Peter Gelston always seemed in control. Running the 3,000 meter steeplechase on his home track, Gelston dominated his heat, pushing ahead for long stretches before holding off Ketcham’s Ryan Tancin in a photo finish. Gelston won the Section I State Qualifier at White Plains High School with a time of 9:46.71, only two one hundredths of a second better than Tancin (9:46.73).
“He just came out of nowhere,” Gelston said of Tancin. “He really wanted that race. He really wanted to make it so badly.” By finishing first and second, both runners qualified for the state meet, held at Caledonia-Mumford High School on June 10-11.
The victory provided a large measure of redemption for Gelston. “It feels great,” he said. “Because last year, just missing [states] by two seconds, I didn’t want that to happen again.”
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“He wasn’t nervous,” Gelston’s mother Barbara said. “I was going nervous for him because he’s worked really hard the whole season for it and I just wanted him to reach his goal.”
After States and graduation Gelston will head to Shippensburg University, where he will continue to run. “I am looking forward to it,” Barbara Gelston said. “Four more years.”
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Other members of the White Plains Boys Track Team: Thomas Johnson (third place - long jump), Shannon Newby (fifth place – 400 meter dash), the 4x800 meter relay team (eleventh place), and the 4x100 meter relay team (eighth place).
On the girls' side, White Plains senior Kamilah Williams won the 400 meter dash with a 57.54 time. Like Gelston, Williams made the last race on her home track a memorable one. Williams, who will be attending SUNY Albany next fall, appears poised to follow an impressive indoor season—and culminate her career—with a good showing at States.
Other White Plains girls results: Girls 4x800 meter relay (eleventh) 4x400 meter relay (fifth).
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White Plains Tigers Weekly Scores
6/8/11: Softball: Ursuline 1 White Plains 0. As a result, Ursuline wins the league championship.
White Plains Star Athlete: Pitcher Lauren Sputo allowed only one run and struck out six.
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