Last Saturday, ILS senior Sebastian Giugovaz qualified for the Class 2A state track meet in the 400-meter dash thanks to his record-breaking time.

Giugovaz, who surpassed the sub-50 barrier and broke his own school record at the 2A District 16 meet, topped that mark once again at the 2A Region 4 meet at Calvary Christian in Ft. Lauderdale. The senior finished in second place with a time of 49.26, lowering his former school record time of 49.88. He has also achieved the rank of National Silver Elite for this event. Giugovaz also went under the 49-second mark in the first leg of the 4-by-400 relay.

“To break the 50-second 400m mark as a high school is an enormous achievement, especially for an athlete that in his sophomore year was not even close to setting that mark,” head coach Eddie Cerdeiras said.

He’ll look to top his personal best time for the fourth consecutive meet at the 2A state meet on Saturday at the University of North Florida in Jacksonville, FL.

“I couldn’t get my mind off of the race all day, and when it came time it just felt like second nature. I’m continuing to my head down and work hard, as well as following my coaches’ instructions so I can bring home a state title,” Giugovaz said.

Also at the meet, senior Gabriel Xirinach recorded a personal best time of 45.19 in the 300 hurdles. Freshman Emilie Reyes competed in four events, finishing sixth in the long jump with a personal record of 5.06m. Reyes set her personal record for the 100 meter with a time of 13.11. She also ran the first leg of the 4×400, topping the one-minute barrier, leading the team of junior Hanah Gonzalez, freshmen Mariam Osman and freshman Colette Finley to a time just three seconds off the school record.

Reyes also ran the girls 4-by-100, along with Gonzalez, sophomore Carley Costaregni and freshman Eugenia Paris. The relay team finished seventh.

The girls 4-by-800 team, ran by senior Victoria Morera, senior Isabella Juara, sophomore Alessia Quiros and Osman, broke the school record by 11 seconds with a time of 10:36. Juara ran a PR of 2:35, followed by Osman with a PR of 2:39, Quiros and Morera closing the race with a PR time of 2:33. The relay team has drastically improved its time throughout the season, having run an 11:13.81 at the Belen meet in March.

Sophomore Alfonsina Santucho finished eighth in the javelin.

“They had a great season,” ILS Athletic Director Nick Fernandez said. “[We] are looking forward to see what Sebastian can do at the State Meet and to next year as this is a young developing team!”