The Woodlawn boys track and field team scored a lopsided victory at last night's Class 4A-3A West regional meet at the 5th Regiment Armory.
It may be too soon to tell, however, if the Warriors suffered an equally big loss.
After crossing the finish line first in his heat of the 500-meter race, sprinting standout Antonio Thomas collapsed in a heap with what was believed to be a strained right hamstring, which he said he suffered en route to his earlier win in the 300.
The senior feels confident he will be ready for the state meet in 11 days.
"I'm going to stretch a lot and ice a lot," said Thomas, the Baltimore County champion in both the 300 and 500. "I should be back fully recovered for states."
That would be good news for the Warriors, who have finished second at the state meet each of the past two years.
Thomas took second in the 500 despite running the entire race injured, helping Woodlawn to a team victory with 96 points, followed by Gaithersburg with 71.
Gaithersburg won the girls competition with 83 points followed by Walter Johnson with 56. Among area schools, Dulaney finished fourth with 42 points.
It was a strong day for area athletes, several of whom finished among the top four to qualify for states.
Woodlawn's 3,200 relay team, which finished fifth, qualified when second-place Walter Johnson was disqualified for throwing the baton, bumping the Warriors to fourth place.
The Warriors got a further boost when Darrell Walker, who qualified fifth, snuck into fourth when top-seeded Brent McCauley of Gaithersburg entered the competition at 11 feet, 6 inches and failed to clear that height.
Woodlawn also got two wins from Mack McKenzie (high hurdles, high jump), as well as wins from Mark Spears (55 dash) and the 800 relay team, as well as two third-place finishes from Jeron White (300, 500).
Dulaney's girls were led by Christine Myers, who placed second in the 1,600 after winning a county championship in that event two weeks ago, and third in the 3,200, Kelly Fanshaw (second, 500), Dusty Aeiker (fourth, 800) and the second-place 3,200 relay team.
