PTXC Weekend Wrap (Week 1)

Dan Beck

Uche Nwogwugwu (North Penn) / Photo by Patty Morgan

Pennsylvania Track Classic Recap

The 33rd installment of the PA Track Classic at Plymouth Whitemarsh brought out some strong season-opening performances as the gauntlet was thrown down in a few events. The calendar may still read March, but a few performances looked more like late-season form.

GIRLS' RECAP

Penn Wood's Terri Turner started things off in a big way in the 800 meters. The indoor state champ picked up right where she left off, blasting a PA#1 2:11.52 to break a 30-year-old meet record. The time proved Turner is well ahead of schedule from last year when she won the event at this meet. Turner was named Girls' Track Athlete of the Meet. She got a strong challenge from Cardinal O'Hara's Christine Mancini. The two pushed each other, but Turner was stronger in the closing 200 meters. Mancini still wound up second with a very quick 2:12.82.

Turner also added a strong anchor leg to Penn Wood's winning 4x400 relay, which ran a 3:50.79 to hold off strong North Penn and Neumann Goretti squads.

Watch an interview with Turner below:

North Penn displayed its depth, dominating all around the track. The Maidens started the day off with a US#4 12:18.57 in the DMR. North Penn also added wins in the 4x800 (9:41.43) and the 4x100 (48.30) to go along with that second place finish in the 4x4.

North Penn's Uche Nwogwugwu got off to a great start in her main event, the 400 meters. Nwogwugwu held off a hard-charging Mykala Perry of Neumann Goretti for the win. Nwogwugwu, the indoor state champ in the event, ran 55.93 for the win, while Perry, just a freshman, ran 56.49 for second. Nwogwugwu also added a win in the triple jump, jumping 36-9.5. North Penn also got a win in the 100 meters from Sophia Broadhurst, who edged out Penn Wood's Tatiyana Laylor for the win, 12.60 to 12.61. North Penn's Natalie Kwortnik added a win in the 200 meters as well, running 25.75 and Olivia Dyer took the 3200 meters in 11:57.

The 1600 meters was one of the day's premiere events, featuring Abington's Kelly Jawork and late entry Katie Dammer of Abington Heights. Dammer was able to hold off Jawork, but both clocked very fast early season times. Dammer came in at 4:57.63 and Jawork ran 4:58.93.

Watch the heat two of the girls' 1600 meters below:

Neumann Goretti's Janese Lynch was a double winner on the day. The senior earned Girls' Field Athlete of the Meet, winning both the shot put and discus. Lynch threw 41-1.75 in the shot and then 132-0 in the discus, just off the meet record.

Neumann Goretti's Sydni Townsend went out hard in the girls' 300 meter hurdles and was able to hold off Penn Wood's Janae Pitt. Townsend ran 44.62 to Pitt's 44.71, a couple of strong season-opening times. Pitt came back to win the 100 meter high hurdle finals later in the meet in a time of 15.51.

Watch an interview with Townsend after her hurdles race:


BOYS' RECAP

Souderton's Shamar Jenkins didn't waste much time getting some big jumps in this season. Jenkins won both the long and triple jump on Saturday. Jenkins jumped 23-0 in the long to open up his day, edging out Upper Dublin's Brian Kaufmann for the win. Kaufmann jumped 22-9.5. In the triple jump, Jenkins went 46-11 for the win. He now owns state leaders in both horizontal jumps. Penn Charter's Akeem Blake took second in the triple with a leap of 46-1.5

Another Souderton athlete, Stephen Scott, picked up a pair of wins on the day. Scott captured the win in the 300 meter hurdles, blowing away the field and running a time of 39.42. He then came back in the finals of the 110 meter hurdles and claimed the win there in a big PR of 14.73.

Watch an interview with Scott below:

Abington won both the 4x800 and 4x400 meter relays in a busy day. The Ghosts clocked a PA#2 8:01.25 to win the 4x8. Then they closed out the meet, running 3:24.60 to win the 4x400 meter relay. Earlier in the day, Aaron Sooknanan ran 50.01 to win the open 400 meters.

Hershey won the DMR in a time of 11:09.72. Andrew Sullivan gave the team a strong anchor leg to pull them from fourth to first. Sullivan then came back to win the 1600 meters in 4:35.48.

Dock Mennonite's Austin Kratz repeated his performance at the PA Track Classic from last season on Saturday. The junior won both the 100 and 200 meters during a very busy day. Kratz clocked a 10.99 in the finals of the 100 meters. He then ran a 22.18 to win the 200 meters. What's more impressive is the fact that the 200 meter win came after he ran the open 400 meters (he took ninth overall). He closed out his day with a leg on Dock's 4x4.

We spoke with Kratz after the meet:

Southern Lehigh's Andrew Rochon also picked up a pair of win. Rochon threw 52-6 to win the shot put and then added a 148-8 to win the discus. Neshaminy's Hunter Barnett threw 175-0 to win the javelin.

Penn Wood's Dennis Manyeah claimed two wins on the day in a few very different events. Manyeah jumped 6-4 to win the high jump in a close competition with Jenkins and Lower Merion's James Burton (who both also cleared 6-4). Then the senior won the 800 meters 1:58.73---a strong start in both events for Manyeah, who is a state medal threat in both.

Second in that 800 meters was Springfield-Delco's Liam Galligan. Saturday was Galligan's first race since the Briarwood Invitational in the XC season. The senior was battling a stress fracture that kept him out of the second half of the XC season and all of indoors. He ran 1:59.77 to take second to Manyeah.

Watch an interview with Manyeah after the meet: