Sachem North junior Melissa Michels, Suffolk County’s top-ranked 55 meter sprinter, added another line to her impressive track and field resume as she qualified for the Millrose Games at this week’s Millrose Qualifier meet at the Armory.
Michels had a very good start in the preliminary round to earn her spot in the finals with the seven other qualifiers. While her start was good, she did not have a typically strong transition phase from her start to her top-speed phase. Her 7.47 time placed her seventh out of the eight finals qualifiers.
Michel’s had another outstanding start in the finals and this time had a superb transition phase as she placed third overall in the race. As the top four finishers are automatic qualifiers for the Feb. 16 Millrose Games, Michels was ecstatic.
“Melissa returned to our team area to cheers and hugs from her parents, teammates and coaches,” Sachem coach Alex Young said.
She also dipped under one of Sachem’s oldest records as a time of 7.338 flashed on the results screen at the Armory to separate her time from that of others in the race field in a blanket finish in which all eight finishers were separated by only .19 seconds.
Michels’ celebration was short lived as she returned to the track 20 minutes after her race to anchor Sachem’s 4×400 meter relay. She ran a 63.3 anchor leg as the relay achieved its goal of running a season-best time (4:24.32).
Michels is Long Island’s only 55-meter dash representative at the 2013 Millrose Games.
Final results
- Amsterdam, Iana, Newark Tech, 7.29
- Thompson, Brenessa Medgar Evers, 7.33
- Michels, Melissa, Sachem North, 7.34
- Steele, Brittany Spence, 7.41
- Golden, Zola Arlington, 7.42
- Darius, Symone, New Rochelle, 7.42
- Townsend, Ayele, Cardozo, 7.43
- Donaldson, Alicia, New Rochelle, 7.48