Defending Boston Marathon champion Wesley Korir awards Latin Academy freshman Imani Pressley the trophy for helping her team win the "Friendship Sprint" at the Scholars & Stars Boston Marathon event at the Reggie Lewis Track & Athletic Center on Wednesday. (Stan Litchman / For the Boston Globe)

By Zolan Kanno-Youngs, Globe Correspondent

Wesley Korir is used to moving at a fast pace, whether it was when he won his first marathon in Chicago or when he won the Boston Marathon in 2012.

On Wednesday afternoon, he was forced to move at a fast pace again -- but not because he was in the middle of a race. He was racing the clock to make sure he was on time to the John Hancock Scholars & Stars Boston Marathon event at the Reggie Lewis Track and Athletic Center.

Korir was the main speaker for the 400 Boston public school track athletes at the event, but was in jeopardy of being absent as a result of a delayed flight (it was a day and a half late). His plane landed around 3:30 p.m. Wednesday, allowing for him to impart some running wisdom on the student-athletes.

“I’ve never seen somebody run looking backwards. If you [see] somebody run looking backwards, he’s not a good runner,” Korir said. “As a runner, I’ve never seen somebody run looking down. If you [see] somebody running while looking down, he’s not a good runner. For you to become a good runner, you need to focus and run for the prize ahead of you.”

The attentive students listened on as Korir told his story of how he went from a child running five miles barefoot to class in Kenya, to a senator in the same country and a marathon champion.

“Him just coming here and then trying to make it on time just to see us, that’s a really great gift from him,” said O’Bryant senior Patrick Powell, who was a member of O’Bryant’s 1600-meter sprint medley team that won first place in the event’s first ever "Friendship Sprint" medley relay.

Winning in front of the elite athletes made the entire experience worthwhile for Powell.

Korir was joined by other marathon greats Bill Rodgers, four-time winner of the Boston Marathon, and Greg Meyer, the last American to win the Boston Marathon.

“To link with Scholars and Stars, I love this idea,” Rodgers said. “It’s kind of like what running is permanently all about. It’s really about friendship and the friends you make in school and in sports.”

Meyer, who often volunteers as a high school track coach in his offseason, also took the duties of leading a stretching and core strengthening workout for all of the students at the event.

“There’s a lot of talent in these kids, not just in running but in life,” Meyer said. “You never know when something’s going to click with a kid and they’re good kids, they’re fun.”

Meyer was joined in leading the stretches with another member of the O’Bryant relay team, sophomore Brian Donna who hopes to run in the Olympics some day.

“You’re learning from the masters, they’ve been through everything you’ve been through,” Donna said. “You got to lead by example, there’s leaders and followers.”

By that mentality, the student’s couldn’t have had better athletes to listen to.

“You have the opportunity to change this country the way you want,” Korir said. “So take the opportunity, keep it in your hand and run with it and become who you want to become.”

Zolan Kanno-Youngs covers Boston Public school athletics. He can be reached at kannoyoungs.globe@gmail.com. Follow him on Twitter @KannoYoungs.

O'Bryant's Patrick Powell, right, ran the first leg of the "Friendship Sprint" medley relay race during the Scholars & Stars Boston Marathon event at the Reggie Lewis Center on Wednesday. O'Bryant won the race with a time of 3 minutes 57.1 seconds. (Stan Litchman / For the Boston Globe)

By Justin A. Rice, Globe Correspondent

Shortly before defending Boston Marathon champion Wesley Korir of Kenya took the lectern at the Reggie Lewis Track & Athletic Center on Wednesday afternoon, the O’Bryant boys and the Latin Academy girls won the first ever “Friendship Sprint” medley relay race in the third-annual Scholars & Stars Boston Marathon event.

The races also came after the last American men’s winner at Boston, Greg Meyer, and four-time Boston champ, Bill Rodgers, led the 12 Boston public school track teams through drills.

