Christ Church Foundation are eyeing a Sol Esther Maynard Zone double. After Tuesday’s first day, they were leading both the girls and boys divisions in this zone of the PowerAde Barbados Secondary Schools Athletics Championships (BSSAC) at the National Stadium.
The BSSAC queens for the past two years, with Hannah Connell leading the charge and awesome all-round Under-17 depth while welcoming a new crop of Under-13 athletes, romped to 293.5 points to lead Springer Memorial (254) heading into today’s final day.
Foundation’s boys (226) held a 36-point lead over last year’s zone winners, Harrison College (HC) (190), who showcased their CARIFTA Games athletes in Jonathan Jones, Triston Gibbons, Rasheeme Griffith and Rio Williams.
Connell impressively won the 100 metres in 12.17 seconds and returned to win the Under-20 Girls’ 100 metres hurdles in 14.76 despite clipping a couple of hurdles along the way.
Pride of place went to CARIFTA qualifier Sarah Belle, who set a new zone and BSSAC record of 14.03 seconds as she immaculately cleared each barrier in the Under-17 Girls’ 100 hurdles.
Foundation also dominated the relays with the Under-13, Under-17 and Under-20 girls winning convincingly.
Harrison College’s boys kept pace with Foundation and trailed by two points before the relays but Foundation extended their lead by winning the Under-17 and Under-20 4×100-metre races.
Gibbons not only qualified for CARIFTA again but established a new BSSAC mark of 53.36 to win the Under-20 Boys’ discus.
St Leonard’s Jadon Pearce broke the third BSSAC record on the day in the Junior Boys’ 100 hurdles, clocking 14.23 seconds.
A whopping 24 zone records were broken on the day.
It was a stroll for HC’s Layla Haynes as she easily triumphed in the Junior Girls’ 1500 metres in 5:13.79 minutes.
Foundation’s Daesha Brathwaite (5:15.78) was a runaway winner among the Under-17 girls while Charissa Moore (5:13.11 minutes) took the Under-20 Girls’ race.
Harrison College swept the top two positions in the Under-20 Boys’ 1500 with Jones (4:10.98) and Williams (4:16.35).
Jones (47.47) and Griffith (48.23) both going under the CARIFTA standard also gave HC a one-two punch in the 400 metres.
Chloe Lucas (58.59) won the Under-20 Girls’ 400 while Foundation schoolmates Kelescia Downes (64.32) and Daniel Duncan (60.98) were the winners among the Under-13 girls and boys, respectively.
Combermere’s Nathan Goddard-McCarthy (4:27.82) easily prevailed in the Under-17 Boys’ 1500, again coming close to CARIFTA qualification while Alleyne’s short and stocky Khalid Padmore (5:02.28) overtook Combermere’s lanky Zachary Taylor (5:04.49) in the last 60 metres to win the Junior Boys’ race.
Kyla Cummins of Foundation (59.03) captured the Under-17 Girls’ 400 while Alleyne’s Akil Howell (51.66) was the fastest Under-17 boy and Foundation’s Kobe Hutson slammed the Under-15 Boys’ 400 in 53.73 seconds and Tionce Walrond of Springer (59.95) triumphed among the Under-15 Girls’ 400.
The times weren’t great but HC’s Julian Forde was the fastest Under-20 boy in 11.26 seconds while Combermere’s Mikhail Carvalho (11.40) toppled the Under-17 boys and Foundation’s Leilani Haddock (12.73) was the Under-17 girls’ champion.
Springer’s Naomi Forde-Hinds (13.05) nipped Foundation’s Janae Goodman (13.06) on the line to win the Under-15 Girls’ 100 metres.
Shonte Morris was an emphatic Under-13 Girls’ 100 metres champion in 13.07 seconds for Foundation while St George’s Jaleel Grosvenor won the Under-13 Boys’ 100 in 13.46 seconds.
On the field, Alleyne’s Lee-Andre Walker leapt 7.03 metres to upstage Foundation’s CARIFTA qualifier Anderson Greaves (6.91) and Ondre Callender (6.68) in the Under-20 Boys’ long jump as the competitors struggled with a large hole just behind the take-off board.
Foundation’s Dominique Wood, with a CARIFTA Games’ qualifying leap of 5.56 metres, and Leilani Haddock (5.28) took the top two places in the Under-17 Girls’ long jump. Alleyne’s Shemia Odaine (5.55m) captured the Under-20 Girls’ long jump.
Alleyne’s Tyrique Bailey-Edwards won the junior boys’ discus with a distance of 33.34 metres and Graydon Sealy’s Janae Callender (1.28m) took the Under-13 Girls’ high jump.
Nathan Crawford-Wallis (36.68) of Foundation won the Under-17 Boys’ discus and schoolmate Mekai Bowen took the Under-13 Boys’ high jump with a leap of 1.35 metres.
Crawford-Wallis also won the 110 metre hurdles in 15.67 seconds and teammate Kayode Nurse (15.97) was the Under-20 Boys’ winner.
Foundation’s Romancia Odwin (11.09 metres) captured the Under-20 Girls’ shot put and teammate Jessica Myrie (10.94m) did likewise among the Under-17s. Ellerslie’s Shahada Headley (8.71m) got the gold in the Junior Girls’ discus.
Alleyne’s Reanne Holder (25.36m) took the Junior Girls’ javelin while St George’s Ariel Soleyn, with a leap of 1.44 metres, won the Under-15 Girls’ high jump.
Asha Stevenson triumphed in the Junior Girls’ 75-metre hurdles in 13.67 seconds for Harrison College. (EZS)
