Straight runs to win

Casey Little Athletics Centre's Mikayla Cipriani fires down the straight at Sandown racecourse. Picture: LITTLE ATHLETICS VICTORIA

USUALLY young children are told not to run on the road but at Saturday’s Little Athletics Victoria Road Relay championships it was not just allowed but encouraged.
There were no cars burning rubber on the famous Sandown racecourse as the V8 Supercars were swapped for the rubber soles of a sea of little athletes fanging down the main straight.
Casey’s under-14 girls side stormed to the front and held their lead down the Sandown main straight as Tenielle Morrell, Rebecca Henderson and Matisse Lazzarri knocked over a 37.27 minute run in the three-by-three-kilometre race.
The power-packed line-up of Bailley Morrell, Ethan Harris and Elijah Roewer were just pipped into second as Casey under-11 boys fell 18 seconds short of the gold claimed by Sandringham.
Cranbourne’s under-7 girls – Georgia Courtis, Amelia Crossley and Taya McDonald – ran away with an emphatic win as well.
Another Cranbourne LAC trio – Jackson Crossley, Aaron Moran and Rhys Hadfield – finished second in the under-13 boys race, only finishing eight seconds behind Nunawading and the under-14 boys – Nai Abderahmin, Lochlan Jouvelet and Tristan Abbott – were also knocked off by Nunawading.