Wally Keller Invitational Recap

Wally Keller Invitational
Olivia Ortiz

On-Site Coverage

This past Friday, Charlotte High School hosted the Wally Keller Invitational bringing a dozen teams to the Tarpon track. It was a day full of speed as some of the fastest runners in the state got one last meet in before the state series meets begin.
 
 
Fort Myers won the 4x800 relay finishing in 10:03.13 over a close second place finish by Lely in 10:08.72. In the 100m hurdles, Lakewood Ranch Sophomore Talia Falco won in a quick 16.29. Fort Myers junior Tamara Chambers was victorious in the 300m hurdles setting a new personal best with a time of 48.98. Sarasota won the 4x100m relay in a 51.28 while Lely won the 4x400m relay in a 4:12.60. Charlotte junior Julia Fowlie won the pole vault with a 11-0. In the shot put, North Fort Myers senior Helynn Young won with a 36-00. 
 
Fort Myers junior and distance star, Emily Edwards ran to a strong first place victory in the 1600m with an impressive time of 4:58.06. Edwards has had an amazing track season and will be in the running for state titles in May. 
 
In the 800m, Gulf Coast junior Caroline Barlow set a new personal best winning with a 2:22.41. “I was hoping to get under 2:20 but it was really windy so that made the race much harder. I'm really excited about my time, I felt good finishing and was surprised about how much I had to finish with,” said Barlow. Sarasota sophomore Angelina Grebe won the 3200m finishing with a 12:11.34. Grebe stated, “I was really just concentrating on maintaining my pace, because there were definitely times when I wanted to let down or slack off, but I just had to keep pushing so I would know I tried my hardest.”
 
 
In a close 4x800m race, Charlotte got the win in a fast 8:19.32. Island Coast senior Tyrell Johnson won and set a new season best time of 10.76 in the 100m and won the 200m in a 22.13. North Port won the 4x100m relay in a 42.18. Sarasota Riverview junior Richie James won the 400m in a 49.30 setting a new personal best. In the 4x400m relay, Fort Myers won in a 3:27.17 over a tight second place finish by Charlotte in a 3:27.94. Lely sophomore Noah Joseph won the high jump in a 6-2 setting a new personal best. Sarasota Riverview senior Beau Amuso also set a new personal best in the pole vault with a 12-0.
 
 
It was a great night for Sarasota sophomore Zackery Summerall who set new personal bests and first place finishes in the 1600m running a 4:25.48 and 800m in a 1:59.11. “I’m very pleased and couldn't have done it without the motivation of my teammates and coaches,” Summerall stated. Fort Myers senior, SCAD commit, and distance standout Aesop Brown ran to a strong second place finish in the 800m with a 2:01.38.
 
In the 3200m, Sarasota senior and FGCU commit Courtland Bernard won in a 9:57.61. Bernard stated about his future, “Every day that goes by makes me even more sure that I made the right choice to go to FGCU. The entire team, including Coach Goodson, is so supportive. I think the most exciting thing will be the experience of being back at the bottom again! It will be really nice to be back in the freshman state of mind, four years ahead of you, and many runners ahead of you as well. Oh and of course, who can forget the basketball games!?”
 
Congratulations to Fort Myers who won the overall girls and boys team titles! Also a special thank you to Charlotte HS for putting on another successful meet. 
 
Best of luck to everyone competing in their District meets this week.
 

Elite Performances

Girls Highlights

Boys Highlights