Mustangs continue record-setting pace

Sophia Falco is looking to the future, and for the Lakewood Ranch junior, that includes track. 

Falco, who holds school records in both the 100-and 200-meter dashes, the 4x100 relay and the long jump, has aspirations of following in the footsteps of her older sister, Talia Falco, who landed a track scholarship to Kent State University last year. 

Following a sophomore season in which she posted top six finishes in three events at the Class 3A Track and Field State Championships, Sophia Falco decided to forgo soccer to focus solely on track. 

The move appears to have been a solid one since Falco set a new meet record of 7.55 seconds in the preliminaries of the 60-meter dash in the Emerging Elite race at the 2016 New Balance Nationals Indoor Track and Field Meet. The event was held March 11 through March 13 in New York City. She false-started in the finals and didn't place overall.

Falco also finished 22nd in the long jump at 17 feet, 11.50 inches and 27th in the 200-meter dash in 24.87 seconds. 

“I think I have a great future in track,” Falco said. “At the end of my sophomore year after going to states, I realized I can compete against high-level athletes.” 

With six meets remaining before the district tournament, including the prestigious FSU Relays March 25 and March 26, in Tallahassee, Falco is focused on improving through competition with herself. 

“You can’t worry about what other people do,” Falco said. 

The sprinter’s growth has been bolstered by her team's depth. 

Seniors Reide Ryans and Olivia Ogles and junior Kristine Akervold, an exchange student from Norway, all have school records of their own and are ranked in the top four in Class 4A in their respective events. 

Together the four sprinters have become a dominant force. The girls hold a combined seven school records, including the 4x100 relay mark of 47.9 seconds, which they set March 3 at the Lady Tarpon Invitational in their second effort as a unit. 

“I would like for us to keep getting better,” Ryans said. “To me, it’s a competition against yourself.” 

Ryans, who will be heading to Florida International University this fall on a track scholarship, is the most seasoned of the Mustangs’ top athletes. She finished third in the state in the 100-meter hurdles as a junior. 

“It’s a really big honor to have someone want to pay you to go to school because you can run around a circle fast,” Ryans said. 

Following in the footsteps of her father, Larry Ryans, once the nation’s top high school hurdler who ran track and played football at Clemson, she holds the school record in the 100 hurdles (14.05). 

Once primarily a sprinter, Ogles broke onto the field event scene last season. Looking for a change of scenery, She picked up pole vault and cleared 10 feet, setting a new school record, on her first attempt. 

“It feels like I’m flying,” said Ogles, who is now being recruiting by George Mason, USF and FSU. 

Ogles, who finished third in the state in pole vault last season, has since broke her own school record after clearing 11 feet and has aspirations of climbing even higher this season. 

In her first and only season with the Mustangs, Akervold already has made a name for herself on the track and has proven to be the missing link for a girl’s team that has state title aspirations. 

Akervold brings international experience to the track, having represented Norway in the World Youth Championships last summer in Columbia. 

"I couldn't ask for a better young lady, fierce competitor and humble athlete than Kristine," Lakewood coach Mark Napier said. "Her personality and skills as an elite athlete are a pleasure to work with every day. Krisitine has a tremendous future and has only scratched the surface of her excellence." 

A month into the season, Akervold already has set a new school record of 45.80 seconds in the 300 hurdles. She also joined Falco in New York this past weekend where she finished tied for ninth in the preliminaries of the 200-meter dash (25.00) and 23rd in the 60-meter hurdles (9.15). 

Falco, Ryans, Ogles and Akervold all say their records don’t really mean anything and they are just a benchmark for the future. 

Their top goal is to be standing on the podium at the Class 4A Track and Field State Championships May 6, at IMG Academy, each hopefully wearing a gold medal around their necks. 

“We all have an opportunity to win states in something,” Ryans said. “We have a really good chance this year and that’s what we’ve been working toward. With all of the work that we put in, I feel like we deserve it.” 

"We could not ask for a better group of girls on our team," Napier said. "I believe talent is a "Dime a Dozen", but these girls are worth "One in a Million" and we are rich with them."