Wissahickon’s Black guts out an 800 win at Panther Classic

WYNCOTE >> Lotte Black’s first words after powering her way across the finish line?

“I can’t feel my legs.”
It was that kind of night — a cold, blustery night — at the Panther Classic Friday evening, but a night in which athletes like Black persevered through the elements and found their way to victory.
Black, in fourth place with 200 meters to go in the 800, went to a gear that was unmatched, sprinting into the teeth of the wind around the final turn.
“My legs were frozen but I guess my arms pulled me through,” the Wissahickon senior said. “The wind was blowing but we’ve been doing 200’s in practice. With 200 to go, I just thought ‘give it everything.’ It worked out.”
Black pulled into the lead and did not relinquish it, crossing in 2 minutes, 20.29 seconds in an impressive field that included three heats of three dozen runners. She held off Penn Wood’s Agnes Mansaray (second, 2:20.89) and Pennsbury duo Lizzy Kirk (2:20.90) and Maddie Sauer (2:21.77) to take top honors in a closely-contested finish.
“The Pennsbury girls passed me on the back stretch and I knew their seed time was faster,” said Black, seeded third in the race going in. “So I kind of just stayed at my own pace and then at the end I realized that I could pick it up a little, so maybe I could catch them.”

Bob Raines--Digital First Media  Pole vaulters line up for their run-throughs Apr. 8, 2016 at the Cheltenham Panther Classic.
Bob Raines–Digital First Media
Pole vaulters line up for their run-throughs Apr. 8, 2016 at the Cheltenham Panther Classic.
Bob Raines--Digital First Media  Rebecca Hong (Wissahickon) goes airborne in the long jump at the Cheltenham Panther Classic Apr. 8, 2016.
Bob Raines–Digital First Media
Rebecca Hong (Wissahickon) goes airborne in the long jump at the Cheltenham Panther Classic Apr. 8, 2016.
Bob Raines--Digital First Media  Lexi Schneider (Upper Dublin) just scrapes the bar in the pole vault.
Bob Raines–Digital First Media
Lexi Schneider (Upper Dublin) just scrapes the bar in the pole vault.
Bob Raines--Digital First Media  Vanessa Pasqualone throws shot put for William Tennent Apr. 8, 2016 at the Cheltenham Panther Classic.
Bob Raines–Digital First Media
Vanessa Pasqualone throws shot put for William Tennent Apr. 8, 2016 at the Cheltenham Panther Classic.
Bob Raines--Digital First Media  Helen Autieri throws the javelin for Wissahickon Apr. 8, 2016 at the Cheltenham Panther Classic
Bob Raines–Digital First Media
Helen Autieri throws the javelin for Wissahickon Apr. 8, 2016 at the Cheltenham Panther Classic
Bob Raines--Digital First Media  Rebecca No throws the javelin for Lower Moreland Apr. 8, 2016 at the Cheltenham Panther Classic.
Bob Raines–Digital First Media
Rebecca No throws the javelin for Lower Moreland Apr. 8, 2016 at the Cheltenham Panther Classic.
Bob Raines--Digital First Media  Madison Langley Walker (Cheltenham) leads in the 300m hurdles at the Cheltenham Panther Classic Apr. 8, 2016.
Bob Raines–Digital First Media
Madison Langley Walker (Cheltenham) leads in the 300m hurdles at the Cheltenham Panther Classic Apr. 8, 2016.
Bob Raines--Digital First Media  Runners get ready for the start of the 800 relay at the Cheltenham Panther Classic Apr. 8, 2016.
Bob Raines–Digital First Media
Runners get ready for the start of the 800 relay at the Cheltenham Panther Classic Apr. 8, 2016.
Bob Raines--Digital First Media  Maddie Villalba (Central Bucks West) takes the baton from Laura Roth to finish first in the 800m relay at the Cheltenham Panther Classic Apr. 8, 2016.
Bob Raines–Digital First Media
Maddie Villalba (Central Bucks West) takes the baton from Laura Roth to finish first in the 800m relay at the Cheltenham Panther Classic Apr. 8, 2016.
Bob Raines--Digital First Media Chanel Brisset wins the 100m. dash for Cheltenham at the Cheltenham Panther Classic Apr. 8, 2016.
Bob Raines–Digital First Media
Chanel Brisset wins the 100m. dash for Cheltenham at the Cheltenham Panther Classic Apr. 8, 2016.
Bob Raines--Digital First Media  Madison Langley Walker competes for Cheltenham in the long jump at the Cheltenham Panther Classic Apr. 8, 201
Bob Raines–Digital First Media
Madison Langley Walker competes for Cheltenham in the long jump at the Cheltenham Panther Classic Apr. 8, 201
Bob Raines--Digital First Media  Kasey Duffey competes for Lower Moreland in the long jump at the Cheltenham Panther Classic Apr. 8, 2016.
Bob Raines–Digital First Media
Kasey Duffey competes for Lower Moreland in the long jump at the Cheltenham Panther Classic Apr. 8, 2016.
Bob Raines--Digital First Media  Lauriel Krouse competes for William Tennent in the long jump at the Cheltenham Panther Classic Apr. 8, 2016.
Bob Raines–Digital First Media
Lauriel Krouse competes for William Tennent in the long jump at the Cheltenham Panther Classic Apr. 8, 2016.

Black, a distance ace for the Trojans, has been mixing in some 800’s to go with her usual work in the mile.
“Been doing a lot more speed work at practice,” said Black. And it certainly came in handy around that final turn.
It was a big night for the senior, who would earn her second win of the night when she helped the 4×400 relay race to victory, their time of 4:10.82 pushing them past Penn Wood (4:17.94) for the top spot in the final event on the track.
Central Bucks West, meanwhile, had raced to a commanding victory in the 4×800 relay, finishing more than 30 seconds ahead of the rest of the field. The Bucks put together a winning time of 10:02.91, with Upper Darby taking second in 10:34.35.
Out in the field, Abington shot putter Sianni McCleod (40-7.5) and Upper Dublin discus thrower Jennifer McAneney were the best in their respective events.
And then, there was host Cheltenham.
The Panther girls took home a total of seven first-place finishes, dominating the sprints and hurdles.
Madison Langley-Walker took both the 100 (14.61) and 300 hurdles (46.01) as well as the long jump (17-2.75), Chanel Brissett was a double winner in the 100 (12.02) and 200 (25.46) dashes, Alexis Crosby sprinted to a 400 win (58.04) and the 4×1 relay combined their efforts for a 48.28 finish, impressive not only for early April but also in the cold of Friday night.
“That’s a heck of a time to start the season,” Panthers coach Kelly Jensen said. “What you want is for kids to race, but not get injured, and I think we escaped that.”

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