Good Counsel Gets Some Kick From Brown, but DeMatha Wins Fourth in a Row

Chris Brown had been running the 400-meter dash all season long, but felt that he had yet to put an entire race together. Sometimes he followed a great start with a feeble finish. Other times he overworked himself on the backstretch when he should have been relaxing.

He found the right combination at the Washington Catholic Athletic Conference championships yesterday in Olney. The Good Counsel senior won the 400 in a personal-best time and scored in three other races -- the 200, 4x100 relay and 4x400 relay -- at the final meet of his high school career.

"This is the way to go out for me," Brown said. "It's my first year running the 400, so it's been a learning process the entire way."

The boys from DeMatha won the team title with 158 points, their fourth straight and eighth in 11 years. Good Counsel was second with 142 points, followed by Gonzaga (118).

Elizabeth Seton captured its second straight girls' championship, 183-162 over Bishop McNamara, thanks to a sweep of the sprint relays and a 1-2-3 finish in the 200 meters. Good Counsel was third with 74.5 points.

Brown had two cracks at solving his problems in the 400 and delivered both times. He used a dominating start in the 400 to propel himself to victory in 49.45 seconds. Later, just 10 minutes after helping Good Counsel win in the 4x100 relay, he powered down the home stretch and held off a runner from DeMatha to preserve a victory in the 4x400 relay. Brown, Courtland Harris, Hassan Dixon and Jemel Sessems won in 3 minutes 22.41 seconds.

Brown also placed third in the 200.

A four-year varsity track athlete, Brown had also wrestled and played soccer at Good Counsel since he was a freshman. But he decided at the beginning of this school year to give up the rest and focus on running, the sport that seemed to hold the most promise for him in college.

Despite receiving interest from several small colleges, Brown turned them all down with the hope of running for Maryland, where he will attend next fall. The school has not offered him a scholarship, but, given the strong résumé he has built at Good Counsel, he believes he can make the team as a walk-on.

"I'm not even asking for money. Just a commitment from the team," he said. "That would be my dream."

WCAC Championships Good Knight: Bishop O'Connell junior Megan Fitzpatrick, an All-Met selection for cross-country, won the 1,600 in a meet-record 5:06. MV3: Gonzaga's Bill Ledder was named the meet's most valuable male performer after earning wins in the 1,600 (4:23.77), 800 (1:58.41) and 4x800 relay (8:21.36). WCAC Championships Good Knight: Bishop O'Connell junior Megan Fitzpatrick, an All-Met selection for cross-country, won the 1,600 in a meet-record 5:06. MV3: Gonzaga's Bill Ledder was named the meet's most valuable male performer after earning wins in the 1,600 (4:23.77), 800 (1:58.41) and 4x800 relay (8:21.36).