On February 11 and 12, 2022, the Midlo Boys and Girls Indoor Track Teams competed at the VHSL Region 5C Indoor Track and Field Championships at Glen Allen High School under the leadership of Coach Stan Morgan and Coach Mario Cooper.

The two-day meet was comprised of excellent performances by each of the participating runners, jumpers and throwers. Athletes who finished in the top three places or who earned (or had previously earned) a qualifying mark will now advance to the VHSL Class 5 Indoor Track and Field Championships Meet on February 25 and 26, 2022 at the new state-of-the-art Virginia Beach Sports Center. Due to unpredictable weather and ongoing COVID-19 precautions, there have been limited opportunities to compete in order to qualify for the upcoming State Championship competition, which made the most recent 5C meet extremely important.

The girl’s team placed 6th in the competitive region with top contributors including Kylie Bonser (1st, 1000-meter run),  Gabriella Garcia (2nd, 3200-meter run), Elise Graves (5th, 500-meter dash), Gabrielle Jones (5th, 300-meter dash), Nicole Quiram (5th, 1600-meter run), Madelyn Radtke (10th, long jump and 10th, 55-meter dash) and McKenzie Saddington (14th, shot put).

As for the team events, there were multiple groups that came close to top finishes. The 4 x 800-meter relay team, consisting of Alannah Runge, Gabrielle DuBois, Elise Graves and Megan Lamberson, came in 3rd place. The 4 x 400-meter relay team of Kylie Bonser, Elise Graves, Gabrielle Jones and Alannah Runge placed 4th. Then, the 4 x 200 team that included Cameron Chandler, Cora Corcoran, Elizabeth Maahs and Madelyn Radtke sprinted into 7th place.

Junior Kylie Bonser, a Region Champion who will be competing next week at the VHSL Class 5 Indoor Track and Field Championships, was proud of her personal outcome and her teammates because everyone “pushed through and didn’t give up.” Bonser concluded that the team now works towards a new goal as they push forward to states.

The boys team also competed well during the 5C meet as they finished 8th in the region. Their top competitors included Wesley Hazzard (16th, 300-meter dash), Armani Hinman (1st, 55-meter hurdles and 9th, long jump), Jack Laser (9th, 1000-meter run), Severin McNulty (7th, 500-meter dash) and Brooks Weeks (17th, 1600-meter run).

In addition, the relay teams made their presence known with the 4×800 team consisting of Severin McNulty, Jack Laser, Will Hodge and Owen Widrick finishing 5th in their event. The 4 x 400 team, including Armani Hinman, Christian Lanier, Severin McNulty and Jack Laser, ran swiftly into 6th, while the 4 x 200 team that was composed of Armani Hinman, Wesley Hazzard, Josh Arnaldo and Christian Lanier secured 7th.

Senior Armani Hinman, who along with Bonser is a Region Champion and will compete at the VHSL Class 5 Indoor Track and Field Championships, was excited by his performance, as well as that of his team. He was especially proud of Christian Lanier as they both finished 1st and 2nd in the 55-meter hurdles. He has enjoyed having “teammates to train with and push [him] to be [his] best” and having “Coach ward, Coach Morgan and Coach Cooper” who have all “contributed to [his] success. He wishes everyone “going to states good luck representing Midlothian High School.”

Congratulations, Midlo Indoor Track!