Long Reach added another notch to its increasingly rich outdoor track legacy when the Lightning won its fifth consecutive title at the Howard County Track Championships, held May 8 and 9 at Oakland Mills.

The Lightning's ongoing grip on the county was led by co-Iron Woman winner DaMara Parrish, who shared the honor with Mt. Hebron's Jeanette Curtis and Wilde Lake's Alana Black.

Long Reach dominated the meet, earning 143 points, well ahead of Glenelg (89), Atholton (80) and Hammond (77).

Results can be found in High School Wrapup.

On a team with several talented sprinters, Parrish took charge, winning the 200 dash (25.20) and the long jump (15-7 3/4), and anchoring the 400 (49.60) and 800 (1:45.30) relay teams.

"I'm shocked and happy. ... It's a big surprise," Parrish said of her Iron Woman award. She bruised her hip the first day of the meet, she said, and did not expect to win.

Angie Watkins, who won the 400 run, and Timisha Gomez, who won the triple jump, supplemented Parrish's performance for Long Reach. The Lightning also won two relays.

"We've been on top for a long time," Parrish said. "It's a whole lot of hard work that has paid off."

Mt. Hebron's Jeanette Curtis claimed a share of the Iron Woman title by winning the 100 hurdles and 300 hurdles. She said that she has improved dramatically over the last few months.

"I did a lot of growing last year," she said. "I needed to grow up. It was both physical and mental. A lot was mental. I lost a lot of confidence last year."

Black, the other Iron Woman recipient, held off a furious challenge from Glenelg's Carrie Selmer to win the 800 and 1,600 runs.

"I was really happy because I shaved 10 seconds off of my 1,600 times," said Black, who posted a 5:05.20 in winning the event.

Black said she enjoyed running against Selmer. "It's great to have someone like that who will push you. She makes you want to go faster."

Selmer edged Black in the 3,200 run and was Glenelg's only individual winner.

Atholton junior Lindsay Grigoriev tied Laurie Governor's 1984 county record while breaking the meet mark for the shot put with a throw of 40-3. She also broke Bryna Jones' 1983 meet record in the discus with a 137-9 mark, though the effort was far short of the 151-foot toss she had at the Penn Relays.

Hammond's Shade Smith won the 100 dash in 12.4 seconds.

E-mail Matt Palmer at mpalmer@patuxent.com.