Fernando Cabada, who finished seventh at the 2012 U.S. Olympic Marathon Trials, also attended the event, which was sponsored by John Hancock Financial and the Boston Scholar Athletes program.

“It’s really great to be around people who have achieved the success that I hope to achieve when I get older, just as I continue doing the sport,” Latin Academy freshman Ashley Lewis said after helping the Dragons win the girls’ race with a time of 4 minutes 35.8 seconds.

“It’s just an honor to be here today.”

Three other freshman (Imani Pressley, Britney Firmin and Leigha Mills) also ran for Latin Academy’s winning relay on Wednesday.

“The sprint medley was really fun,” Presley said. “It was like an adrenalin rush; I don’t think I’ve ever run that fast.”

Latin Academy coach Brian Leussler said Firmin gave them an edge in the race.

“I thought the team with the strongest 800 meters was going to win this race because they have half the race, and I knew Britney, our lead leg who did the 800, was super strong at the 600 and 1000 indoor and she’s really good at the 400 and 800 outdoor,” he said. “The combination of them is just fantastic. All of them have gone to the state meet before … and they are all in ninth grade, which is amazing.

“I’m lucky to have them.”

O’Bryant (Patrick Powell, Mehki Williams, Brian Donna and Duncan Malone) won the boys’ race in 3:57.1.

“Hopefully this will be the relay for the state relays that’s coming up soon and I just wanted to see how well they run and what we need to do to polish it off,” O’Bryant coach Jose Ortega said. “Hopefully this will be a competitive team.

“I know they can run, it’s just a matter of where we need to be. We have to tweak a little, especially that 200 exchange. That’s going to happen at the state level and if we’re not ahead or separated from the rest of the pack that is where we will get in trouble.”

Powell, who ran the first leg of the relay on Wednesday, also said he was honored to be in the presence of such great marathoners.

“It means a lot because all of these people have done great in track and field and I’ve always looked up to them for all the work and perseverance they’ve done to get to that height,” he said, “and I want to get to that same height too.”

Globe Correspondent Zolan Kanno-Youngs contributed to this report.

Justin A. Rice covers Boston Public school athletics. He can be reached at jrice.globe@gmail.com. Follow him on Twitter @GlobeJustinRice or @BPSspts.

Defending Boston Marathon champion Wesley Korir of Kenya will headline this years Scholars & Stars event at the Reggie Lewis Track & Athletic Center on Wednesday. (John Tlumacki/Globe Staff)

By Justin A. Rice, Globe Correspondent

Defending Boston Marathon champion Wesley Korir of Kenya will headline a track clinic for Boston public high school track teams on Wednesday afternoon at the Reggie Lewis Track & Athletic Center in Roxbury.

Sponsored by John Hancock Financial and the Boston Scholar Athletes program, the third annual Scholars and Stars event will start at 2:30 p.m. and include a series of stretching and technical drills for the students who represent 14 Boston public schools.

This year's event will also include a "Friendship Sprint" relay race with both male and female heats.

Korir, who also won the Los Angeles marathon in 2009, won the Boston Marathon with a time of 2 hours 12 minutes 40 seconds last year.

Greg Meyer, the last American men’s winner at Boston, will also be on hand once again to work with the students.

Boston Mayor Thomas M. Menino and Suffolk Construction CEO and Chairman John Fish, who co-founded the Boston Scholar Athlete Program, are slated to speak along with John Hancock Financial Executive Vice President Jim Gallagher.

Justin A. Rice covers Boston Public school athletics. He can be reached at jrice.globe@gmail.com. Follow him on Twitter @GlobeJustinRice or @BPSspts.

By Justin A. Rice, Globe Correspondent

The only athlete from Boston public schools competing in the New England indoor track meet on Saturday, Kevin Facey, finished fifth in the 55-meter dash with a personal best time of 6.55 seconds at the Reggie Lewis Center.

Here's a link to a recent feature story on Facey.

