Metro Stars Have Solid Performance at AAU National Club Championships

Last week the New Orleans Metro Stars took a trip to Orlando Florida to see how we matched up against national competition at the AAU National Club Championships where we competed against clubs from powerhouse states such as Florida, Georgia, New Jersey, and Texas.

We had one medalist. Nine year old Robert Vaughn, Jr had an outstanding performance in the Turbo Javelin: throwing 53 Feet, 17 feet farther than his previous personal best throw, earning him a 7th place finish.

We also had many top-15 performances.

Our 9 year-olds were rather impressive this past week. Robert medaled in the Turbo Javelin; Natalie Rome qualified to compete in the semi-finals of both the 100 Meter Dash and 200 Meter Dash and placed 13th in the 400 Meter Dash, and Tyree Arso qualified to compete in the semi-finals of the 200 Meter Dash and placed 11th in the 400 Meter Dash.

Ronald Arso, Jr and Conner Winston we very competitive in the 10 year-old Long Jump, but were bumped out of the finals by the very last jumpers on their very last jump, placing them at 13th and 15th respectively.

Eleven year-old Gabriel Byrd put on a stellar performance in the 800 Meter Run, coming in 14th place and running a personal best time of 2:44.45. But it was Bernard Robertson, IV who stole the show in the 800 Meter Run, winning his heat with a time of 2:40.47 and placing 12th overall.

Many of our athletes ran personal bests this past week.

Athlete                           Age         Event                        Time/Throw/Jump       Place
Natalie Rome                  9            100m Dash                   15.39 sec                  12th
                                                      200m Dash                   32.39 sec                  12th
                                                      400m Dash                   1:17.51                     13th
Tyree Arso                      9            400m Dash                   1:12.64                     11th
Robert Vaughn, Jr           9           Turbo Javelin                53'00"                        7th
Quinnton Marshall, Jr    10           100m Dash                   17.59 Sec                  49th
                                                      Turbo Javelin                34'06"                       16th
Conner Winston             10           200m Dash                   32.59                        49th
Gabriel Byrd                  11           400m Dash                   1:05.05                     17th
                                                      800m Run                     2:44.45                     14th
Bernard Robetrson, IV  11           200m Dash                    30.68 sec                  35th
                                                     400m Dash                    1:08.97                     25th
                                                     800m Run                      2:40.47                     12th
Xavier Maple                 11          1500m Run                    5:47.63                     18th
Sydni Harrell                  13         200m Dash                     29.93                        58th
                                                     Long Jump                     13'00"                      27th
Asia Pasley                    15          200m Dash                      29.30                      90th

Big congratulations to the Metro Stars on their performances at the AAU National Club Championships in Orlando Florida. See you all at the last meet of the season.
                  

METRO STARS QUALIFY FOR NATIONALS!!!

This past weekend the Metro Stars had a pretty good showing at the AAU National Qualifier meet in Hammond. At the National Qualifier meet the top 6 placing athletes in any running event and the top 5 in any field event win a spot in the AAU Junior Olympic Games in Norfolk, Va. We had a lot of people take home hardware and almost the whole team qualified to go to the J.O.s.

Here are our medalists:

Gabriel Byrd       Gold        400m Dash

Gabriel Byrd       Silver       800m Run
Ronald Arso, Jr   Silver       Long Jump

Natalie Rome      Bronze    100m Dash
Marisol Torres    Bronze    1500m Run

Tianna Williams Bronze    200m Dash
                            Bronze    400m Dash
Tyree Arso          Bronze    200m Dash


Here are our National Qualifiers

Natalie Rome            3rd     100m Dash
                                  4th      200m Dash
                                  5th      400m Dash
Alivia Benetrix         4th      High Jump
Marisol Torres          4th      800m Run
                                  3rd     1500m Run
Sydni Harrell            6th      400m Dash
                                  5th     Long Jump
Tianna Williams       3rd     200m Dash
                                  3rd     400m Dash
Asia Pasley               6th     100m Hurdles

Malachi Benetrix      5th     800m Run
Tyree Arso                3rd    200m Dash
                                  5th     400m Dash
                                  4th     Long Jump
Robert Vaughn         4th     Turbo Javelin
Ronald Arso, Jr        2nd     Long Jump
Gabriel Byrd            4th      200m Dash
                                 1st      400m Dash
                                 2nd     800m Run
Bernard Robertson   6th      400m Dash
                                 4th      800m Run
Isaiah Benetrix         6th      200m Dash
                                 5th      200m Hurdles

Meet 2 Announcements

Just a couple of announcements regarding the second meet and practices. 

