The Glenn D. Loucks Memorial Track and Field Games Preview

Dates: Thursday, May 10 – Saturday, May 12

Events Schedule: is listed online at www.theloucksgames.org

Place: White Plains High School

History: Glenn Loucks was a teacher, administrator and coach at White Plains High School for over 30 years. The meet was started in 1968. The current director of the track meet is Fred Singleton who competed in the first Loucks Games in 1968 as a member of the Mount Vernon High School Team.

He went on to run in several other Loucks Games. Singleton was a very accomplished runner for Mt. Vernon and in college at Penn State. He still coaches the Boys Cross Country at White Plains and he guided them to a league title this fall

For three days the eyes of the high school track and field world will be set on White Plains for The Glenn D. Loucks Memorial Track and Field Games. This year for the meet, Singleton has put together a stellar field of athletes. There will be 2,950 high school athletes competing in this year’s Loucks Games, an increase of over 300 athletes compared to a year ago.

Over the years this meet has had many future collegiate All-Americans and Olympic runners compete on the White Plains oval track.  The competition in 2012 should be no different.

Top Athletes Competing

1.  Mary Cain (Bronxville)- Whenever this sophomore runs she breaks time records. She will be running the 800-meter run on Friday. This past weekend at the Somers Lions Club Invitational, Cain put on one of her typical displays of speed and dominance on the track. She ran the 1500-meter and won the race by 26 seconds. Her personnel best time in the mile and 800 meter dash is so low she is very close to earning an invitation to this summer’s Olympic trials in Oregon.

She won the mile at The Penn Relay Carnival with a time of 4:39.28 and ran a 2:05:90 to capture the 800-meter title at the New York Relays. Her training habits are a bit out of the ordinary. She started training with the Bronxville’s Boys Team during the winter track season. Cain will have a very good chance of putting her name in the Loucks Game Record Books. Stacy Ann Livingston set the current 800-meter record in the women’s race last year when she ran 2:07.81.

2- Thomas Johnson (White Plains)- This young man is the best shot for the host team to earn a medal in this meet. Johnson is competing in the Long Jump and Triple Jump like he did last year. In 2011 as a sophomore he finished ninth in the triple jump and 10^th in the long jump.

The triple jump is Johnson’s best event. He is an astute student of the event and studies the sports intensely and the history of the event. He is the current New York indoor state champion in the triple jump.

In the history of Loucks games only three jumpers have cleared the elusive 50 feet mark. The record in the event is held by Sanya Owolabi from Sleepy Hollow who jumped 52 feet 4.5 inches in 1978.

3. Zavon Watkins (Liverpool) – Watkins was the most outstanding male runner at the 2011 Loucks Games winning both the 800-meter run and 1600-meter run. He will be running the two same events this week. At the Penn Relays Carnivals a few weeks ago he finished sixth in the boys high school mile with a time of 4:15.49.

4. Edward Cheserek (St. Benedicts, N.J.) – According to meet director Singleton, Cheserek is one of the best distance runners in the nation. He is scheduled to compete in a distance medley relay on Thursday night. He is also entered in the 1600-meter, 3200 and the 4-x-400 meter relay but according to Singleton he won’t run all of those event.

Cheserek was part of the winning team for St. Benedicts in the Distance Medley Relay at the Penn Relay Carnivals.

5. Najee Glass (St. Peter’s, N.J.) – Singleton believes that Glass is one of the best 400-meter runners in the nation. He will run the 200-meter dash on Saturday. His best time for the 200-meter this season is 21.43.

6. A.J. Wolf (The Hackley School) –  Wolf, who is headed to Duke in the fall on a football scholarship, might have a good chance to win both the shot put and discus competition. A year ago he finished second in both events and the individuals that he lost to both graduated last year. This past weekend Wolf took first place in both the shot put and discus at the Somers Lions Club Invitational.

Overall Boys and Girls Championships

1. Boys- In 2011 Gales-Chili High School finished first, New Rochelle took second and the Hackley School finished in fifth.

2. Girls- Middle College High School finished first a year ago. Mount Vernon finished fifth and New Rochelle 10th.

Local High Schools Competing

White Plains

Johnson won’t be the only Tiger competing this week. On the girls side they will have several members of their team running. The Tigers will enter a team in the 4-x-400 meter freshmen/sophomore relay. Two members of that relay team are Rachel Okun and Lauren Woods. Both Okun and Woods will also compete in the tri-state 4-x-400-meter relay along with Jessica Myrthil and Jasmine Campbell. Myrthil might also compete in the open 400-meter dash. Myrthil finished third this past week at the League 2B meet. Elizabeth and Eleanor Trelstad will compete in the girls mile. Elizabeth Trelstad took third in the 3000-meter run at the league meet while her sister finished Eleanor third in the 1500-meter run.

On the boys side the Tigers will have a relay team in both the 4-x-100 meter and 4-x-400 meter relays. The boys 4 x 100 meter relay will consist of Tyler Ford, Kevin Yates, Thomas Johnson and the fourth sport will either be Jay Martin or Brandon Brissett. Their 4 x 400 meter relay will have Ford, Brissett, Martin and Alex Woods.

Alexander Hamilton

Girls track coach Richard MacLeish is sending a big bunch of runners to compete at Loucks Games. In the 100-meter dash he entered Janel Batise, Kali Gill, Maia Hood, Kenya Isabel and Jasmine Robinson. Isabel and Gill will also be in the high jump competition.

Jessica Barerra, who is probably one of more talented girls on Hamilton’s team, will compete in the 200-meter dash, 400-meter dash, 100-meter high hurdles and 400-meter hurdles. MacLeish believes that Barerra has a chance to medal in the high hurdles.

Maiya Scott will compete in the 400 meter dash and Robin Jessamy will be in the 800-meter run. Hamilton will have relays teams entered in the 4-x-100 meter, 4-x-400-meter and 4-x-800-meter.

The Hackley School

Wolf is a real all-star on this team with his accomplishments in the discus and shot put. Ian Parnell will compete in the 200 and 400-meter dash. Mustafaa Dais is entered in the 100-meter dash and long jump. Rob Cacace will have his endurance tested in the pentathlon and Alyza Ngbokoli will run in the 400-meter hurdles.

Hackley will have two 4-x-400-meter relays in The Loucks Games. The boy’s team will consist of Dais, Parnell, Dan Norris and Pietro Moran. The girl’s teams will have Ngbokoli, Grace Cordsen, Tessa Cavanaugh and Raechelle Emanuel.

Sleepy Hollow

The girls team will be sending to individuals to The Loucks Games. Gabrielle Maldonado will compete in the 100, 200 and 400-meter dashes. Maldonado two weeks ago won the 200-meter dash at the Gold Rush meet in Long Island.

Maldonado is coming into Loucks on a roll. This past weekend at the Somers Lions Cub Invitational she won the long jump, triple jump and took second in the 100-meter dash.