Marsh, Patrick named All-Americans @ Nike Indoor

Marsh, Patrick named All-Americans @ Nike Indoor

Landover, MD »Some of Alabama's best athletes traveled to Landover, Maryland, this weekend to compete at the Nike Indoor Championships. With event winners recognized as national champions and other top finishers earning All-American honors, the meet is widely regarded as the premier meet of the high school indoor track & field season. The top six finishers in each event are named to the American Track and Field Magazine All-American team.

Outdoor record holder and indoor 6A long jump champion Whitney Marsh, a senior from Mountain Brook High School, jumped 18' 7.75" at NIC to finish fourth in the event and add All-American to her list of accomplishments.

Chris Patrick, a junior from Smiths Station and two-time 6A indoor champion in the 800m, also earned All-American honors. Patrick placed fifth in the 800m run with a time of 1:55.41. Patrick holds the 6A indoor record at 1:54.60, the time he ran as a sophomore last season.

Marsh later joined teammates Sarah Doss Yarbrough, Aly Goldfarb, and Beverly Long on a 4x400m relay team. The girls combined for a time of 4:01.15, good enough for seventh. The time is better than the standing 6A record, 4:06.6 from Mountain Brook's 1979 team, but was not run at the Alabama state meet and will not count for the record. This same group of girls clocked 4:07.82 in February at the AHSAA meet.

UMS-Wright junior multi-event star Edra Finley, named 1A-4A MVP for leading the Bulldogs to the 2003 indoor state title, competed in both the long jump and triple jump. Her respective marks of 17' 10.75" and 38' 2.75" placed her 8th and 9th.

In the freshman mile run, Smiths Station's Tim English placed 16th with a time of 4:50.90. Earlier this indoor season English won the 3200m run at the Alabama Junior High Championships in Priceville.

EVENT PLACE ATHLETE TIME/MARK
LJ 4. Whitney Marsh, Mountain Brook 18' 7.75"
800m 5. Chris Patrick, Smiths Station 1:55.41
4x400m 7. Mountain Brook (Women) 4:01.15
LJ 8. Edra Finley, UMS-Wright 17' 10.75"
TJ 9. Edra Finley, UMS-Wright 38' 2.75"
Mile 16. Tim English, Smiths Station 4:50.90