By John Raffel
Meridian’s track program enjoyed a rare feat this season when it crowned two state champions in the 100-meter dash at the Division 3 meet at Comstock Park.
The Meridian boys, defending state champions, finished with had 27 points for fourth place this year.
An important contributer, Christian Petre won the 100-meter dash in 11.13 seconds. He was also part of the 400-meter relay team that took third in 44.69 seconds and included Jonas Leal, Adam Slavik, and Miles LeViere.
“I felt like maybe I didn’t get a good start,” Petre said. “I fell behind. I really didn’t catch up until later in the race, the last 20 meters. I pulled away from there.”
Petre finished his scoring by taking third in the 200-meter dash in 22.72 seconds.
The champion also plays baseball, but he said the that playing dual sports didn’t present any conflicts during the regular season. Baseball games were Tuesday and Thursday, and track meets were Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. However, his baseball district tournament was at the same time as the track and field state finals.
“This year, the day after regionals, I decided to come here [state finals] and run,” Petre said. “I wanted to come down here and see what I can do. Also, right now I can’t throw a baseball. My arm is pretty sore. That helped my decision a little bit.”
It’s his third year of track. “I worked on blocks a lot, and also on my endurance,” he said.
For the Meridian girls, Hailey Stockford scored all of her team’s 20 points with first places in the 100-meter (12.7 seconds) and 200-meter dashes (25.11).
“I was really nervous coming into it and didn’t know what to think,” Stockford said after the 100. “This is my first year of running. I’m proud of myself. I knew I had it in me. I just trusted myself. I know I could do it.”
After the 200, Stockford had twice as much reason to smile. “I was proud of myself,” she said. “Coming into it, I wasn’t ranked that high, like fourth or fifth. At the beginning of the season, I set goals and accomplished them. I gave my all in both of them. It’s probably about equal. The 100 is my favorite race, so I know I’m always super pumped for that one. I gave my all in the 200. The 200, only lost once. It’s not my favorite race, but I do well in it. I was excited to run it.”
Stockford, also a dual-sport athlete, plays softball, but her team lost in predistricts.
“This time last year I never would have thought I’d be running track,” she said. “I played softball. But this year, I decided to give it a shot. My track coach is also my gym coach. He’s always told me I could do it.”