On Wednesday, February 21st, Fallston’s track and field athletes closed out their indoor track season with incredible efforts at Prince George’s Sports Complex. Senior Gabby Curriden brings home gold in the pole vault, breaking both a county and a school record.
“The Indoor season, as always, is tough because of the chilly weather…but Coaches Cox, Cap, Dre, DuBois, and I appreciate the work most kids have put in,” says jumps coach, Keith Curriden.
The cold temps and snow didn’t stop the T&F team from having a fun and successful season! But unfortunately, due to the competitiveness of indoor meets and limited access to indoor tracks, the team had only 5 regular season meets throughout the winter, where only a chunk of the team had opportunities to race.
Coach Keith recognizes the dedication and tough efforts of team members who didn’t make it to regionals and states saying, “Watching kids that aren’t our primary ‘track’ kids contribute and have success is amazing… [the coaching staff] are always proud to see student-athletes make strides in improving times and increasing distance/height in throwing and jumping events.”
13 Fallston athletes qualified for the 2A Regional Meet:
- Junior Josh Yamagata, who placed 13th in the 800 m
- Sophomore Mac Fisher, who placed 12th in the 1600 m
- Sophomore Josh Atha, who placed 8th in the 1600 m
- Senior Matt Dubois, who placed 8th in High Jump
- Freshman Leanne Daxon, who placed 7th in Pole Vault
- Senior Nathaniel Dunton, who placed 7th in Shot Put
- Junior Collin Businsky who placed 14th in Shot Put and 6th in High jump
- Junior Gareth Chieffo, who placed 6th in the 800 m
- Senior Grace Daly, who placed 5th in the 800 m
- Sophomore Nicholas Spangler, who placed 4th in the 1600 m
- Junior Eryk Bender, who placed 2nd in the 3200 m
- Sophomore Gabi Murphy, who placed 3rd in the 3200 m
- Senior Gabrielle Curriden, who placed 5th in high jump and 1st in Pole Vault
Three athletes placed 3rd or higher and advanced to States: Eryk Bender, Gabby Curriden, and Gabi Murphy. It was a long day filled with lots of waiting, but one by one, Bender, Curriden, and Murphy took their shots at their respective events, showcasing their great talents.
Gabby says she “knew this year’s state meet was going to be tough” and she really had “to focus and visualize what [she] wanted to do” because going into the meet “four girls were all at the same height.”
“I cleared all my jumps on the first attempt, until 11’3, when there were three of us left who needed to clear it to place second. Both girls before me missed, so I knew I had to clear,” Gabby says. “I was so excited once I cleared the bar and was able to get second… I feel proud that I did this and was able to reach the goals that I set for this indoor season. My goal was to jump 11 feet and I ended up clearing 3 inches beyond that.”
But placing second wasn’t all 11’3 got her – Curriden broke Harford County and Fallston High School records with her new pole vault PR. She was beaten only by Middletown’s Ava Allen who vaulted 12ft 3in.
Reflecting on her season, Gabby says, “This season was tough with all of the cold outside and limited time to jump. I started seriously training in December and jumping for the first time since May. I wasn’t sure how this season was going to go since I hadn’t been jumping much. My first 2 meets were not very good, but by regionals, I was having more success in my meets and ended up having a successful season.”
Eryk says, “I wasn’t too worried about my event because I wasn’t seeded very high (18/21) so I knew I wasn’t going to be taking home any medals, which cooled the nerves a bit.” His goals for the race were to “run at least the same time [as regionals] and try to place higher than [his] seed,” both of which he did as he placed 16th in the 3200m with a time just two seconds short of his PR, but similar to his regionals time.
He says, “I felt accomplished! Making it to states as a Junior is very difficult so I did not care how well I did, just that I did it.” As for his season, he says, “it went very well for me, I made improvements in almost every meet. The only downside was how cold this winter was. But this season definitely prepared me for spring track where I hope to only get better.”
Murphy took home bronze in the 3200 m with a time of 11:51.29, less than 13 seconds behind first place. Gabi says, “The race felt easy for the first mile, then from laps 8-11, I started to really feel it, and the last five laps were spent trying to catch up.” As for her season, she says, it “went somewhat well. I wanted more PRs, but in the end, it allowed me to see my competition for outdoor and see what I need to fix for the future… This year’s states were just preparation for outdoor, and now I’m ready for some big PRs and hopefully to place better than 3rd!”
“I’m very proud of our state meet qualifiers Gabi Murphy, Eryk Bender, and my very own Gabby,” says Coach Keith. “Gabi and Eryk will continue to be a force for the Fallston program for years to come and I can’t wait to see them taking more of a leadership role in the team’s future.” Both Eryk and Gabi will be Cross Country captains starting in the fall.
But pride doesn’t fully cover how he feels about his daughter’s accomplishments. He says, “Coaching your own child is about the toughest thing I’ve ever done, but also it is so rewarding when you see them achieve at a very high standard.” Gabby has reset the school indoor PV record 5 times and the county record 3 times, and after her PR at the state meet, she can do it again as she reports to the Adidas High School Nationals.
