Tinson, Myers shine as Pottstown, OJR split dual meet
BUCKTOWN >> The wind definitely was not the runners’ friend Wednesday at Owen J. Roberts’ Henry K. Bernat Field. But Pottstown sprinter Brandon Tinson was one of those who made it work for him.
With the American flag rippling rapidly toward the starting line at the far end of the homestretch, Tinson threw caution and defiance to the wind and let his talent rip.
The Trojan senior, who will play football at Susquehanna, won three events – the 100, 200 and high jump – and anchored a Pottstown win in the 4×100 relay. Tinson led the Pottstown boys to a 82-68 victory over Owen J. Roberts.
Rather than let the cold, windy day distract him, Tinson used the elements to sharpen his focus.
“It was brutal,” he said of the gusty, steady wind in the runners’ faces. “The only thing you could think about is breathing, staying calm and keeping your form.”
Another sprinter led the way for Owen J. Roberts’ girls team. Teneisha Myers, a promising junior, swept the 100 and 200 for the third time this young season, and also won the 400 in a rare appearance in that race. Her trifecta helped fuel the Lady Wildcats to a 130-20 win over Pottstown.
Pottstown’s boys won seven of the 11 running events. Along with Tinson, the Trojans’ Bryant Perez was a multiple winner, taking both the 300 and 110-meter hurdles.
Tinson ran the 100 in a respectable 11.5 considering the wind. In his better event, the 200, he clocked 23.4, and remarkably he still had the legs and time to win the high jump, tying with teammate Landon Gregory at 5-10, but winning by virtue of fewer misses.
Oh yes, and Tinson had enough in the tank to gut out a finishing burst to secure the 4×100.
“He is such a pleasure to coach,” said Pottstown coach Mary Ann Hill. “He has a positive attitude and wants to win all the time, never misses a practice. He had a great day.”
Tinson is clearly driven to “go out with a bang” his senior year. Missing districts by two-tenths of a second in the 200 meters last year provided extra motivational fuel.
OJR’s Myers is likewise fired up for her future, and it showed on her radiant face in the midst of her sprint domination.
Myers currently is ranked No. 1 in the state in both the 100 and 200.
“It’s really exciting,” she said. “I’ve held it for two weeks. I know the numbers will move around (with other runners) but hopefully I can stay up near the top.”
“She’s really found herself. She works hard and she’s reaping the benefits,” said OJR coach Jay Carlin. “She and Morgan Shronk (who was second in the conference 400 last spring) are leaders, and when kids see runners that good work hard, they follow.”
Myers managed a respectable 61.3 in her first outdoor 400 of the season.
“The wind, especially the last half of the race, was really pushing me back, so I had to keep my head down,” she said. “But it goes to show that if you can run good times in the wind, imagine what you can run on a perfect day.”
Perez, the defending conference champion in the 110-meter hurdles, could relate after running a 16.2 – all the more impressive considering he led off the meet by taking the 300 hurdles in 41.6.
“It pushes everyone to do their best,” Perez, whose PR in the 110 is 15.48, said about the wind. “We know we can do a lot better. I want to make districts, get into the 15s and break into the 14s.”
OJR distance man Liam Conway, a sophomore, pulled away in the third 200 from Pottstown’s impressive senior Justin Beasley to win the 800 in 2:00.7.
“It was really windy in the backstretch,” Conway said with a smile.
Third in the conference 800 as a freshman, Conway couldn’t run in districts because of a strained hip flexor.
“That only motivated me more for this track season,” he said.
In a competitive mile, Beasley held off Ethan Conway to win it in 4:39.5.
“It’s always about making that third lap the best lap, because the third lap is always the hardest,” Beasley said.
Wind or no wind.