The Burke High senior sprinter had the No. 21-seed (6.70 seconds) going into the meet and snagged the eighth and final spot in the finals by running a time of 6.64 in the prelims.

In the finals he tied with Denzel Tomaszewski of Wellesley High for fourth place but when Facey’s preliminary result was factored into the mix we was bumped back to fifth place.

The Jamaican immigrant has had a remarkable ride this post season.

He slipped out of the blocks during the finals of the 55-meter dash in the Division 4 state meet. But despite being in the back of the pack out of the blocks he still managed to finish second, one-tenth of a second out of first place with a time of 6.73.

Justin A. Rice covers Boston Public school athletics. He can be reached at jrice.globe@gmail.com. Follow him on Twitter @GlobeJustinRice or @BPSspts.

After slipping out of the blocks at the Division 4 meet last week, Burke senior Kevin Facey looks to get a good jump out of the gate at the All-State meet on Saturday morning at the Reggie Lewis Center. (Billy Owens/For the Boston Globe)

By Justin A. Rice, Globe Correspondent

All week long Kevin Facey has taken such special care to set his starting block properly during practice sessions at the Reggie Lewis Center, that the image of a starting block has even been seared into his dreams.

“I’m working on them so hard, I’m pretty much good with them,” said the Burke senior, who slipped out of the blocks during the finals of the 55-meter dash in the Division 4 state meet last Friday yet still managed to finish second.

Facey, who finished first in the preliminaries early in the day with a time of 6.65 seconds, was one-tenth of a second out of first place in the final with a time of 6.73 — which qualified him for Saturday’s All-States meet back at the Reggie Lewis Center.

The Jamaican immigrant will be the No. 13 seed in the 55-meter dash.

“It was really difficult because I didn’t know how to set the blocks,” he said. “I usually watch the Olympics and see how they set the starting blocks and just following and do the same thing but I didn’t really know how to use them because I wasn’t used to them.”

Burke doesn’t have any blocks to use during practices, which are held in the hallways of the school. Facey also spent most of the year running the 300-meter dash.

The 18-year-old said the fact that he still came in second place at the Division 4 meet despite his bad start was a huge confidence boost, especially since he was in last place out of the blocks.

“I was just like ‘it doesn’t matter if I’m last if l put my mind to,’ if I start last I know I’m not going to come in last place,” he said. “I kept my head forward, paid attention, looked right at the finish line and kept running. I could have given up and said ‘Oh that’s a bad start but I kept going.”

Now Facey hopes performances like that one earn him a name in the local track community. His dream is to run professionally so his mother doesn’t have to keep working in a nursing home.

“My mom did a lot for me and I want to show her that I can pay her back for everything she did growing up,” he said. “I want to show her I can pay her back for everything.”

Facey moved to Dorchester two years after his mother moved here so she could find a job and earn enough money to send for him.

“I was really a momma’s boy so I used to cry, my mom used to be there for me,” he said when asked how difficult it was to live apart from his mother. “I used to go everywhere with her and stuff. I used to cry when I saw kids with their mom having fun with their moms and stuff.

“When I came [here], when I saw her, I was like speechless.”

That was four years ago, during his freshman year in high school.

Before that, he ran track and played cricket in Kingston but his school also didn’t have starting blocks for the track team to practice with.

When he arrived in the United States he was interested in football, but his mother pushed him to run track.

He did well enough his first two seasons and finally qualified for states last spring. But he and his coach arrived at the meet as the race was starting and he was unable to run.

He also made strides in the classroom, improving his GPA from a 1.89 last year to a 2.58 this year with the help of the Boston Scholar Athlete program.

“He digs deep, I give him credit because even when he started his grades were not good, he was barely passing classes and this semester he made the honor roll,” said Burke's first-year track coach Bjorn Bruckshaw. “If someone shows a little care and effort in him he goes a long way.”

That’s exactly what has happened this winter. Bruckshaw is a wounded combat veteran without a background in coaching track but he wanted to give back. Despite his coaches limited experience, Facey managed to qualify for states.

And this time around he not only made it on time to the state meet, his mother also attended the meet as well.

“My mom came to watch me so I was so nervous,” he said. “I wanted to show her how I’m improving. When I came first [in the preliminary race] she was happy. That really made me smile.”

Coming out of the blocks strong on Saturday will not only put a smile on his mother’s face but it will also help Facey make his dreams come true.

“I dream about them and I practice too,” he said of the starting blocks. “Anything I want I dream about it. I dream about it and see how I did it so I can’t forget it.”

Justin A. Rice covers Boston Public school athletics. He can be reached at jrice.globe@gmail.com. Follow him on Twitter @GlobeJustinRice or @BPSspts.

By Zolan Kanno-Youngs, Globe Correspondent

Girls

O'Bryant
Juleen Lewis
Emily Prado
Melissa Jean

Latin Academy
Catherine Van Even
Britney Firmin
DiAndrea Galloway

West Roxbury
Monique McPherson

New Mission
Esther Nkwah

CASH
Victoria Jackson

4 x 200
West Roxbury

4 x 400
Latin Academy

Boys

Latin Academy
Malik Anderson
Sekou Stuppard

East Boston
Bernard Xhulima
Redouane Laalioui

O'Bryant
Patrick Powell

South Boston
Hakine Walcott
Ewoe Amedoadzi

Brighton
Darrian Robinson

Charlestown
Marquel Wade-Mosley

West Roxbury
Bernardo Cruceta

4 x 200
Brighton

4 x 400
O'Bryant
Zolan Kanno-Youngs covers Boston Public school athletics. He can be reached at kannoyoungs.globe@gmail.com. Follow him on Twitter @KannoYoungs.

By Justin A. Rice, Globe Correspondent

Now that the dust has cleared from a weekend of state track indoor meets, several athletes from Boston schools’ qualified for Saturday’s All-State indoor track meet at the Reggie Lewis Center.

Latin Academy freshman Ashley Lewis qualified for the 300-meter dash after finishing sixth in the Division 2 meet with a time of 42.52. She will be the No. 21-seed at All-States.

In the boys’ 55-meter dash Burke senior Kevin Facey is seeded 13th with a time of 6.73. After winning the preliminaries in the Division 4 meet with a time of 6.65, he finished second in the finals with his seed time for All-States.

In the boys’ 1,000-meter run, Boston Latin senior Mike Ward is the No. 14 seed with a seed time of 2:35.47. He finished ninth in the Division 1 meet.

After finishing fourth in the long jump with a leap of 17-feet and seventh in the 55-meter dash with a time of 7.56 seconds, O’Bryant freshman Juleen Lewis earned the No. 10-seed in the long jump at All-States and the No. 21-seed in the 55-meter dash.

She can't compete, however, for religious reasons. She is a Seventh-day Adventist and therefore recognizes the Sabbath on Saturdays.

Her sister, Elizabeth Lewis, is a member of West Roxbury’s 4x200-meter relay team that finished fourth in the Division 4 meet and will be the No. 21 seed at Saturday's All-State meet with a seed time of 1:50.89.

Because the elder Lewis is 18-years-old, she was free to decide to compete on her own.
West Roxbury's 4x200-meter relay team also includes Monique, Michelle and Mackala McPherson.

Justin A. Rice covers Boston Public school athletics. He can be reached at jrice.globe@gmail.com. Follow him on Twitter @GlobeJustinRice or @BPSspts.

O’Bryant freshman Juleen Lewis (above) and her older sister Elizabeth Lewis qualified for this Saturday's All-States meet but only the elder Lewis will compete. The Lewis' are Seventh-day Adventist and usually don't compete on Saturdays. But because Elizabeth is 18 she can make her own decision. (Billy Owens / For the Boston Globe)

By Justin A. Rice, Globe Correspondent

O’Bryant freshman Juleen Lewis and her older sister Elizabeth both qualified for this Saturday's All-State indoor track meet but only the elder Lewis will compete.

