Leesville Road runner makes peace with being No. 2 in the 1,600 in the nation
Nevada Mareno clocked North Carolina’s fastest girls 1,600 meters at Saturday’s 37th annual Apex Bojangles Relays, yet the Leesville Road junior was disappointed. She wanted the fastest time for all 50 states.
Mareno settled for the nation’s No. 2 outdoor 1,600 this spring with a time of 4 minutes, 45.04 seconds. Katie Rainsberger of Colorado Springs (Colo.) Air Academy is No. 1 with a 4:44.31.
“I was doing OK with my pace until the third lap,” Mareno said. “I should have pushed myself and found a couple seconds on the third lap. You’re always going to run the last lap hard.”
Mareno’s name is recognizable as a past state champion in fall cross-country and winter indoor track, but her previous spring seasons have been reserved for her first love, soccer. However, with college scholarship opportunities on the horizon, her natural talent was too great to remain on a back shelf as she entered her junior year.
She’s good in soccer; she could be great in track.
Mareno committed to her first full training season for cross-country season last fall and earned All-American honors with a third-place finish in the Foot Locker Cross Country National finals on Dec. 12 in San Diego. She skipped the indoor season to rest before training for the outdoor season.
“I knew I had a knack for it, but I was just running,” Mareno said. “People said I had a big future and I had to get into it to get more competitive.”
Another Triangle athlete posting a state-leading mark was Northwood’s Tessa Sheets. He wining pole vault of 12 feet, 6 inches is tied for the state lead.
TEAM TITLES
In girls team completion, Green Hope won with 65.5 points. The Falcons’ 4x1, 600 relay team of Morgan Adams, Katie Tomasi, Sarah Taylor and Shannon Kelly ran a state-leading 21.45.91.
Green Hope senior Elly Henes, last year’s state champ in the 1,600 and 3,200, pushed Mareno, finishing second in the 1,600 with an impressive 4:53.53.
In the boys team race, Panther Creek’s Justin Smalls and relay teams claimed the title with 71 points. Smalls won the triple jump at 42-9 3/4 inches and tied for first in the high jump at 6-2 with Wake Forest’s Jon Dalton.
MORE BOYS
Middle Creek senior Terrell Adams, the state leader in the shot put and discus that signed a letter of intent on Wednesday with UNC Charlotte, won the shot at 56- 8 inches and the discus at 164-5 .
The results were off his state-leading marks 60-4 1/2 and 188-0, but it’s not for a lack of work.
“I’ve been working on some new techniques and trying to incorporate it with the old stuff,” said Adams, who won the 2015 state discus (165-1) and was fourth in the state shot (53-11 1/2). “I’ve been practicing harder than I used to. I want to win the state shot put and discus.”
Another Triangle athlete winning a field event was Athens Drive’s Xavier McDaniel in the long jump (22-2).
In individual track events, Jordan’s Isaiah Sutherland won the 100 in 10.82, Millbrook’s Thomas Nulty the 110 high hurdles in 14.76 and Green Hope’s Henry Pehr the 1,600 in 4:20.59.
MORE GIRLS
In other individual track events, Heritage’s Melica Monzzon won the 100 in 12.33 and Sanderson’s Cathy Jackson the 100-meter hurdles in 14.39.
Triangle girls winning field events were Apex’s Myana Smalls, long jump, 17-1; Garner’s Chardonei Sutton, triple jump, 35-2 1/4 and Northwood’s Samantha Chance, shot put, 36-9 1/4; In the high jump, Apex’s Caitlin Muddiman and Leesville Road’s Timara Chapman tied for first (5-0).
This story was originally published April 16, 2016 at 8:09 PM with the headline "Leesville Road runner makes peace with being No. 2 in the 1,600 in the nation."