Champions

Newton South runners Kelsey Karys, Melanie Fineman, Kathy O’Keefe and Bridget Dahlberg won the Nike Outdoor Nationals 4 X 1 mile relay to become National Champions. Kelsey Karys ran an outstanding first leg pulling away from the pack at 1/2 mile and never looking back. She split the last 1/2 mile in 2:27 for a sub 5:00 mile. Her leg set the pace for the rest of her teammates. Karys passed the baton to Fineman who kept the lead running a 5:10 leg. O’Keefe and Dahlberg put the race away with 5:06 miles, giving the girls a finishing time of 20:23.20, a New England record and 8th U.S. all time.

The 4 X 1 mile relay was part of a group of sixteen track and field athletes from Newton South who traveled to Greensboro, North Carolina to compete for NCA at the Nike Outdoor Nationals (NON). Four relay teams and three individuals competed for NCA. In the first day of competition for NCA, Ezra Banks, sprinter and triple jumper, was the first Newton South athlete to compete. NON officials surprised the field by moving the take off board from 32 feet to 36 feet and many national caliber jumpers didn’t even make the pit. Banks jumped an impressive 36’ - 7 3/4”, her 2nd best jump ever, especially given these conditions. Nalis Mbianda competed in the Shot Put and threw a remarkable 41’ - 2 1/2” to finish 11th overall.

The 4 X 100 meter relay of Katie Sandson, Dani Pensack, Andrea Braver and Ezra Banks has had an incredibly successful high school season breaking the school record multiple times. They ran their second fastest time at NON. The Relay of Sandson to Pensack to Braver to Banks posted a time of 49.22. They performed extremely well, especially considering that the athletes had gotten up at 4:00 am for the early flight to North Carolina and encountered summer heat-wave like temperatures and humidity upon arrival.

The boys 4 X 1 mile relay of John Beck, Andrew Wortham, Igal Bubar and Sasha Long ran the fastest time ever run by boys from Newton South. A spectacular effort with three sub 4:30 legs impressive given two members of the team were coming back from injury. Their finish time of 18:10 placed them 11th in the nation. Madeleine Reed came in 9th in the nation with a 7:29 showing in only her 2nd 2000 meter Steeplechase competition. She ran a brave and competitive race in incredible heat and humidity while also sick.

The final event for NCA’s athletes was the Distance Medley Relay (DMR). The DMR set a new New England record and was 21 seconds faster than girls from Newton South have run the DMR previously. Kathy O’Keefe ran a 3:34.38 1200 in the first leg handing off to Dani Pensack in first, who had over a second personal record with a remarkable leg of 58.80. Pensack handed off to Melanie Fineman who ran a 2:19.85 800 leg with Bridget Dahlberg finished the relay with a 5:00.33 1600. The final time of 11:53.35 gave the girls a 4th place finish and All American status. It was a great same day effort by the girls who had run that morning. Nike Outdoor Nationals 2009 proved to be a very successful experience for all the Newton South athletes competing for Newton Centre Athletics.