The Lewis', who are Seventh-day Adventists, usually don't compete on Saturday because they recognize it as the Sabbath.

But the elder Lewis, who is a member of the West Roxbury 4x200-meter relay team, said she was free to make her own decision because she is 18-years-old.

The entire West Roxbury relay team would have to bow out if she decided not to run.

"[It was hard] because I know my mom really doesn’t want me to do it," the elder Lewis said. "I know it’s the first time the team has made it to All-States as a group so I really didn’t want to let them down and my coach is really excited about it and I know she would really love for us to run.

"But it’s also my decision. I want them to experience it and it’s my senior year and I want to experience it."

She said her sister, a freshman at O'Bryant, will not compete.

"I’m sure she’s fine with it because it’s not the first time," the elder Lewis said of her sister. "I feel like it’s my last year to go. I do have outdoor but it’s the first time doing it indoor."

The younger Lewis finished fourth in the long jump at the Division 3 state meet on Thursday with a leap of 17-feet flat. She also qualified for All-States in the 55-meter-dash with a time of 7.56 seconds.

The younger Lewis is the No. 10-seed in the long jump at All-States and the No. 21-seed in the 55-meter dash.

West Roxbury's 4x200 team qualified for All-States by clocking a time of 1:50.89 to finish in third place at the Division 4 meet this weekend.

O’Braynt coach Jose Ortega said the younger Lewis was motivated to do well in the long jump at the state meet after a disappointing seventh-place finish in the 55-meter dash.

“She was a little bit nervous and she didn’t perform the way she wanted to perform,” Ortega said of the 55-meter dash. “She took it out in the long jump and she did well in the long jump. She’ still learning. She looked lost out there but she gets better and better in her drills. She gets better and her training gets better.

“She can jump an 18 footer, it’s just a matter of getting her in that mode again.”

Ortega said more meets are held on Saturday’s during the spring season.

“She’ll do great outdoors, the only problem once again is can she can’t compete on those weekend meets,” he said of Lewis. “All those weekend meets are on Saturday. She can compete at sundown but in the spring sundown is much later and all the meets are over by then.”

Justin A. Rice covers Boston Public school athletics. He can be reached at jrice.globe@gmail.com. Follow him on Twitter @GlobeJustinRice or @BPSspts.

The MIAA state track meets begin Thursday and run through Sunday at the Reggie Lewis Center. The following is the list of Boston athletes competing at the four state meets:

Division 1

Boys' 55-Meter Dash Prelims

2 146 Kevin Chen 12 Boston Latin 6.54

Boys' 300-Meter Dash

5 146 Kevin Chen 12 Boston Latin 36.23
12 147 Anthony Cheung 12 Boston Latin 36.91

Boys' 1,000 Meter Run

11 148 Mike Ward 12 Boston Latin 2:37.61

Boys' Mile Run

14 148 Mike Ward 12 Boston Latin 4:32.78

Girls' 55-Meter Dash Prelims

7 132 Kennedy Barnwell 10 Boston Latin 7.54
20 135 Andrea Hatzis 09 Boston Latin 7.81

