The Sachem North girls 4×200 meter relay squad moved to the starting line at this week’s Eastern States meet with a quiet confidence. The Arrows had not put an “A” relay on the track since late December.
Handoffs were outstanding, the sprinters pushed out of the turns and attacked the 200-meter banked loop at the historic Armory’s track in the oldest indoor track and field meet in the nation.
Alyssa Leto, Melissa Michels, Carly Swinford and Sunja Joseph saw their race time on the scoreboard and began celebrating their record-setting race time of 1:47.3 seconds after the starter’s pistol sounded.
Michels spent much of January focusing on open events. Injuries to several top sprinters also altered relay plans and goals. Workouts over the last several weeks showed the spark that brought Sachem relays to record times over the past two years.
Leto, Michels, Swinford and Joseph spent some of their time in the clerking area talking about handoffs and completing pre-race warm-ups. The girls were in a collective zone; their game faces were on and the relay began.