Avery Prep Sports Roundup

Track and Field:

The Avery track and field team traveled last week to Mitchell High School for a five-team meet. Pisgah, McDowell, and Mountain Heritage joined Avery and Mitchell for the event, the first one held in Ledger since the school’s outdoor track has been resurfaced.

Avery performed exceedingly well at the meet, much better than the squad’s last outing in which the competitors were unable to wear spikes due to track surface at Owen High School.

“I knew our times would be better with a better track and the ability to wear spikes,” Avery track coach Cary Dominguez said after the meet.

The Vikings took six girls and several boys to participate in several events, with a number of positive outcomes. The 4x100 meter boys relay team qualified for state competition with a time of 45.5 seconds, while Kyle Griewisch qualified for states in the 200 meter dash, shaving over a tenth of a second off his personal best ran at Owen by improving his time from 11.53 seconds to 11.4 seconds.

Junior Dustin Clarke, participating in just his second meet, cleared 5’10” and won the high jump event. He jumped 5’6” in his first event and improved four inches in the time between the Owen meet and the Mitchell meet.

“Dustin is coachable and listens. He did a few jumps and we told him what he needed to do to fix his technique and form, and he fixed them,” Coach Dominguez said of the leaper. “He and his teammates also did phenomenal with the handoff in the 4x100m relay.”

As the season unfolds, the teams are benefiting from the nicer weather and are seeing dividends paying off for the team’s individual and group work.

“This past week, even though the returning kids know their events, we have new kids who are still trying out events. All the kids are working really hard, but now we’re seeing how kids can match up to specific events,” Coach Dominguez explained. “Cody Estes is one who is starting to pop out and showing a lot of speed and pulling forward. We have other kids who are just broadening their scope of events, which is awesome and what track and field is all about.”

Track and field at Avery is a unique sport where athletes are on both individual and team stages. A runner may run individually in a dash, then might join three teammates to participate in a relay a short time later. The dynamic emphasizes the importance of good chemistry and teamwork within the group.

“Teamwork is developing well with this group. We have football players who already have established bonds, but we’re seeing good teamwork and camaraderie between all athletes, whether they are in running or field events,” Coach Dominguez explained. “Track and field is great since it is not all about team, but the athletes are rooting for each other individually while also able at the same time to accumulate team points.”

For the first time in several years, Avery High School has the opportunity to host its own meet at MacDonald Stadium, set for Tuesday, April 20^th. The track and field teams are currently taking advantage of the facilities on campus to improve, and are also looking forward as they prepare for a full-fledged meet as host.

“We’re excited about hosting a meet. Any volunteers who are interested in helping, such as being timers and so on, are needed and welcome to help with the meet,” Coach Dominguez stated. “You don’t have to know a lot about track to be able to come out to a meet and enjoy watching the events. With the youth track program starting next month with the Parks and Recreation program, I think we’re on the right track to building a strong program in Avery County.”

The Viking track and field teams next take part in a meet at Enka High School coming up later this week.

Golf:
The Avery men’s golf team participated in a tournament at Crooked Creek Golf Club in Hendersonville last week, coming in third place out of the four-school event. Polk County won with a team total of 327, followed by Hendersonville, Avery, and Madison.

Polk’s Davis Horne was low individual scorer with a round of 77, while Hendersonville’s Weikus Tolles and John Jackson took second and third lowest honors.

“We didn’t shoot well as a team at Hendersonville. We only took four golfers and the conditions were very difficult,” Avery golf coach Boe Barinowski said after the event.

Last Tuesday Avery and Mitchell’s golf teams came together for an exhibition round of golf, held at the Linville Golf Club. The teams hope to make the get-together an annual format similar to the Ryder Cup, where the schools will compete for its own golf championship.

Avery’s golf team is scheduled to return to action on Monday, April 12^th at Grassy Creek Golf Course in Spruce Pine.