by Kyle Melnick ’14

Five Warriors qualified for the 4A state championship on February 7, 2013 at the 4A West Regional Meet. Sophomore Lauren Woods qualified in both the 55m and 300m dash, finishing 3^rd and 4^th in each event, respectively. Junior Grace McDonald continued her momentum into the regional meet, qualifying in the 800m after placing 5^th. Senior Lauren Paese placed 4^th in the high jump, helping her advance to the state championship. Junior Ameerat Olatunde threw for 4^th place in the shot put, giving her a bid to states on February 18.

“Qualifying for states is another step to the ladder for me and the girls’ team. We still have a lot more work to do so we can perform even better at states,” said Woods.

Senior Robel Kebede was the only boy who advanced to states. However, it was the most shocking and exciting of the five qualifiers. Kebede finished 3^rd place in the 800m, triumphing over four runners who beat him at the county championship. This is Paese’s and Olatunde’s second year in a row qualifying for states, while Woods, McDonald and Kebede will all be making their first appearance.

“It feels great to qualify. I have been working all season long for this and I made it,” said Kebede.

The Warriors will see familiar faces in the 4A state championship, giving them an opportunity for revenge. Woods has defeated many of these competitors in past meets; thus a state champion medal could be in her future. Paese and Olatunde have experience in the big meet, which could give them an edge to knock off younger, inexperienced foes. Kebede and McDonald have continued to improve and hold a lot of momentum coming into the next meet, and a runner with momentum always finds a way to be successful.