Girls' 300-Meter Dash

10 132 Kennedy Barnwell 10 Boston Latin 42.47

Girls' 1,000-Meter Run

43 144 Ava Violich 11 Boston Latin 3:16.96

Girls' 2-Mile Run

24 137 Sarah Kiame 8 Boston Latin 12:11.68

Girls' 4 x 200-Meter Relay

16 Boston Latin 1:53.71

Girls' 4 x 800-Meter Relay

12 Boston Latin 10:18.46

Division 2

Boys' 55-Meter Dash Prelims

11 223 Ewoe Amedoadzi 12 Excel High 6.77

Boys' Long Jump

34 223 Ewoe Amedoadzi 12 Excel High 19-2.75

Girls' 300-Meter Dash

16 106 Ashley Lewis 09 Latin Academy 43.24

Girls' 600-Meter Run

21 105 Britney Firmin 09 Latin Academy 1:43.44

Girls' 4 x 400-Meter Relay

15 Latin Academy 4:18.74

Division 3 meet

Girls' 55-Meter Dash Prelims

5 Juleen Lewis 09 O'Bryant 7.54

Girls' 4 x 200-Meter Relay

21 O'Bryant-Roxbury 1:56.07
1) Raenelle Teesdale 12 2) Melissa Jean 12
3) Kalsie King 09 4) Juleen Lewis 09
5) Haqikah Greaves 11

Girls' Long Jump

7 Juleen Lewis 09 O'Bryant 16-01.50

Boys' 600-Meter Run

26 Patrick Powell 12 O'Bryant 1:29.74

Boys' 55-Meter Hurdles Prelims

16 Brian Donna 10 O'Bryant 8.53

Division 4 meet

Boys' 55-Meter Hurdles Prelims

30 740 Arrik Bell 11 Dorchester B 8.94 8.94

Boys' 55-Meter Dash Prelims

6 710 Kevin Facey 12 Burke 6.83 6.83

Boys' Shot Put

9 1085 Bernardo Cruceta 09 West Roxbury 45-10.50 45-10.50

Boys' High Jump

9 740 Arrik Bell 11 Dorchester B 5-10.00 5-10.00

Boys' Long Jump

27 711 Omotoyosi Oyedeji 12 Burke 18-09.00 18-09.00

Boys' 4 x 200-Meter Relay

24 Snowden 1:41.50h 1:41.74 Conv
1) 1020 Richard Lopez 09 2) 1019 Ryan Larapena 09
3) 1022 Shaquan Richards 10 4) 1023 Demario Taylor 10

Girls' 300-Meter Dash

7 472 Monique McPerson 10 West Roxbury 42.82h 43.06 Conv

Girls' Long Jump

8 472 Monique McPherson 10 West Roxbury 15-10.00 15-10.00

Girls' 4 x 200-Meter Relay

4 West Roxbury 1:50.90h 1:51.14 Conv
1) 472 Monique McPherson 10 2) 473 Mackala McPherson 12
3) 474 Michelle McPherson 09 4) 471 Elizabeth Lewis 12

15 Snowden 1:56.60h 1:56.84 Conv
1) 395 Maria Lewis 11 2) 397 Asma Rivera 09
3) 398 Ajia Salmon 10 4) 399 Vanessa Vilbert 12

All three of the Lewis sisters (from left to right, Maria, Elizabeth, and Juleen) will compete in state track meets this weekend. But because the sisters are Seventh-day Adventists they will likely not be able to compete in the All-State meet if they qualify because it falls on the Sabbath. (Justin A. Rice / For the Boston Globe)

By Justin A. Rice, Globe Correspondent

The three Lewis sisters go to different high schools in Boston, and run track.

And all three (Elizabeth, Maria, and Juleen) will compete in state track meets this week.

But if they qualify for the All-State meet on Feb. 23, the Lewis sisters probably will not be able to compete because the meet falls on a Saturday.

“We’re Seventh-day Adventists,” said Elizabeth, a senior at West Roxbury High. “Saturday, we have to recognize the Sabbath.”

Juleen, a freshman at O’Bryant, will be the No. 5 seed in the 55-meter dash, with a seed time of 7.54 seconds in the Division 3 state meet on Thursday at the Reggie Lewis Center. She is also the No. 7 seed in the long jump with a leap of 16-1.5, and she will run on O’Bryant’s 4 x 200-meter relay team, which is seeded No. 21 with a time of 1:56.07.

