Following the very last event on the very last day of what was the final Suburban Lakes League track and field meet ever, Eastwood's boys’ 4x400-meter relay team raced into history.

Seniors Taylor Depew and Nick Twining and juniors Zach Conkle and Kyle Schlumbohm won the 4x400 in a meet-record time of 3:26.09 last Saturday at Genoa High School, narrowly breaking the mark set by Genoa in 2004.

Eastwood coach Gary White rushed to the finish line to give all four of his boys a big hug. The relay victory culminated 11 years of hard work by the Eagles' boys’ and girls’ teams, both of which have won every SLL championship since 2001.

No team will ever win another SLL title. The league is folding at the end of the school year.

White was thrilled with the Eagles' easy team victory, but he was even more pleased that his 4x400 relay team won in record-setting time.

“All the kids know that it's my feeling you build a track team around your 400 (meter) runners,” White said. “Back when we were terrible, that's what I decided we needed to change. In the last race of the last SLL meet, to set a meet record, that was pretty fitting for our legacy. I'm glad we hold that meet record now. As soon as I knew they broke it, I ran down and embraced all four of them. It was a special moment.”

Twining was the last Eagles runner to cross the finish line in the 4x400.

“It was a huge goal,” Twining said of the record. “It's the same relay team and we wanted to get it last year. Even as a freshman I remember (White) wanting to get that record, but something would always happen where we would come up short. I'm happy to finally get it, especially since the SLL is over.”

Twining, a fifth-place finisher in the 800 at last year's Division II state meet, had plenty to celebrate at his final SLL meet. He was voted the SLL Male Performer of the Year after winning the 800 and running on the winning 4x400 and 4x800 relays. He won the 800 in a season-best time of 1:57.17 and teamed with fellow seniors Troy Wahl, Aaron Brinker and Darin Goodman to win the 4x800.

“Winning that award means a lot,” Twining said, “especially since remembering my freshman year and looking up to the guys on my team who got it themselves. I was surprised. It didn't even cross my mind until the end of the meet. My main focus the whole meet was the 4x400 relay, and I completely forgot they did that athlete of the year thing.”

Eastwood's boys and girls didn't have time to rest on their laurels following their domination of their SLL brethren. The Eagles are competing at the D-II district meet on Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday at Oak Harbor. The regional meet is next week at Lexington.

Eastwood's boys captured their second straight D-II state championship last year despite being unable to qualify a single relay team. Twining was to run in the 800 prelims on Wednesday and in Friday's finals at Oak Harbor.

“I like his chances real well,” White said. “Besides Nick, there are two really good 800 runners - one from Napoleon and one from Bryan. It will be good for him to run against those guys. Sometimes in meets, he's so far ahead that it's good for him to be pushed throughout the whole race. I'm curious to see how he's going to react to that type of competition.”

The 6-foot-2, 165-pound Twining said he plans to run more aggressively this postseason.

“I know this is my last year and this is my chance to go to state and have the whole experience again and do well,” he said. “I'm looking forward to getting pushed against better competition.”

Twining will continue to run the anchor leg on the 4x400 and 4x800 relays this week. White said there's a good reason he chose Twining to take the final baton in both events.

“What it does, it ups everybody else's level because they know they're going to get a great performance out of Nick,” White said. “They know they also need to help Nick. I think they all feel an obligation to run well for him.”

Twining has his sights set on running in Columbus one final time, and in the process he desperately wants to break Jimmy O'Brien's school record in the 800 (1:52.6). Twining ran the 800 in 1:55.03 at last year's state meet.

“My main goal is to get back again in the 800,” he said. “Hopefully with me being better and the other guys on the team stepping up, the momentum of the team can get (the relays) there. We have a pretty good shot at getting to state and placing pretty high.”

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