CHS Athletes Commit

Congratulations to senior Maryam Fikri for accepting an offer to run cross-country and indoor and outdoor track for the University of Maryland of the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC). Fikri has been on varsity for four years as a distance runner. Good luck to Fikri on becoming a Terrapin.

Track and field succeeds without discipline

Though the track and field squad has lacked discipline throughout the season, it has continued to perform at a high level.

The girls and boys finished fourth and third, respectively, in the Viking Invitational, held annually at Whitman April 17, but their head coach believes they can do better.

“We need a lot better discipline,” head coach Scott Silverstein said. “Our team just does not listen sometimes.”

Silverstein believes that the more discipline they put in, the better they will run during the their next races.

“When we listen, we do well,” Silverstein said. “If our heads are not into it, then we won’t perform as well as we would like to.”

Though official captains have not been picked, senior Maryam Fikri has tried to hold the position.

According to Fikri, she “leads the way” for others during workouts, as well as “encourages everybody to try harder.”

Fikri has also asserted herself as one of the best runners on the team, finishing fourth in the 1600-meter and second in the 800-meter at the Viking Invitational.

“I am a week ahead of how I was running a year ago, so I feel like I can accomplish more things than I did last year,” Fikri said.

Another runner who has risen above the others is junior Robert Bowis, who finished 2nd in the 400-meter and the 4×100-meter relay.

“I really ran and felt well during both of the races,” Bowis said. “When you feel like that, you can do great things.”

Bowis, along with a group of runners including sophomore Micah Phillips-Spencer and senior Katie Wolf competed in the Penn Relays April 25.

“I’m really excited for the Relays because I have raced extremely well this year and this is a great way to show off all that I have done so far,” Bowis said.

Track looks to build off of indoor season

The 2009-2010 school year has been the best in recent memory for CHS track and they look to carry the momentum of their strong cross country and indoor seasons into this spring.

With the girls team taking home the top spot in the county for the fourth time in five years, it is safe to say that CHS has become something of a county powerhouse of late. Thanks to seniors Maryam Fikri, Alex Giedd and All-American Katie Wolf, the girls have become one of the most dominant teams in the state, and are among the best in CHS history.

“We began to talk about it as a dynasty,” coach Scott Silverstein said. “All the girls on this team weren’t on that first team five years ago, so it shows that they can continue to have success.”

The boys, after several years in the Montgomery County gutter, have begun to emerge as strong contenders for the county title, finishing fourth overall during the indoor season.

“These boys are really well balanced,” Silverstein said. “They are the best team since I got here.”
The balance of senior leadership and strong underclassmen contributions has served CHS well this year.

While the girls boast some of the state’s finest runners, a new crop of underclassmen are poised for a breakthrough season and will be ready to fill in when needed. Most notable among the underclassmen girls are sophomore Charlotte Bourg and junior Taylor Caulk.

The boys on the other hand, while significantly less top heavy with seniors, still feature a few star runners. Among those are seniors Sei Masuoka and Tarek Elhage, who finished fifth in the state in the two-mile.

“Seniors and underclassmen will make an equal impact on this season,” Ethage said. “We have very strong veteran runners but we also have many talented younger runners that can keep up with the senior runners.”

CHS track’s lethal combination of star power and depth leaves them in an excellent position to build on two already outstanding seasons. Both the boys and girls squads are approaching this season with every bit of the intensity and dedication that led them to strong finishes earlier in the year.

“We prepare the same way with hard workouts,” Silverstein said. “When things work you keep doing the same things.”

The Bulldogs’ first meet will be Wednesday, March 23 at home against Blair.

Indoor track places top five in county championship

The indoor track team made a strong showing at the 4A State Championship Feb. 23 at the Prince George’s County Sportsplex, facing some of the best runners in the state.
The girls impressively placed fifth while the boys came in sixth.

“The biggest surprise was our boy sprinters,” coach Paul Jacobson said. “[They placed] second in state in the 4×200 meter relay, which was a shock.”

The 4×200 meter relay team consisted of senior Jashawn Thomas, juniors Zach Raker and Robert Bowis and sophomore Micah Phillips-Spencer.

Due to snow, Regionals took place Feb. 17 at the Baltimore Armory.

For the girls, the 4×8, 4×2 and 4×4 relay teams all qualified for states. Senior Ale Martinez won the girls 55 meter hurdles and senior Katie Wolf placed second in the 55 meter dash. Giedd came in third in the 2 mile run and senior Myriam Fikri came in second in the 1 mile run.

For the boys, the 4×8, 4×4 and 4×2 relay teams also qualified for states. Senior Tarek Elhage also qualified by placing sixth in the 2 mile run.

The indoor track team competed Jan. 25 in the County Championship, where the team’s main competitors were Northwest, Walter Johnson, Damascus and Whitman.

“The boys ran really well and placed fourth in the county,” Wolf said. “The girls pulled a major upset against Northwest and won the county title for the fourth time in five years.” 
The girls team won the championship with a total of 89 points.

“We ran the meet of our lives and scored in almost every event,” Wolf said. “To pick one team member who really made a difference, I’d have to say [junior] Serenah Polite.  She ran a huge personal best and placed higher than she ever has in the hurdles, scoring six points for the team.”

After an amazing performance by Fikri in the 800 meter race, the team was ahead. Polite placed fourth in the triple jump, furthering the team’s lead.

CHS athletes commit

Congratulations to senior Katie Wolf for accepting an offer to run track at Penn State University, (PSU). Katie has run for CHS indoor and outdoor track for four years and is now a captain. In indoor she runs the 55 meter and the 300 meter. For outdoor she runs the 100 meter, 200 meter, and 400 meter. For PSU she will run the 60 meter and 200 meter for indoor and the 100 meter and 200 meter for outdoor. Congrats Katie and best of luck on becoming a Nittany Lion.

If you or someone you know has committed to a school for sports please email the Observations Editor at bdhirsch@comcast.net.