Elizabeth and Maria, a junior at Snowden, will compete in the 4 x 200-meter relay in the Division 4 meet on Friday. West Roxbury is seeded fourth with a time of 1:51.14, while Snowden is the No. 15 seed with a time of 1:56.84.

Maria is also the No. 11 seed in the long jump with a mark of 15-6 and the No. 46 seed in the 300-meter dash with a time of 46.04.

If the sisters qualify for the All-State meet in any or all of those events, there is a slim chance they might be able to compete if the meet begins after the Sabbath ends after sundown.

“There’s always a way we can run if it’s after 5,” Elizabeth said. “It depends.”

The sisters have missed out on plenty of other big meets that have fallen on Saturdays, including previous years' state meets.

“I’ve gone through this plenty of years,” said Maria, who qualified for the All-State meet last spring in the 200- and 400-meter dashes, but couldn’t compete because it was on a Saturday. “I can kind of cope with it. It’s not that bad because there are other races to go on to race the same people that are at All-States.

“It’s kind of upsetting, but then again it’s not really because there are always other times. You can’t really do anything about it so you just have to move on.”

On a typical Saturday, the sisters wake up at around 7:30 or 8 a.m. and get ready for services at the Waymark Seventh-day Adventists Church in Dorchester, which start at 9 a.m. When the services finish around 1:30 p.m., they usually go home for lunch or have lunch at a friend's home before returning to church at around 5 p.m.

“It’s kind of social, we don’t see [our church friends] all week,” Elizabeth said. “These are people we don’t see all week. We only see them on Saturday so it’s social, but we have to keep the aspect of God.”

Elizabeth said while they are not allowed to make any purchases on Saturday, unlike
Orthodox Jews, they drive and use electricity on the Sabbath.

“We warm up food and use the microwave,” she said. “We don’t take it to the extreme. We just make sure we focus on God. It’s God’s day.”

Maria said the biggest misconception they have to deal with is people who think their church is a cult.

“My favorite part [of the Sabbath] is hanging out with my friends, worshiping, singing, I love the singing part,” she said, “and just relaxing and having a day to just rest and not worry about anything else.”

But before they can relax on Saturday, they have to get through the state meets this Thursday and Friday.

“I think I’ll be more nervous, I’ll be extremely nervous for states,” Elizabeth said, after anchoring West Roxbury’s 4 x 200-meter relay team to victory at the Boston City League indoor championships Feb. 5 with a time of 1:51.15.

Maria, who won a silver medal in the 55-meter hurdles at the city meet, also helped Snowden’s 4 x 200 relay team finish third. Juleen was on O’Bryant’s fourth-place team in the 4 x 200 at the city meet.

“It went by age, so we thought it was really funny,” Maria said about the order their teams finished in the 4 x 200.

Even though Juleen’s team finished last in the 4 x 200, she took home the most hardware at the city meet, winning the 55-meter dash and the long jump.

Juleen’s older sisters recognize that she is fastest of the trio, and Elizabeth and Maria tried to persuade their sister to join their track teams.

“I love O’Bryant because that’s the school that’s challenging and I like it,” Juleen said. “I don’t like things too easy for me.”

The sisters look forward to running together at a church retreat in Connecticut this summer.

“I couldn’t go last year but I know this year I will definitely be there and we're going to have our relay team.” Elizabeth said.

“Yeah, we're going to win that trophy,” Maria added.

But as competitive as the sisters are, they are content with missing the opportunity to run at the All-State meet.

“Because I’ve made it to states before where it was on a Saturday and I wasn’t able to run,” Elizabeth said. “It is a little disappointing that you can’t get to run but I know what I have to do and what I’m supposed to do for my religion. And it’s fine. I’m not going to be disappointed for long, there’s always another time. I mean, all of us can run.”

Justin A. Rice covers Boston Public school athletics. He can be reached at jrice.globe@gmail.com. Follow him on Twitter @GlobeJustinRice or @BPSspts.