Photo by Skip Lawrence Nick Huang of Urbana motors to victory in the the 800-meter run — one of two Frederick County titles for the senior — at Linganore High School on Thursday. Purchase this photo

It was the start of a four-week postseason grind and Lillard wanted to make sure his top distance runner was going to have enough gas left in the tank when the journey reached its conclusion at the state meet.

But Huang's interpretation of taking it easy was clearly different than Lillard's, as he posted his best time ever in the 800-meter run, a blistering 1 minute, 55.57 second burst that was more than a second faster than his previous best.

This was in addition to setting a Chesapeake record in the 1,600 with a time of 4:24.05.

"When I talked to him after the meet, he told me, 'I tried to go slow,'" Lillard said. "When you are dealing with a runner of Nick's caliber, they don't know when not to race. That's what makes a runner like him so great. They don't know when to put the breaks on."

So at Thursday's Frederick County Championship meet at Linganore High School, Lillard again told Huang to take it easy and he responded with a slightly more dialed-back effort, taking the 800 in 1:56.24 and his preferred race, the 1,600, in 4:23.08.

"It was a big surprise when I ran that 800 time at the Chesapeake meet," Huang said. "I didn't realize I could run that fast."

Huang was just one of the multiple winners at the county meet.

Thomas Johnson ran away with the boys championship, rolling up 141 points that created a gulf between the Patriots and the rest of the field.

Linganore was second with 86 points and Walkersville, again without the services of star jumper Jon Hill, placed third with 70.

Hill has a slight meniscus tear in his right knee, an injury he suffered while long jumping at the Talley Zimmerman on April 25. Not wanting to jeopardize his college career at the University of Texas, Hill might sit out the rest of the high school season.

In the girls meet, Middletown dethroned TJ with a

131-point effort that indicates the Knights are prepared to win their third straight Class 2A state title in two weeks.

The Patriots placed second with 100 points, Urbana finished third with 96 and Linganore was fourth with 94.

"TJ has been kicking our butts for the last six years. So it feels great to finally beat them. They have an amazing team," said Middletown distance star Brittney Caudle, who won the 3,200 (11:29.73), the 800 (2:23.76), ran a winning leg in the 3,200 relay and placed second in the 1,600 with a personal-best time of 5:07.96.

The girls 1,600 was won by TJ's Stephanie Bryan, who also set a personal record with her winning time of 5:07.95.

The Patriots also got a big effort from hurdler Marquis Woodyard, as he posted a pair of personal-best times. He won the 110 hurdles in 14.30 seconds and the 300 hurdles in 37.63.

"Normally I don't go all out for the 300 hurdles," Woodyard said. "But I got a great push and really kicked it in on that one. It's the county meet, which means bragging rights and all of that."

Huang also feels he is rounding into top form in both of his races as the state meet approaches.

Last year, he attended a prom on the night prior to the state meet and suffered the consequences by running a disastrous 1,600 by his standards. He collapsed over the finish line and placed fourth in the 3A race in 4:27.99.

He couldn't even run the 800, which he had qualified to run.

This year, Huang has promised Lillard he will not attend any proms that conflict with his track schedule.

"This time, I'd rather place at states and get a medal than dance with a girl," he said.

The other county champions were: Tuscarora's Victoria Kennedy, who claimed her fourth straight victory in the 100 dash, the Titans' Dominic Clarke (200 and 400); Linganore's Chowan Brightful (100 hurdles, high jump) and Emma Mayne (discus); Walkersville's Jose Depadua (100); Urbana's Charma Harris (200), Sarah Lueck (pole vault), and Jimmy Miller (3,200); Middletown's Sarah Wrieden (long jump, triple jump) and Corey Blain (high jump); Frederick's Morgan Carroll (400 dash); Catoctin's Nick Nowaczyk (long jump); Brunswick's Grant Smith (shot put); and TJ's Kevin Johnson (triple jump), Nick Forbes (discus), Erick Artusio (pole vault) and Emily Vannoy (shot put).

In addition, the following relay teams won county titles: Middletown girls 3,200 (Katie Bussard, Jessica Elliott, Gretchen Whitesel and Caudle); the Walkersville boys 3,200 (Colin Hartman, Josh Miller, Ryan Hub and Stephen Keith); the Middletown girls 800 (Bussard, Tara Shaffer, Alycia Giauque and Jenna Caudle); the Walkersville 800 (Brandon Brownfield, Zach Bolton, Jordan McNeil and Depadua); the Frederick girls 400 (Alisha James, Morgan Carroll, Paige Gallaway and Elise Cooper); the Linganore boys 400 (Kevin Myers, Pat Balderson, Matt Thomas and Dwayne Randall); the Urbana girls 1,600 (Taylor Selby, Caroline Browning, Sarah Lueck and Charma Harris); and the Tuscarora boys 1,600 (Kevin Johnson, Jamiel Majett, Fabian Gonzalez and Clarke).

Full results will appear in Saturday's edition of The Frederick News-Post.