South Side High School runners win Nassau County crown in 4x800-meter relay

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Carly Woelfel, left, Olivia Duca, Avery Brull and Kaitlyn Mohr, were county champions in the 4x800-meter relay on Feb. 5.
Carly Woelfel, left, Olivia Duca, Avery Brull and Kaitlyn Mohr, were county champions in the 4x800-meter relay on Feb. 5.
Courtesy Chris Webster

Runners on South Side High School’s winter track team outlasted their competitors earlier this month to claim a county championship in the 4x800-meter relay.

Juniors Carly Woelfel and Kaitlyn Mohr, along with sophomores Avery Brull and Olivia Duca, combined their efforts to earn first place at the Nassau County Class B Championships at St. Anthony’s on Feb. 5, crossing the finish line in 10 minutes and 14 seconds.

“They’re all talented runners, that goes without saying, but there’s more to it than that. They’ve really built a team and friend connection,” said Chris Webster, head coach of the track team, noting that the four girls run together during the off-season and on weekends. “They’ve really developed this tight bond, and I think it’s really helped them as a team.”

Though the team was seeded below North Shore in the event, Webster said, his runners had won the 4x800 the only other time they ran it this winter during an event in Staten Island, with only three of the four girls.

“We knew going into the county championship that we were running our four strongest, fastest 800-meter runners,” Webster said. “Every race is competition, but we felt comfortable and very good going into it.”

Woelfel, the team’s captain, was also a county champion in the 3,000-meter race and Duca won the 1,500-meter event. Brull finished the 1,000-meter race in third place.