Belen Smashes National Record in 4000m DMR
One of the highlights of the weekend for Florida came in historic fashion as Belen rewrote the national record books in the Boys 4000m Distance Medley Relay Championship at Nike Indoor Nationals.
The Belen delivered one of the greatest relay performances in high school indoor history, clocking 9:47.01 to win the national title and shatter both the Armory facility record and the National Scholastic Record (9:53.40)
Junior Armando Cruz opened with a strong 3:00.02 1200m split, handing off to freshman Carlos Benitez, who followed with a 50.76 400m leg, giving the boys momentum heading into the final two legs.
Sophomore Jack Michalak ran his second sub-1:52 800m of the day, with a controlled 1:51.48 800m split, giving Belen a sizeable lead and setting the stage for junior Marcelo Mantecon, who delivered a 4:04.73 anchor mile, sealing the new national title.
Mantecon will return to the track again today as he is entered in the Championship Mile, giving him another chance to shine on the national stage with a historic four national titles over the weekend.
Also in the DMR Championship race, the Dreamville TC delivered a strong performance, placing 4th overall in 10:08.14, which ranks Florida No. 3 all-time indoors.
The relay included Buchholz runners: Davis Garrett, Quinn Meyer, Andrew Sides, and Samuel Freas.
National Champions
Montverde Academy TC captured the Girls 4x200m Championship in 1:34.25, earning the national title with a lineup of: DaQuana Howell, Adriana Rodriguez, Nakira Hudson, and Dasia Reed.
IMG Elite's Jaxon Jerabek also claimed a national crown in the Boys Pole Vault, clearing 5.27m (17-3.50) to win the championship.
Several Florida sprinters advanced through to the championship rounds.
In the Girls' 60m Championship prelims, three athletes moved forward: