LANDOVER – Cambridge-South Dorchester High School boys earned the Maryland Public Secondary Schools Athletic Association Region 1A East Track and Field Championship on Friday, finishing with 91 points. They led from the beginning of Friday's meet in Landover, facing 14 other teams from the Eastern and western shores.

The Vikings’ coaches knew Largo (84 points) would be the team’s main rivals, and the Lions were in pursuit throughout the meet, but it still came down to the last race, the 4x400-meter relay.

In the winter, indoor track and field season, there are 13 events, mostly on the track, plus high jump, pole vault and shot put. Points are earned in each event down to 8th place, like so: 10, 8, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2 and 1.

With the field events done, and only the 4x400 left, things still hung in the balance – C-SD was in first place, ahead of Largo, but only by 7 points. That meant that the Lions, who were seeded #1 in the region in the 4x400, would score 10 points with a win. If the Vikings ran poorly, made a mistake or were disqualified, they could have lost the race and the championship.

Brothers Teshar and Tekai Drummond, Antonio Blueford and Tori Willis Jr. responded with a season-best time of 3:34.87, to grab second place’s 8 points and secure the championship.

The win came in large part because the team’s depth. Athletes can enter up to four events in a track and field meet.

Most specialize in races, while others compete in shot put, a strength event, or in the jumps. Some, such as Jaquez Snead or William Jackson, are take part in both track and field events.

What that means for the Vikings is that while an athlete like Tori Willis Jr. can come away with first place and a regional championship in the 55-meter hurdles, others place second through eighth across all the venues, racking up points along the way.

Competing for the boys’ team were Antonio Blueford, Christian Dockins, Jaquez Snead, Kay’Ion Marine, Preston Adkins, Tekai Drummond, Teshar Drummond, Tori Willis Jr., William Jackson and Zy’Meir Wilson.

It’s been a big season for the Vikes, as on Jan. 17, the boys won the Bayside Conference Championship. In this meet, all Eastern Shore public schools compete, regardless of their size. Region 1A is the division comprised of the smallest 25 percent of the state’s public schools.

The girls, with a very small team, placed fourth out of 17, with Largo's ladies taking the championship. The Vikings’ Enazajah Young maintained her dominance in the 55-meter hurdles, taking the event championship with a personal-record time of 8.28 seconds.

Women competing for C-SD on Friday were Al’Jane Jackson, Camryn Russum, Cherish Fosque-Collins, Enazajah Young, and Journee Jenkins.

Top finishers at regionals qualify for the states. Most of C-SD’s athletes will make the trip back to the Prince George's Sports & Learning Complex in Landover on Feb. 20, when they will try to bring back a team title.

Boys’ team scores

C-SD – 91

Largo – 84

Friendly Senior – 64

Bohemia Manor – 43

Perryville – 38

Snow Hill – 35

Kent County – 29

CMIT North – 28

Mardela – 27

Chesapeake Science Point – 20

Central-PG – 9

Colonel Richardson – 8

Washington – 8

CMIT South – 6

Pocomoke – 5

Surrattsville - 2

Girls’ team scores

Largo – 91

Washington – 67.5

CMIT North – 57

C-SD – 45

Snow Hill – 42

Perryville – 39

Mardela – 37

Bohemia Manor – 23

Friendly Senior – 22

Colonel Richardson – 18

Pocomoke – 18

Kent County – 14.5

CMIT South – 12

Central-PG – 6

Crisfield – 5

Chesapeake Science Point - 1