In 40-degree weather, with treacherous winds that sent a handful of team tents scattering across the track and field complex, Fort Bend Christian Academy still managed to set records at its first meet of the season last Saturday at The Woodlands Christian Invitational.
The Eagles’ 4x100 and 4x200 relays set school records of 49.73 seconds and 1.45.93 seconds, respectively. The 4x100 mark broke the previous best of 50.2 seconds. The 4x200 mark broke the 1.47 seconds set at the TAPPS 5A state meet last year, when the relay won first place.
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Both relays consisted of the same four girls: junior Brooke Coleman ran the first leg, followed by senior Angel Nwodu, newcomer junior Daniella Herrera (a move-in from Colombia), and freshman Bayleigh Minor, daughter of head coach Deon Minor.
Herrera was an alternate for the relays, filling in for senior Gabbie Washington, who was sick all of last week and forced to miss the meet.
“I was running with an alternate, and we broke school records,” said Deon Minor, in his fourth year as head track and field coach. “I was like, ‘Oh, wow.’ In those conditions, too? I was really happy and excited. The sky’s the limit on what we’re capable of doing as a team, but we’ve got to continue to work.”
The Eagles had only six girls on the team last year and still managed to finish sixth at state.
“If we could get to state and these girls run well, hopefully coming into this year others will see that we won and broke records and it could draw some attention to get girls to come out,” Minor said. “They’re coming out. I’m loaded.”
Now the Eagles have 22 on the team. Only three are seniors.
“Now I have the depth and I have missing pieces of the puzzle,” Minor said. “I definitely knew for sure that all my relays would be really strong this year.”
Bayleigh Minor is a crucial addition. She is a 10-time All-American and an AAU Junior Olympics champion in the 400 meters.
Coleman, healthy after an injury-riddled campaign last year, is a standout sprinter in the 100 meters and 200 meters. She finished second at state in the 100 meters behind Nwodu, another star sprinter.
Washington is a stud in the 400 meters.
“With the depth I have, the No. 1 goal this year is to try and win the state championship,” Minor said. “That’s what we’ve been aiming for. The relays, we ran in record-setting times. Angel and Brooke were 1-2 in the 100 meters last year; Angel PR’ed. We’re on track. It’s just a matter of getting them going full-time.”