Barriss, Conlan, Cook & Wheelock break records
Published in the May 12, 2017 edition
NATIONAL QUALIFYING relay team Adam Cook, Griffin Barriss, Sean Conlan, and Kevin Wheelock (l to r) broke records last weekend for the Melrose High outdoor track team. (courtesy photo Dgyboard via Twitter)
By JENNIFER GENTILE
MELROSE—They’re at it again.
The MHS long distance running quartet of Griffin Barriss, Sean Conlan, Adam Cook and Kevin Wheelock continue their upward trajectory of athletic excellence at Melrose High. On Saturday, May 6 they broke a school and meet record in the long distance medley relay at the Weston Twilight Invitational at Regis College, which qualified them for Nationals in a record time of 10:33.63. The four will travel on June 18 to take part in the New Balance High School Nationals in Greensboro, NC where they will run in the exclusive race.
Their result on Saturday night topped their closest competitors from Natick and Newton North, and shaved six seconds off their last registered time of 10:39. It’s the result that coach Tim Morris and the group were aiming for going into the season. It helps this relay team is made up of state champions and state medalists in track and cross country. As a unit, they are getting increasingly hard for teams to beat. The runners spoke to the Melrose Weekly.
“It caps off a great four years together as teammates,” says three-time MHS state champion Kevin Wheelock, who runs the last mile of the race. “We’ve trained specifically for this event all spring so we could qualify.”
Sean Conlan agrees. “This was definitely a big goal of ours and we’ve been thinking about the possibility of qualifying throughout high school. It feels amazing.”
According to Griffin Barriss, it chance to compete in the event is rare. “The race is contested rarely at large invitationals, and we knew each of us was capable of running the right splits to get under 10:34, we just had to get out there and execute. We ran it the weekend before, but knew the Twilight would be the place with better competition and weather conditions. We pulled off the perfect race to dip under the standard.”
Senior Adam Cook runs the 1200 leg. He spoke of the preparation going into the race. “I feel like we gave it a 110% effort on Saturday night. The team does not plan to stop training either since we are going to Nationals to compete.”
The quartet is no stranger to competing on the big stage together. They’ve also helped Melrose cross country rise in the ranks as one of the best in Massachusetts. Their cross country coach, Kevin Allison, spoke earlier this season about the four athletes. “Griffin, Adam, Sean and Kevin have taken their performances to a historical level.They have put a stamp on the program and set a standard for any team to even approach.”
The New Balance Outdoor Track Nationals takes place June 17-18 in Greensboro, N.C.
