Top 10 Moments of 2016 - Numbers 4 & 3

No. 4 - Running With Robeson

As it is with girls cross country, some teams always seem to be in it.  While Medgar Evers was the name to know of the past decade, Paul Robeson, newly relocated campus with a focus on STEM, was steadily making their way up the ranks.  The name to know was Amanda Crawford, a standout in 2015 over 400m, taking second at the State Meet in Albany.  As only a junior (one who had skipped a grade ahead at that), it was guaranteed she would have a standout season.  Their 4x100m was exceptional as well, running 46.49 at Nationals in the 4x100m.  Could the 4x100m/4x200m record go down?

The whirlwind season saw Robeson live up to the hype.  With the Sandy sisters, as well as Latoya Stewart and Charnice Anderson, the regular season was dominated by numerous conglomerations of relay runners, both at 4x200m and 4x400m.  And then, disaster struck.  At the Indoor State Meet, top seeded in both relays, Robeson tried to split their best quartet up, and grab both titles.  No can do in New York, where you need your "A" Game to come away with a State Title.  Rush-Henrietta, anchored by Sammy Watson, took home the 4x200m title, while Suffern retained their 4x400m title.  Robeson would return home to the city dejected.

It left them with one final weekend to attack the 4x200m State Record, their intended focus despite entering in the 4x400m for good measure.  In the trials, the gun went off, and Robeson shot out from the blocks with emphasis.  They had smoked the prelims, putting in a relaxed 1:38.14, which would have been the second overall seed.  And yet again, disaster struck.  Their lead off leg had stepped over the inside line more than the allowable three instances, and the favorites in the event had been disqualified.

The 4x200m State Record was their goal, and with any chance of approaching that out the window, the girls of Robeson had to recover.  They had their weaker event coming up, the 4x400m.  Here, there would be no trials, just one all-out race.  Without the 4x200m finals to tire them out, they can go full-steam ahead.  At the first exchange, they trailed the leaders, but only just.  Another leg in, and Alyssa Sandy had given them a substantial lead.  Sister Bryann held on to the Third Leg, surpassed only by Motor City, MI.  Then came the real test.  Amanda Crawford got the baton, and knew nobody in front of her mattered.  The real danger came from the team in 6th place, one that  happened to be anchored by future Olympian Sydney McLaughlin.  Crawford quickly made up the difference into second, and closed the large gap behind 1st.  Trailing Anna Jefferson, a world class runner in her own right, Crawford pushed on the inside lane to make an attempt for the win.  And yet, with ease, McLaughlin jetted the final straightaway to win the race.

Despite getting third, the girls were still happy to be competitive.  They didn't realize that Crawford had split 52.7 on the anchor leg, a lifetime best.  They didn't realize they blew out the state record by a full two-seconds.  They were just happy to finish as a team, in a race they deemed as consolation for missing out on the 4x200m.

NOTE: Robeson would go on to a successful season Outdoors, more so on the individual level.  Alyssa Sandy broke out as one of the Nation's best Hurdlers, blasting the State Record twice in one day.  While a 13.45 is unprecedented in New York State, the feat of getting four girls to fire on all cylinders on the same day, in the same race, after much hardship the week prior, overall made for a better moment.  The rules of the list state that no athlete can be chosen for two separate moments, so the list was narrowed down.