Former Lodge School athlete Anderson Devonish is having a stellar season with Illinois State University in the United States.
Devonish was in impressive form last Sunday, earning All-Valley honours at the Missouri Valley Conference (MVC) Championships, hosted by the Indiana State University at the Gibson Track & Field Complex.
The fleet-footed Devonish won the 200 metres title in a new personal best time of 20.55 seconds, which is not only a record for his university but also a facility and MVC meet record.
His new record erases Kenye Pendleton’s previous mark of 20.58 that had stood since 1998.
Devonish, who graduated from his university last Saturday after majoring in English, also finished second in the 100-metre dash with another personal best, albeit a wind-aided (2.1) time of 10.37 seconds. This time ranks fifth on Illinois State’s top 10 list.
He was also an integral part of the “Redbirds” second-place 4×100-metre relay team (40.04) and the MVC title-winning 4×400-metre relay team, where he ran the anchor leg.
Devonish, Ben Montgomery, Brandon Gage and Avery Lyons clocked a season-best 3:08.16 minutes to claim the Valley crown. The quartet’s time sits third on Illinois State’s top 10 list.
Last weekend’s performance was a continuation of a solid season for the 24-year-old Devonish since January 20 when he was second in the 400 metres at the Notre Dame Invitational in 47.44 seconds.
He followed up with a 21.52-second clocking for fourth place in the 200 at the Meyo Invitational and gold medal run of 46.50 seconds in the 400 at the Iowa State Classic during the first two weekends in February.
Devonish was a double winner at the February 24-25 MVC Indoor Championships in the 200 (21.34) and 400 (47.50) and also triumphed in the 200 at the Vanderbilt Black and Gold Meet, March 23 and 24.
He maintained his fantastic form by capturing the 400 at the April 5 to 7 39th Sun Angel Classic, with a season’s best 46.38 seconds while he also won the 200 in 21.04 seconds at the Illinois State Redbird Invitational on April 14.
Devonish, who was a member of Lodge’s Penn Relays bronze medal 4×400-metre quartet also had another sub-47 clocking in the 400 when he logged 46.87 seconds while finishing third at the Virginia Challenge, April 20 and 21.
Prior to last weekend’s performance, he recorded a wind-aided 10.46 (w2.6) in winning the 100 at the Lenny Lyles-Clark Wood Invitational. (EZS)