This Saturday, May 23rd, we will be attending the KY Betty Smothers Invite at Port Allen High School (3553 Rosedale Rd, Port Allen, LA 70767). Events will begin at 9:00am. Please arrive BEFORE 8:00am. Last week they changed the schedule on us and pushed everything up. Some of our athletes missed their events. I do not want that to happen again so please arrive early.

The deadline to register for this weekend's meet is Thursday. Competing in these early meets gives us an idea of what we need to improve on before the big meets. If you have not done so already, please get your fees in so we can get in this valuable meet experience. If you are not attending the meet this weekend, please let me know before Thursday.

Practice begins at 6pm. If you arrive late to practice, remind your athlete that they need to HUSTLE. 

Also, please stay on your kids about being hydrated. It is going to get really hot this summer. Let's start healthy habits early. Please do not send your athlete to practice without water. I recommend purchasing a reusable sports bottle and freezing water every day to bring to practice.

That's all for this morning. Have a good day everyone.

Meet 1 Results

Hello Metro Stars Family,

We had a good showing at our first meet of the season. We had a total of 14 athletes competing with 8 Medalists.

   Golds                            Age Group                    Event                                                               Mark   

   Robert Vaughn, Jr         Sub-Bantam                  Turbo Javelin                                              36 ft. 11 in.

   Ronald Arso, Jr             Bantam                        Long Jump                                                  12 ft. 9 in.

   

   Silver                            Age Group                     Event                                                              Mark   

   Xavier Maple                 Sub-Midget                   800m Run                                                   2:47.88

   Bronze                          Age Group                     Event                                                              Mark   

   Conner Winston             Bantam                        Long Jump                                                  12 ft. 1 in.

   Ronald Arso, Jr             Bantam                        100m Dash                                                  14.45 sec

   Gabriel Byrd                  Sub-Midget                  400m Dash                                                  1:08.02

   Alivia Benetrix               Sub-Midget                   High Jump                                                   3 ft. 8 in.

   Tianna Williams             Sub-Youth                    400m Dash                                                  1:08.80

Special shoutout to all of our athletes that ran Personal Bests. What a way to start out the season!

A Few Quick Announcements

Good Morning Metro Stars Family,

A few quick announcements:

1. The second installment of fees are due this week. Club dues are $230 this year and our new uniforms will cost $60 for athletes 12 and under or $70 for athletes 13 and up. You may pay in person by cash or check, or you can pay online by credit card at http://www.nometrostars.org/pay-dues.html

Let's get these fees in so we can get everybody registered.

2. We have finalized the schedule. Our first meet will be next Saturday, May 16th at LSU. Please let us know if you will be participating. You can find the schedule at http://www.nometrostars.org/about-us.html
Let us know which meets you will be able to participate in. 

3. We've ordered the first set of new uniforms. They should be in by the third meet. We have only ordered for the people who have paid already. Please get your fees in.

4. This Saturday we will be holding time trials at the City Park practice track to see where our athletes are. We would like it if everyone could attend; but if you cannot make it, let us know, we'll understand. Time trials will begin at 9:30am.

Have a great day everyone.

Regular Season Practices to Start

We will begin holding regular season practices on Monday-Thursday at 6pm starting Monday, April 13th. Please be on time. See you there!

Two Announcements

Hey Metro Stars Family

We have two quick announcements.

First, for your convenience, practice times have been pushed back to 5:45pm. We will still be meeting a City Park on Tuesdays and at the Bridge on Thursdays.

Second, we will hold practice over spring break. Please contact Coach Derek for more info.

Reminder to parents: make sure your athlete has water. Not hydrating is a very dangerous habit to form. We will send your athlete home if they come without water.

We're Gonna Miss You Kaya

Sadly, I've been informed that one of our teammates will not be returning this season. The Williams' Family will be moving on to greener pastures, literally, in Nebraska.

Goodbye and good luck, Kaya and Ayanna. The Metro Stars will miss you!!

It Has Begun!

Spring is here everyone! That means it is time to lace up those running shoes and get to the track.

Metro Stars will be holding practices on Tuesday and Thursday evenings from 5:30 to 6:30 at the City Park Practice Track. Athletes ages 6-18 are welcome to join us as we prepare for the summer season.

Be sure to bring a bottle of water and wear proper workout attire and running shoes. No spikes. No school uniforms.

If you have any questions of concerns feel free to contact Vice-President Melissa Brown at (504) 915-4524 or Head Coach Derek Mills at (504) 906-7284.

Hope to see you there!