Indoor Track and Field 2019

February 2

DIAA State Meet

Padua and Dover are State Meet Champs!

State Meet Preview and Season Highlights

Girls:

Beginning with the sprints, Smyrna’s Lauren Summers has the top spot in the 55m event, clocking 7.25 and earning a 2nd place finish at Ocean Breeze last weekend. The St. Georges trio of Charlee Crawford (25.32), Taylor Small (25.82), and Anaejea Farrell (26.12) top the 200m list with impressive performances at the same meet at Ocean Breeze. Summers also has clocked a 26.12 in that event. Crawford also owns the top spot on the 400m list this season after another outstanding performance at Ocean Breeze, running 57.05, #7 All Time! Tatnall’s Kimmi Woods (59.74), and Delcastle’s Jalissa Emmens (59.78), are a close 2nd and 3rd. Jia Anderson, of Padua, is at the top of the list in the 55m Hurdle event, hurdling 8.45 to a 3rd place finish at the Bishop Laughlin Games earlier this season.

In the field, Destiny Bailey-Perkins (Henlopen Conference Champion in 4 events – 55m, 200m, LJ, TJ), has dominated the horizontal field events throughout the season, narrowly missing her own state record in the Long Jump, so look for that to fall this weekend. Bailey-Perkins also moved up to #5 All Time in the Triple Jump (37-7.5). Erin Kelleher, from Padua has vaulted 12-0 in the Pole Vault this season, #2 All Time! Her teammate, Chioma Njoku is leading the field in the Shot Put. In the High Jump, Abigail Kates, from Archmere has the season best of 5’4” - #10 All Time. She looks to defend her 2018 title.

In the distance events, the absence of Elizabeth Bader, the Cross Country season MVP from Padua, has given way to what appears to be, 3 very competitive races. Jallisa Emmens of Delcastle tops the 800 performance list at 2:19.91, with Ursuline’s Alaina McGonigle and St. Georges Charlee Crawford at 2:22. For the 1600m, Keelin Hays of Tatnall leads with a 5:07.62 (converted from mile), performance at Ocean Breeze. Padua’s Anna Cleary (3rd place finisher at the Bishop Laughlin Games), and McGonigle (winner of the Collegeville HS Open), sit closely behind. St. Marks’s Tiffany Herrera, who was 3rd in the 3200m at the New Balance Games, is the leader in that event by a wider margin.

Boys:

Ja’Quai Bishop, from AI duPont, leads a tight field in the 55m. He took 2nd in the 60m at the latest Franklin & Marshall hosted meet, converting to a 6.58 55m time. Zion Glover won the New Balances with a time of 6.59. Wm. Penn’s Keshawn Dennis, 3rd place finish at Ocean Breeze, has clocked a 6.61 season best. Smyrna’s Raymond Nyameke leads all runners in the 200m, clocking 22.34, #10 All Time. His time on the small track at Snow Hill, of 22.67 is the fastest 200m run in that facility. He also posted a #5 All Time performance in the 300m at Snow Hill. Tatnalls’ Napolean Hernandez leads the 400m with a 50.25 time; worth noting is his #2 All Time performance in the 500m at the New Balance Games, placing 3rd in 1:06.29. In 2nd and 3rd are Charter’s Jack Seiffert (50.57), and Lake Forest’s Shane Massey (50.81), making a potentially very competitive 400m race at the state meet coming this weekend. In the 55m Hurdle event, Middletown’s Brahmir Vick leads all hurdlers following his 7.59 performance, #10 on the All Time List. Leon Jett, of Caesar Rodney, the Henlopen Conference Champion, is currently number 2.

In the field events, Middletown’s Elijah Wilson leads all vertical jumpers with a leap of 6-6, winning the High Jump at the Golden Bear Invitational and tying for #8 All Time. Delcastle’s Gordon Smith, placed 3rd at the Hispanic Games in the Long Jump. It looks to be a close battle between Smith and the Henlopen Conference Champion, Dane Palmer, of Cape Henlopen with just 1 and a half inches separating them in the rankings. Henlopen Conference Champion Raymond Nyamkee (Smyrna), leads the Triple Jump Field. His teammate, Braden Young, is at the top of the chart in the Shot Put, also the Henlopen Conference Champ. The Henlopen Conference commands that event leading into the state meet with a pair from Dover, Bradley Anyanwu and Jordan Mcgee, close behind Smyrna’s Young. Donell Hooker (Polytech), leads the Pole Vault field, with a performance of 12-7, to win the Eastern Shore Invitational. He faces pressure from both Giovanni Bendfeldt, the Henlopen Conference champ from Cape Henlopen and AI duPont’s Leroy Lynch, both vaulting a season best of 12-6.

Ironically, the boys Cross Country MVP, Connor Nisbet of Wm. Friends, is also missing from the indoor season. Salesianum’s Michael Keehan leads all 3 distance events (1:56.64, 4:19.73, 9:11.38), with teammate Sean Banko 2nd in the same events, while Charter’s Andrew Avila is 3rd in both the 1600m and 3200m. Keehan’s and Banko’s 3k performances at Yale this year rank them #1 and #3 on the All Time List. Tatnall’s Napolean Hernandez sits in 3rd in the 800m.

January 26-27

Ocean Breeze Invitational, Staten Island, NY

Girls' Results

Boys' Results

January 26

Franklin & Marshall Invitational #2, Lancaster,PA