Athletes who stayed made most of bad-weather day at Loucks 

By Brian Towey for DyeStat

WHITE PLAINS, N.Y. -- With temperatures in the 40s and persistent rain, the 50th Glenn D. Loucks Games saw many out-of-town athletes pass on Saturday's competition.

However, a slew of New York elites elected to stick it out.

North Rockland freshman Katelyn Tuohy had the girls mile field cranking through splits of 69/2:23/3:37, with a pack of New Yorkers in pursuit. Katherine Lee (Shoreham-Wading River), Anna Kostarellis (Churchville-Chili) and Caroline Timm (Our Lady of Lourdes) were all game for the chase.

Lee made a move for Tuohy after 1,200 meters. Lee went full-throttle with 200 meters to go, with Timm hanging closely.

However, Lee was unable to close the gap on Tuohy, who posted an impressive 4:49.43 victory over Lee (4:52.91). Timm was close behind (4:56.35) followed by Leya Salis (Bedford, N.H., 4:58.1) and Kostarellis in 5:00.41.

"If the weather was better, we'd have run a lot faster," Tuohy said.

The cold weather definitely had an effect on the competitors.

"It was such a weird race because the weather stopped my legs," Timm said. "I couldn't change gears."

Timm looking for fast finish

The junior Timm appears poised for a big breakthrough.

"She's probably in 4:46 shape right now," said Mike Solinsky, her coach at Our Lady of Lourdes in Poughkeepsie, N.Y., and an Olympic Trials competitor in the marathon in 1996 and 2000.

"She's dropped six seconds off of her mile time since last summer."

Timm overcame a rare heart condition called Wolff-Parkinson-White syndrome to emerge as a top middle-distance runner.

"You can get symptoms at any part of your life," Timm said. "I didn't realize I had it until one day in my freshman year."

According to The Mayo Clinic, the condition happens when an extra electrical pathway between the heart's upper and lower chambers causes a rapid heartbeat.

"I was really discouraged," Timm said. "I was scared. I could have been out (of running) my whole life."

Timm had a procedure done for the condition as a freshman. Since then, her health has been consistently better.

"It was kind of one of those things where you get it fixed, you're good to go," she said. "After I had my procedure done, I could rest for a few days and then run."

Timm's future in the sport is promising. She has a 4:45 mile in her sights, with the possibility of a 2:10 run in the 800 as well.

"She's such a competitor," Solinsky said of Timm, who qualified for the NYRR Millrose Games Mile.

"That's that great thing about it. When it comes time to do the job, she stands up and does it."

Kostarellis mulling steeplechase option

The senior Kostarellis of Rochester-area Churchville-Chili ran in the mile Saturday, but will also be a factor in the 2,000-meter steeplechase.

"I'm still debating (on) the steeple," Kostarellis said. "Right now I'm number two in New York in the event. I wanted to continue to do it my junior year but I got injured."

Now healthy, Kostarellis, who'll run at Xavier (Ohio) University next year, could be a factor in the barriers.

"If I take the steeplechase route I'd like to go 6:45," Kostarellis said. "If I do the mile, 4:48."

Bulkeley expanding range

A blanket finish in the boys mile made for an entertaining race. Fairport's (N.Y.) Ben Bulkeley, Guilderland's Noah Carey and St. Anthony's Mason Gatewood emerged down the final stretch together. The finish was almost too close to call.

Bulkeley's lean (4:21.30) was just enough for the win over Gatewood (4:21.38) and Carey (4:21.40).

"I got caught in the (stagger) again," said Bulkeley, the 1,000-meter champion at the New York indoor state meet.

"I just wanted to get the win."

Bulkeley, who has thrived at 800 meters, showed that he has the leg speed to be a factor at the greater distance.

"I'd like to be able to expand my abilities to race at longer distances," Bulkeley said. "Last week I did a 2-mile. (But) right now I'm probably staying with the 800."

Johnson beats strong field in 400

Huntington senior Kyree Johnson, who'll run for Texas A&M next year, produced a convincing victory in the 400 meters over a quality field.

Johnson (48.34) held off top New England long sprinter Rodney Agyare-May of Burncoat MA (48.76) and emerging junior Onye Ohia-Enyia of The Hackley School (48.78).

"I just wanted to beat my PR of 47.75 from New Balance Nationals last year," Johnson said.

Johnson raved about the Long Island-based Huntington program and its role in shaping him as a runner.

"I've practiced and competed against some amazing athletes (at Huntington) the past four or five years," Johnson said. "Infinite Tucker, Shane McGuire. Practicing and competing against those guys have made me the competitor I am today."

Ohia-Enyia scratching surface

Ohia-Enyia, a junior who scored a PR of 47.75 at the New York Relays on April 22, is finding himself in the sport.

"He's still pretty new to track," Hackley School coach Seth Karpinski said. "It's the tip of the iceberg. He's just starting to figure it out."

Ohio-Enyia was born in the Bronx to Nigerian parents. Has begun to train with purpose.

"You get a kid with this kind of talent and a (developing) work ethic, fun things are going to happen," Karpinski said.

Ahmad wins featured boys 3,200

Before the weather hit, athletes enjoyed some impressive performances. In the boys 3,200 meters Friday, which is traditionally very deep, a top-notch field duked it out.

New Jersey's Matt Grossman (Millburn) did the grunt work early, pacing the field through 2,400 meters. Then things got interesting.

Nick Dahl (Germantown Friends, Penn.) took the lead at the bell, followed by Zakeer Ahmad (Staples, Westport, Conn.). Ahmad used a late burst to notch an 8:58.86 win over Dahl (8:59.35).

"I had a plan to stay behind the leaders and see what happened," Ahmad said. "I stayed with it and it worked out."

Ahmad, a veteran New England distance runner, is bound for Penn next year.

"I feel like Penn was one of the favorites at the Heps this year," Ahmad said. "They had a strong distance program and have had a couple of four-minute milers, like (Tom) Awad and (Chris) Hatler."

The Loucks Games draws teams from all over the Northeast. New Hampshire,  Maine, Massachusetts, Connecticut and Rhode Island were all represented.

For athletes like Luke Laverdiere (Yarmouth, Maine) a junior who won the second heat of the 3,200 in 9:11, it presents a regional stage that some athletes rarely get.

"I live in Maine so it can be hard to find good competition," Laverdiere said. "Whenever I come down to the New England (Championships) or meets like this I try to take advantage of it." 

Relay in focus for John Jay-C.R.

John Jay (NY) Cross River dominated the girls 4x800 relay, winning in 9:23 under a downpour. The quartet of Carmela Culhane, Pippa Nuttall, Brooke Nohilly and Kathryn Nohilly led from start to finish.

Kelsey Chmiel, following wins in the distance medley relay and 3,200 meters, anchored for Saratoga Springs NY, but never got within striking distance.

"We finished third in the 4x800 at indoor States," Nuttall said. "Our biggest goal is to go back and win."

Farrar finding way in new event

My-Kell Farrar of Monticello NY was one of the few PR-achieving athletes on a miserable day. The senior won the 400-meter hurdles in 55.39 over Huntington's Lawrence Leans (55.40).

"Our goal is to go under 53 seconds," said Monticello coach Matt Budenhagen of Farrar, who finished second in the 60-meter hurdles at the NYPHSAA Indoor Championships.

Poor weather in the Northeast has prevented many athletes like Farrar from seeing quality times so far this spring.

With a long, angular frame, Farrar, a former basketball player, seems to have found a fit with the 400 hurdles.

"It's a hard event, but you've got to be mentally tough," Farrar said. "You've got to want it."