The overall team race was essentially in the bag for Valor Christian, but they wanted to cap the 2019 Colorado State Track & Field Championships with an exclamation point.
Clearly.
For this week's edition of Tasty Race Tuesday, we're skipping dinner and going straight to dessert, because Valor's 2019 4x400 squad was the cherry on top of a hot fudge sundae with chocolate oozing down the sides. In other words, Valor's overall team title ended with a state record. You can't do much better than that...
Leading off for Valor was Reese Dragovich, who had already finished fourth int he 400 with a 56.80 clocking, and sixth in the 800 in 2:16.30.
She had endured two 400s already, and an 800, and now she had just one more lap around the track.
Dragovich took powerful strides around the track in her bright pink socks. By the 300 she had made up the stagger on the field, giving Valor a commanding lead.
Onwards into the final straight, flashing bright pink socks and all, Dragovich stretched the distance between her and everyone else, and passed off the baton to Quincy McMahon just over 56 seconds.
McMahon
took light strides off her toes and pulled away.She stretched the lead over 10 meters as she took a gentle cut inwards to Lane 1, and before the race was halfway over it was all Valor.
As she passed the off the baton off to Camille Peisner the clock ticked passed 1:53.
With just two laps remaining a giant spotlight got put on Littleton's state record of 3:45.69, as Valor's remaining two were Peisner and Anna Hall.
Peisner had already finished second in the 400 earlier in 56.19, and finished third in the 200 in 24.08, while Hall won the 100 Hurdles in 14.18, and the 300 Hurdles in 41.70.
Despite enduring prelims and finals, the two saved their best for last.
Peisner cruised over the track with efficient strides, off and away in her own world, over five seconds ahead of her chasers, Grandview.
While Valor was already clear of the field, they were racing history - they were racing the clock.
Peisner put together a stellar Sub-55 second clocking to hand off to The Anna Hall as the clock ticked passed 2:48.
This record was going down.
Hall would only need a 57-second final lap.
Only.
Slew of state titles, national records, no matter. Hall torched the track as she raced the clock like she had done so many times before. Only this time she clenched a golden baton tightly in her right hand. This was for the team.
Free from any chasers, Hall stretched Valor's imaginary lead over Littleton's state record, and by the time she entered the final straight it was more than clear that the girls in light blue were rewriting the record books.
Hall pumped hard down the final straight, unwilling to give an inch to history, and crossed the finish line in 3:41.89, shattering the former record by nearly four seconds.
Hall's split over the final quarter was just over 53 seconds.
At the time, Valor's 3:41.89 was the fourth fastest time in the country.