Holland track quartet breaks 26-year-old school relay record, more on way
· Yahoo Sports
HOLLAND - It was a record that took more than a quarter of a century to break, but it just took one prompt from coach Megan Lambers to get the Dutch in gear.
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She told the Holland quartet to go for it, and that was enough motivate Olivia Weiss, Tessa Nienhuis, Ashlyn DePoy and Johanna Mulder to the school record in the 4x800-meter relay (10:05.02).
"We came to the track and went for it and ended up beating it by three seconds," Weiss said. "Last year, it was a little disappointing when we didn't break the old record. But (now we have), and I think we can definitely go faster."
The previous record was set by Heidi Hondorp, Kendra Snyder, Amy Hoving, Kirsten Werley (10:08.1) in 2000.
Weiss started the group out and set the pace.
"It is refreshing to be done first, then really important to go back and forth across the track to cheer on my teammates," Weiss said. "Breaking it was really special."
Weiss handed the baton to Nienhuis.
"It has been very special. There is a big sense of home on this team.I didn't think I would be part of a record relay. We went for it and when we got it, we were just so happy to have achieved that," Nienhuis said.
The baton then went to DePoy, who had to keep the pace.
"I know what my job is to close the gap and know where we are to do the best for my team," DePoy said. "It means a lot. I didn't think I would be able to do it with the injuries I have had to overcome. It just means that we are all stronger than we think."
The anchor was Mulder, who saw the entire race unfold in front of her.
"I could really feel a power in how Olivia started off. I saw the fight in her. Then when Tessa got the baton, she really wanted it too and Ashlyn pushed an incredible two laps. It made me know we could do it," Mulder said. "I realized this would help push us to be what Holland has been this year and the power that the girls team has."
More Holland records to fall
This wasn't the only Holland relay record to fall this season.
In the boys 4x200-meter relay, Rian Powers, Tray Knox, Xander Esparza and Finn Galloway clocked a 1:31.65, breaking the mark set last year (1:32.30).
Meanwhile, Knox is closing in on the school record in the 100 meters.
On Tuesday, May 5, he sprinted to a time of 11.04, tying the best mark of Levi Honderd, one of the top athletes in school history.
The school record is 10.7 set by Kurt Overway in 1978 - one of the oldest records in the area.
"I pushed myself for this. I am just glad I could do that," Knox said. "Hopefully the record is coming. The goal is to break 11 seconds. It is great to keep breaking it and keep building the relay record. We have to keep pushing and working on our handoffs."
Contact sports editor Dan D’Addona at Dan.D’[email protected]. Follow him on X, formerly known as Twitter @DanDAddona or Facebook @HollandSentinelSports.
This article originally appeared on The Holland Sentinel: Holland track breaks 26-year-old school record, more records coming