Panther track and field continues to rewrite the school record book.
On the week after Spring Break the team had a jam-packed schedule, traveling to three meets in just three days. In three competitive meets including the Adidas Indoor Nationals, several Panthers turned in top performances.
“The boys four-by-one [4x100-meter relay team] broke a school record that was set in 1993, and they didn’t just break it – they destroyed it,” said head coach Matt Harlfinger of the trip to UNC Asheville March 19. “They broke it by over half a second, which is unheard of in a in a sprint race. That was Gabe Harrison coming out of the blocks to Siler Kinsland; Reid Laseter was the third leg and then Ken Modlin was our anchor, and they did so well considering that we had only practiced handoffs one time the day before. I would say they could probably run even faster with cleaner handoffs.”
At 42.97 seconds, the team turned in one of the state’s top 5A times this year, breaking a record set more than 30 years ago by Doyle Dalrymple, J.J. Dailey, Chris Waters and Mike Garrett. Elsewhere on the track, the Panther men’s senior talisman continued to impress.
“Jonas Phillips is probably our big surprise for the year. ... During the outdoor campaign so far, Jonas is undefeated – he hasn’t lost a race yet, and he just continues to get faster and faster,” said Harlfinger. “He set a personal best in the 300 hurdles by almost two seconds. He ran 40.3, and he’s sitting top-three in the state right now in the 300 hurdles. ... He’s number three in school history right now in the 110 hurdles and he’s number three in 300 hurdles, and he just looks like he’s getting faster and faster.”
Led by Phillips and the 4x100-meter relay, Franklin’s boys were one of the top teams at UNCA. The next day, a select group of Panthers attended an unconventional meet, where Franklin’s girls matched their male teammates’ efforts from the previous day.
“There were almost 900 kids signed up, and it was just the mile and the shot put. ... They set them up in groups of 15, and pretty much everybody in your group was going to be within one second of each other,” said Harlfinger of the Mount Tabor Mile and Throwing Thunder in Winston-Salem.
“Amy Mendoza-Lopez had a 19-second PR. ... She was within one second of our school record of 5:07 flat, and she’s number two all-time right now,” Harlfinger continued. “Morgan Cress had a nine-second personal best. ... She ran a 5:13, and she is now number three all time. And then our freshman Abby Timan, had a 10-second personal best, and she’s now cracked the top 10 in the outdoor mile at number eight all-time in school history.”
Having led Panther cross country to third place at their own state meet, Franklin’s female distance runners continued a stellar year. In the meet’s “Throwing Thunder” portion, multiple Panthers also impressed.
“Meliah Mason finished third place overall, and that was a podium finish. I think the top three all got a pizza, so any time you win a pizza is a good day,” said Harlfinger. “And then Brady Norman ... threw 43’1”. He had an over-three-foot PR, so he was just ecstatic about that. ... He also had a big personal best in the discus throw at UNC Asheville the night before, so he is starting to really unlock some magic there and develop into the thrower that we believe he can be.”
With several top performances and a pizza in hand, Franklin’s distance runners and shot putters returned home for a well-deserved weekend. That same day, another select group of Panthers traveled to Virginia Beach for the Adidas Indoor Nationals.
“Probably the highlight coming out of that was Siler Kinsland finishing seventh in the boys long jump for the freshman division,” said Harlfinger. “He was the seventh-best freshman long jumper in the national championships. He was only two inches off of sixth place, and the top six in each division would have been named Freshman All- Americans.”
Following the Adidas Indoor Nationals, the team prepared for the All-American Classic in Columbia, South Carolina, April 9.