One personnel move has turned Carson High's 3,200-meter relay team into a serious contender for a state track title this weekend in Las Vegas.
After a meet against North Valleys earlier this year that saw Carson blow a big lead, the then-anchor runner David McMasters asked lead-off runner Robby Barlow if he would be interested in switching spots. The Senators' other two relay runners runners, Richard Shroy and Nick Schlager, agreed with the move and the group brought it to the coaching staff.
The move was made, and the rest is history.
The quartet has shown plenty of improvement, and last week ran an 8:01.71 to shatter the school record and win the regional championship. This weekend, they hope to bring a state title back to campus.
"It's nice," McMasters said of the change. "I'm not much of a lead runner, I'm more of a drafter. Robby is more of a lead runner."
"We (David and I) were thinking about it," Barlow said. "I'm the fastest 800 runner we have. He (McMasters) is running great and I'm running good. It was a good switch."
Shroy agreed.
"It really helped our team," the Carson distance star said. "David is better at the lead-off leg. He does better when he's pushed or running with others. Robby is strong anywhere you use him."
Jeanne Stelzer, who coaches the distance runners, said she likes to start fast and end fast. In McMasters and Barlow, she has two runners capable of breaking the 2-minute mark as they did last weekend. Shroy and Schlager have yet to crack the 2-minute mark on their respective legs, but both have been consistently running 2:01 and 2:02.
"I should be able to run sub-2 based on the training," said Schlager, who ran the 1,600 and 800 in addition to the relay. "We just have to step up and see what happens."
Now, the group is turning its attention to this weekend's NIAA 4A State Track and Field Championships at Del Sol High School. Not only does the quartet think they can win again this week, they would like nothing better than to break the 8-minute mark.
"We think we can (break 8 minutes)," Shroy said. "We've put in a hard week of work. We're looking to break eight minutes."
Once again, Carson will be challenged by Reno (8:03.80) and Elko (8:02.49). None of the Las Vegas schools have posted a Nevada time under 8:09.
Stelzer said that Carson will have to run three sub 2-minute legs to win the title. That remains to be seen. Much will depend on how much the three Northern nevada schools push each other, and what the weather is like in the late afternoon on Saturday when Carson runs.
"I don't think we have to break it (the state record of 7;56) to win," McMasters said. "I think it will take a sub 8-minute run to win."
"If we all have sub 2-minute times we can do more than win it," Barlow said. "It's going to be tough. I'm excited. This is my last race (ever) and I get to race for a state championship. That's great."