By Derrick Touba Jr.
On February 19th the Yonkers Track Team competed at the Section 1 State Qualifiers, The Yonkers 4x400m relay qualified for New Balance Nationals while captain Ben Domingo qualified for states in the 55m hurdles at the Armory NYC in Manhattan.
The Yonkers 4x400m relay has had a significant amount of success the past two seasons. Last year four runners from the senior class of 2022 became the first Yonkers 4x400m relay to qualify for states and nationals, so this new group of runners had a substantial amount of success to live up to. The relay consisting of Elroy Able, Ethan Arias, Akeem Carnegie, and Anthony Cruz exceeded all expectations this indoor season. The complete quartet wasn’t finalized until a week before state qualifiers and yet still managed to compete with the best of section 1.
In the preliminary heats the relay finished with a staggering time of 3:32.21, blowing by the 3:34.00 needed to qualify for Nationals. This time was three seconds faster than their season’s best as Yonkers proved to be a viable contender for states. Three of the members had splits under 53.2 seconds as it took a complete team effort to complete the feat. The mark was the third best time going into the finals, they placed fourth with a finishing time of 3:40.48. While unfortunately missing qualifying for state championships by two places, they can still hold their heads high as qualifying for the national competition.
Third leg senior Able, while happy with the success, saw it as just another accomplishment ”It was just another day at the office,” he said. Able anticipates greater success at the next contest as he hopes to end his last high school indoor season on a high note. They’ll join teammate Ben Domingo as qualifying for the National competition.
Additionally, Domingo had an outstanding performance of his own, and is now headed to New York State Championships. Domingo at the beginning of the season set a goal to compete at states in the 55m hurdles and on this day completed it. The second best hurdler in the section entering the contest, the senior hurdler knew he had to perform when the lights were brightest.
Domingo in the preliminary rounds ran an impressive 7.98, second going into the finals. In the finals he ran a time of 7.89, tying his own personal best to place second and qualify for state championships.
“When asked about his initial reaction to qualifying for states, Domingo said “Making states for me is the first step to achieving my dreams for medaling at states while I am happy, the job’s not finished yet.”
Domingo will compete for a state title on March 4th at the Ocean Breeze Athletic Complex in Staten Island at New York State Championships, while the Yonkers 4x400m relay will prepare to compete at New Balance Nationals from March 9-12 at The Track at New Balance in Boston, Massachusetts.”
