Seymour’s triple – 200, 400, 800 – ignites Modesto Metro Conference track meet

Enochs High School sophomore Claire Seymour admits to bouts of anxiety on the day of a big meet.

She doesn’t look forward to the stress, but it tells her two things: 1. She’s ready to run, and 2. She’s ready to win.

“Before the race, I’m so jumpy,” Seymour said. “But I love to win.”

When Seymour relaxed Tuesday night, she reflected on an exhausting performance at the Modesto Metro Conference Track and Field Championship. She won the 200, 400 and 800 meters, a triple that makes even veterans of the sport cringe. Three wins on the track demand everything – speed, power and stamina.

Seymour showed off all those talents on a breezy evening at Modesto Junior College Stadium. The top four finishers in each event extended their seasons, none more impressively than the Eagles’ young star.

Enochs nearly fielded a team for the meet-closing 4x400 relay, which meant Seymour would have closed with a grueling baton-clutching lap.

“My dad told me I was going for four,” she said.

Regardless, she must have slept well.

Seymour won the MMC 200 and 400 titles as a freshman, yet was too exhausted to push her season beyond the Sac-Joaquin Section level. This spring, she caught the eye of observers with promising times in the 400, her specialty.

She opened the MMC meet with an easy win in the 400 – the runner-up trailed by six seconds – though her 58.16 wasn’t her best. Despite the fact that she competed in the 800 for only the third time, she won it (2:23.78).

After not much time to recover, Seymour climaxed her trifecta by holding off Downey’s Erykah Hall in the 200 (26.45).

Seymour will probably save most of her energy for the 400 at next week’s Sac-Joaquin Section Division I meet at Elk Grove. That said, the 800 could still be in play.

“Ultimately, I want to get to state,” Seymour said. “I don’t know if it will be this year or next year.”

The state meet qualifies as a long shot for this year’s MMC crop, but a few athletes are dropping their marks and times. One is Modesto junior Kendall McNair, who doubled in the 110 and 300 hurdles. His 14.87 in the 110s put a grin on his face. He fought to break the 15-second barrier since he was a freshman.

“I had to switch my form this year to get better,” McNair said. “It seems like I’m training non-stop. That is what has really helped me.”

How athletes like McNair and Seymour respond to competition outside the MMC will decide their fate in the coming weeks. It could intimidate them or springboard them forward.

“I’m very excited to see what’s going to happen,” Seymour said.

No team scoring was compiled, as Gregori’s boys and girls swept to MMC dual-meet titles. Jaguars freshman Cameron Goldman leaped to wins in the long jump (20 feet, 5 inches) and triple jump (40-91/4). Gregori’s 4x400 relay team withstood a challenge from Grace Davis to take the 4x400.

Gregori’s senior girls also delivered wins, two by Tiegan MacDonald in the pole vault (9-0) and long jump (15-10). The Jaguars’ Brianna Swan took the triple jump (33-71/4).

Joining Goldman were freshman champions Santiago Ruiz in the 3,200 (10:15.69), Josh Mazur in the high jump (5-8), Esmae Aguayo in the girls 3,200 (12:26.6), Destiny Tolliver of Modesto in the 100 hurdles (16.31) and Destiny Anderson of Johansen in the 300 hurdles (52.86).

Downey sophomore Anne Stuart, who’s ranked among the section leaders in the high jump, needed only a 5-0 to win.

Downey’s speed was illustrated in the 100 via a sweep – Tyran Daniels (11.18), followed by 200 winner Andrew Raspo and third-place Trevor Farris. Hall edged in front of Gregori’s Danielle Drew to capture the girls 100 (12.38).

The Knights’ 4x100 relay team might bear close watching. They posted a 44.11 to win, but that time could drop with multi-sports star Jakob Magana now in tow with Daniels, Raspo and Farris.

This story was originally published May 12, 2015 at 10:51 PM with the headline "Seymour’s triple – 200, 400, 800 – ignites Modesto Metro Conference track meet."