The sun had disappeared 10 minutes prior. It was the last race of a very long day, and as Thomas Mason set the starting block in his running lane the thoughts going through his mind were to do his best and stay warm.

He settled on his mark and took a deep breath; then when the gun fired, Mason bolted out of the blocks like a cheetah chasing a wildebeest. No other starter for the men's 4 x 400 meter relay used a starting block, but it probably would not have mattered. By the time Mason completed the first 100 meters, he had a 50 meter lead.

When Mason completed the handoff to Quentin Morales the competition had closed the gap; and as Morales rounded the first turn he temporarily lost the lead, but kicked back into position and gave Woodbridge a 10 meter gap at the handoff to Shawn Bowen.

Bowen's speed was unmatched by the third leg of his rivals and he spread the Vikings' lead to 50 meters by the time he relayed to the anchor, Chris Clausson. Clausson then brought the baton across the finish line with a regional qualifying time of 3 minutes, 35 seconds, 1.8 seconds ahead of Battlefield.

The 12-team Centreville Winter Challenge that took place Saturday at Centreville High School was the first big event for Woodbridge this season, and the men's 4 x 400 meter relay was one of three events in which the Vikings qualified for regionals. Overall, Woodbridge placed fourth as a team in both men's and women's events.

“These are some really competitive teams in Northern Virginia,” said head coach Andrew McCarthy. “To see ourselves place in the top four in girls and guys should be a boost of confidence for the kids, especially for the girls because we only have 14 girls on the team. If those 14 girls can come out here and do that much damage, it bodes well for the rest of the season.”

Placing first in the women's 300 meter dash was Farrah Suber with a time of 44 seconds, two seconds before her nearest rival; and Olivia Coopwood placed first in the women's 55 meter hurdles, with a time of 9 seconds, one full step ahead of Battlefield's Claire Gloss. Suber and Coopwood also placed first in the women's 4 x 200 meter relay, but was disqualified because the third leg of the race was out of the exchange zone when taking the baton. Their time would have been a regional qualifying time as well.

“It's the only way to learn a lesson,” said McCarthy. “I bet we won't have any more baton problems for the rest of the season.”

“I was thinking, 'Okay this is my day, so let me own the track, and let me put all that have into it,'” said Coopwood after winning the hurdles. “I'd rather suck tomorrow than suck today.”

Nick Eghtessad placed first and ran personal best times in both the men's 1600 meter run—4 minutes, 38 seconds, and the 3200 meter run—9 minutes, 54 seconds. His 3200 meter time qualified him for regionals. Chris Clausson also qualified for regionals in the men's 500 meter dash with a time of one minute, 7 seconds.

“With this meet, competing with some of the top teams in Northern Virginia, it's really gonna help us out to see where we are and where we're gonna place kids in future meets and hopefully bring a good handful of athletes to regionals,” said McCarthy.

Top five finishes in other events:

-Shawn Bowen placed first in the men's long jump, with a distance of 18 feet, four inches.

-Nate Smith placed fourth in men's 1600 meter run with a time of four minutes, 53 seconds.

-Brady Wilhide placed fifth in men's shot put with a distance of 40 feet, one inch.

-Kady Badham placed second in women's 55 meter dash: 7.8 seconds; and she placed fifth in the 300 meter dash: 46.9 seconds. Zaire Canty finished one step before Badham in the 300 meter.

-Elise Rasmussen finished third in the 1600 meter run: five minutes, 40 seconds.

-Katie Carter placed fifth in the women's 55 meter hurdles: 10.3 seconds.

-Coopwood placed third in the women's long jump with a distance of 12 feet, 11 inches.

Team scores

Women's

McLean 101

Chantilly 67

Battlefield 64

Woodbridge 60.5

Hayfield 55

North Stafford 55

Westfield 54

Thomas Jefferson 29

Brooke Point 21

JEB Stuart 15

Stonewall Jackson 6

Centreville 5.5

Men's

Hayfield 87.83

Westfield 84.83

McLean 83.33

Woodbridge 81

Battlefield 49.5

Brooke Point 43.5

Stonewall Jackson 36

JEB Stuart 28

North Stafford 27

Chantilly 21

Centreville 2

Thomas Jefferson 2