Record-setting day at East Coast Relays

Randolph, Roxbury girls rewrite county books

MORRISTOWN -- Briana Feldhaus pulled her teammates in for a group hug. All four of the Randolph hurdlers beamed, proud of the Morris County record they had just set. The Rams didn't even mind that they'd finished second in the shuttle hurdles at the East Coast Relays.
The time was the important thing, and it was very fast.
Randolph finished in 1:03.75, about a second and a half behind overall winner Union. Senior Justine Ameye led off what head coach Len Pietrewicz called "her best race of the season" in 15.5 seconds. Senior Julianne Kovary turned in a solid second leg running into a stiff headwind at Morristown High School. Freshman Kara Scheideler "was flipping out the whole time Justine was running, I was so nervous," but turned in a solid 15.5-second third leg. Feldhaus (15.2 into the wind) closed out the record, which had been the Rams' goal for two years.

Matched up against Hanover Park at the East Coast Relays a year ago, Randolph finished second in its heat while pushing its Morris County rival to the record of 1:04.11. The girls were determined to keep that from happening again on Monday.

"We had one last chance and we got it," Feldhaus said. "It was so annoying last year that we missed it. We were really close. It made us grow and learn."

Added Ameye, "It's our last time running together, the perfect race to do it. ... Someone better not break it next year."