Ninth Nike Indoor Nationals
California Preview
Landover, Maryland - Fri 3/9 thru Sun 3/11

Californians at Nike Indoor Nationals
(NIN = Nike Indoor Nationals) (i = mark achieved indoors)

     
photos by Doug Speck and Margaret Gallagher
Nevin Gutteriez - Terry Prentice - Karyn Dunn - Casey Roche

photo by John Nepolitan
Roosevelt of Greenbelt Maryland - heading to Arcadia in April will mix it
up with California Relay Squads at NIN - they lead nation indoors at 4x400
distance 3:44.34 and 4x800 9:01.17 and are the nation's top overall squad
this 'undercover' season!

Strong Golden Staters will face super competition from around the country in the Nike Indoor Nationals this coming weekend in Maryland. Our locals will face great competition between the 200 meter and mile distances on the flat, Terry Prentice will battle history’s best in the Hurdles and be trying the multi-events along with the Long Jump (whew, busy weekend there!), and powerful baton groups fill out track action.   Fine field eventers Casey Roche (PV), Karyn Dunn, Amber Purvis, and Jamesha Youngblood (LJ and Youngblood also TJ), and the Kraychir clan in the Weight Throw will battle for high positions on the victory stands off the field results back east!!

     
photos by Margaret Gallagher, Joe Hartman, and Doug Speck
Jamesha Youngblood - Cory Primm - Dominique Jackson - Thandi Stewart

Nevin Gutteriez (Unat/North HS, Riverside) is sharp this winter, with a 46.79 400 from last spring outdoors. Over two laps (400 here) at the NIN, Nevin will face flyers Chris Ward (Florida) 47.42i, North Carolina’s Lamarr Davis 47.57i, who looked so sharp at Simplot, and Sean Holston (Virginia) who has shown amazing range from 300-500 meters this winter. Thandi Stewart (James Logan TC) had a great middle-school age-group career, and will dive in at the top of the class her at the prep level, with her 54.24 best outdoors last spring faring nicely against a strong field that includes Bianca Knight from Mississippi, who raced 22.97 indoors to take down Allyson Felix’s National Record undercover, and has been said to be training pointing for the 400 this year. Jessica Beard (Ohio) was 51.89 outdoors last summer, with Ashlea McLaughlin (NY) 54.67 indoors this winter. Over 800 meters Cory Primm (Unat/Westlake HS) was awesome at the Simplot Meet, racing away to a solo 1:51.89 win. Chris Bilbrew (Alabama) has run 1:51.08 on an over-sized (larger than 200m) track indoors, with junior Joseph Franklin (Florida) 1:50.92 last year as a sophomore outdoors. Dominique Jackson (Unat/Fairfield) will carry California’s 800 banner on the female side, with her 2:08.25 from last year the #4 returnee nationally in the event outdoors. Pennsylvania’s Chanelle Price has taken it to a new level this winter, with a 2:04.96 best with no one else under 2:11 in the country indoors this winter! Iowa’s Balire Dinsdale was 2:07.39 last year outdoors and will help Jackson lead the chase after Price. Over the mile distance Michael Cybulski, who was under 4:10 in a post cross-country season 1600 trial, will join distance groups that are always a highlight of this competition. Ben Hubers (Georgia) was 4:09.76 for a mile last spring, with Sintayehu Taye (Massachusetts) an 8:38.23 3k this winter stepping down in distance. Alex Kosinski (Oak Ridge HS) is part of a super girls mile field, with Danielle Tauro (NJ) 4:39.25 last June to win the Nike Outdoors, her teammate Jillian Smith 4:53.58 for a mile this winter, and Mississippi’s Cory McGee 4:53.90 for second in the Millrose Mile.

 
photos by Joe Hartman
Michael Cybulski - Alex Kosinski

Terry Prentice has a full weekend, with recent all-comers action in the High Jump and Shot leading into the Pentathlon in Maryland, along with the Long Jump, where he indoors has sailed 24-03 and the High Hurdles. Truly one of prep history’s great Boys High Hurdles group will battle over 60 Meters in Maryland, with National Record Holder over the 55m HH distance, North Carolina’s Johnny Dutch, the event headliner. Dutch took down Deworski Odom’s very respected National Record in the 55mHH of 7.08 with a 7.07 clocking earlier this winter, with Dutch narrowly winning over Prentice at the Simplot Indoor Games over the 60m HH distance. Both Dutch and Prentice learned from the Simplot event, with Dutch fading over the final barrier, citing a lack of concentration, and Prentice closing strongly, seemingly gaining a sense he can run with the National Record Holder. Josh Hembrough (Michigan) adds to the mix here, with a 7.15 this winter for the 55mHH distance and 7.80 60mHH best, topping Dutch’s 7.83 and Prentice’s 7.85 at Simplot. Shane Wells is another Michiganer who flies, with a 7.82 from this winter over the 60m hurdle distance! It’s going to be a cooker!!

 
photos by Donna Dye
Trevor and Katie Kraychir

In the field, Casey Roche (St. Francis HS, Mountain View) 17-05 in the Pole Vault last summer will face Texan Maston Wallace, who has been over 17-03.75 indoors this winter and Spencer McCorkle (Arkansas) who was a Simplot winner over Casey at 16-09 and has a 17-00.75 seasonal best. Terry Prentice (unat/Diamond Ranch HS), at 24-03 indoors this winter will face Ed Turner (Texas), who was 24-10.5w last year outdoors. Karyn Dunn (Unat/Diamond Ranch) leads the country indoors at 19-10.25 in the Girls LJ, with Jamesha Youngblood (Hercules) and State outdoor Champ Amber Purvis (Benicia) challenging Massachusetts star, Arantxa King (20-01.75 last year outdoors) as potential medalists. King and Youngblood heads the Triple Jump entrants off their 42-00 and 41-04.75 outdoor bests from last spring, with New Jersey’s Stephanie McIntyre 40-11 indoors this winter. Team Kraychir will be in the house in the weight throw, with the Twenty-Nine Palms crew having Trevor leading the Boys entrants and frosh sister Katie, the national leader in her first prep season, leading the list of athletes there.

Relays are always an indoor highlight, with the Logan Boys and Girls 4x200 groups challenging for medals and the Girls 4x4 stick crew hoping to press the Blazin Raiders (Roosevelt, Greenbelt, Md) in the contest there.

Christian Green (Unat/Crenshaw HS) will look for a finalist spot in the Triple Jump, with Trevor Habberstad (Unat/Canyon HS, CC) a potential high placer in the Pentathlon. Shelise Williams (Unat/LB Wilson HS) has shown some fine early form in the sprints, and is entered in the 60 and 200 at Maryland.

Tune back in, it will be some great action this coming weekend.

DyeStat.com Nike Indoor Nationals Coverage