For Tiger head track coach Lewis Edmonson, the 62nd Rockdale Relays will be a unique event, and not just because only four teams are allowed to compete due to the UIL’s COVID-19 protocols.
“This year is more different than any other year,” Edmonson said. “I’ve been fortunate enough to be here and have a dominant sprint group and we’ve trained hard to get to where we need to be.”
“But this year, I have a well-rounded team. What you’re going to see on Friday is that we’re letting the dogs loose. I have three kids in each event and we’re competing. This is the first time I’ve been really, really excited about having a full team,” he said.
The fifth-year Tiger coach also said that their approach to the meet isn’t to win it, but to take away the other teams’ points.
Although only three other schools will be at Tiger Stadium, Rockdale athletes will have to earn a title with Hempstead, Caldwell and Lago Vista coming to the party. Both LVHS and HHS have boys and girls relay teams ranked among the top five in Class 3A and Caldwell has recently dropped down from Class 4A and always has a high number of student-athletes going out for track.
RELAY HISTORY—The origin of the Rockdale Relays goes back to 1957 when track coach Wannie Miller invited 60 schools to come. With 26 different schools attending that ranged from Chilton to Brenham, Bryan High was the inaugural champion.
Since then, the Relays has been a Rockdale staple featuring great talent like Johnny “Lam” Jones, a 1976 Olympic gold-medalist who placed fourth in the long jump at the 1974 Relays while a student at Lampasas High.
Jeremy Kerley, a Hut to High School grad who went on to play eight seasons in the National Football League, ran at the 2006 meet.
LAGO VISTA—In the week prior to the Relays, Tiger and Lady Tiger athletes headed west to Lago Vista for their first meet of the season.
“It was a pretty good opening meet,” Edmonson said. “The first thing I told them was to just go out and have fun.
“We haven’t practiced a lot at all, due to the weather and COVID, so there wasn’t a lot they could do.
“I just told them to go out there and be athletes.”
The day began with gold when sophomore Julie Bartsch won the shot put with a throw of 29-11.50 and junior Breanna Webb won the high jump with a 4-8”.
RHS relay teams also started off the season with a bang. The 4x100 and the 4x200-meter relay teams both made up of Anthony Dansby, Kobe Mitchell, Kesean Raven and Cam’Ron Valdez won their respective races and as of press time, are Class 3A’s top relay teams in the state in both races with times of 43.44(100) and 1:33.37(200).
Edmonson praised the chemistry they already seem to have this early in the season.
He also talked about sophomore Emma Whitsel, who won the 110-meter hurdles with a time of 16.67, more than three seconds faster than the event’s runner up. Whitsel’s time is the third fastest in Class 3A.
“If she keeps performing solidly and if we just take it week by week, this should be a promising year (for her).” Edmonson said. Rockdale’s distance run
Rockdale’s distance runners also had a strong day. Freshman Jesus Bocanegra won gold medals in both the 3200 and 1600-meter run with times of 11:12.67 and 5:09.46. Cristo Hernandez placed
Cristo Hernandez placed second right behind Bocanegra in the 3200 and third in the mile. Yovanney Delgadillo also competed in the 3200-meter run. Albert Silva won a bronze
Albert Silva won a bronze medal in the 400-meter run and Jose Tenorio placed sixth in the 800-meter run.
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