Sophomore Jinjer Pearce ran away with the NYSAIS Track & Field Championships May 21 at Icahn Stadium on Randall’s Island.
By Mitch Silver
Sophomore Jinjer Pearce ran away with the NYSAIS Track & Field Championships May 21 at Icahn Stadium on Randall’s Island. Three days after running a winning 57.74 in the 400-meter dash at the Westchester County meet at Byram Hills, her victory in 58.31 qualifies her for the New York State Federation Championships June 6 in Syracuse. Pearce also finished second in the 200-meter (25.95), fifth in the 100 (12.78), and she anchored the silver medal relay team, joining fellow sophomores Catherine Walker, Charlotte Boehning, and junior captain Caroline Kimmel. Their time of 4:07.55 broke the school record.
Walker, too, had a good day, finishing fourth in both the 100- and 400-meter hurdles in personal best times. Joining her in the 100 hurdles was sophomore Tori Katz, who finished seventh. There were more personal bests in the discus, where freshman Xavi Marbury (75’7”) and junior Sarah Brodwolf (72’8”) finished third and fourth.
Back on the track, Acacia Dougan ran a personal best of 8:14 in the steeplechase to take sixth place, while the 4×100 and 4×800 meter relays finished in fourth and seventh respectively. The stellar performances earned the girls a 4th-place finish out of 31 schools.
The boys were no slowpokes either. The winning 4×400 relay team of sophomore Jimmy Sandling, freshman Jared Jones, and seniors Dylan Bronson and Tyler Kaye set a meet and school record, 3:32.68, in the process. Kaye, the only boy to run with the team since its inception in 2011, made up nearly 40 meters on his anchor leg to pass Packer Collegiate’s anchor with 10 meters left. He also placed fourth in the 400-meter race.
Meanwhile, Sandling broke the school record in the 200 by finishing third in a blistering time of 22.91. He finished fourth in the 100. Jones posted personal records in both the 100 and 200, finishing fifth and sixth, respectively. He was the only freshman to place in the top 10 in both events.
Overall, the Wildcat boys took fourth behind track powers Hackley, Poly Prep, and Collegiate, a 30+-point jump over their finish in 2013.
