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GREENSBORO -- Whatever problems the track and field athletes had Friday at the Nike Outdoor Nationals, warming up certainly shouldn't have been one of them.

The nation's best high schoolers took center stage at N.C. A&T's Irwin Belk Track on a toasty day that sat in the 90-degree range.

There were enough umbrellas in the crowd to make one think it was pouring rain, but they were merely used to try and escape the rays.

But the heat certainly wasn't going to stop the talent on the track. Girls sprint star Chalonda Goodman from Georgia got things going in her 100-meter qualifying heat with a blistering 11.30 time that broke the meet record of 11.39.

She then ran a 11.38 into the wind in capturing the finals. The victory marked her third straight 100-meter Nike Outdoor Nationals win, and she'll go for her third straight 200-meter win in the competition today.

"It just felt amazing and uplifting getting that record, and it just pumped me up more for the finals," she said.

Goodman certainly had some competition with Florida's Octavious Freeman and others, but that merely got her juices flowing. And it was a happy sprinter who crossed the finish line having vanquished those threats.

"Three-time champion, has anyone ever done that?" she said.

Coming from University Place, Wash., Andrea Geubelle certainly had one of the longest treks to Greensboro to participate in the national showcase. And she was entering the competition on a less than ideal note.

"The practice before coming here two days ago, my triple jump was totally off," she said. "I was collapsing on every jump that I took. I wasn't really confident coming in."

But she shook that off by putting up a 42-foot, 10.25-inch mark to take home the title in the girls division. She will also take part in the long jump today.

There doesn't appear to be anything right now that can cool off the Track Eastern Carolina team, composed of runners from New Bern High School. They came in as one of the best relay teams in the country -- including a national-record 3:19.58 in the 1600-meter sprint medley earlier this year.

Running on the same track as last month's 4-A state championships (where the New Bern boys claimed their fourth straight team title), they took home the 800-meter relay early in the day and then came back to take the 1,600-meter sprint medley in the afternoon with a time of 3:24.54.

"We wanted to break the record, but I'm happy with just winning," said senior Andrew Hendrix, who ran the medley with his twin brother, Anthony.

The Hendrix brothers will be back in the 1,600-meter relay and the 800-meter medley today as they try to claim an unthinkable four titles from the meet.

One local connection on Friday was the "Fastest Kid in Guilford County" competition. The winners for the boys were Davidson Arrington (middle school) and Bill Flumo (elementary school). Winners for the girls were Paisley Simmons (middle school) and Kendi Haris (elementary school).

Contact Jesse Baumgartner at 373-7091 or jesse.baumgartner@news-record.com