Kitchin has Penncrest cooking in Penn Relays 4 x 400
PHILADELPHIA — It’s been all about order for Penncrest’s Megan Kitchin at the Penn Relays.
“When I was a freshman, I didn’t run in the varsity (4 x 400) race,’ Kitchin, a Lions junior, said. “I ran the 4 x 100 and we were third. Last year we were second in the varsity 4 x 400, and now today we won the 4 x 400.’
Kitchin was referring to Penncrest’s victory in the Central League 4 x 400-meter relay at the 121st Penn Relays at Franklin Field Thursday. Katie Arbogast ran the first leg, followed by Briana Artis, Kitchin and Alicia Collier as the Lions took first place and the championship plaque for the second time in three years.
Conestoga (4:07.24) claimed second place and defending champion Strath Haven (Sunny Chen, Maddie Forbes, Grace Haase, Kat Mazur) was third in 4:07.69.
With its performance Thursday, Penncrest qualified for the Tri-State Area 4 x 400 championship race Saturday afternoon.
Penncrest switched its lineup for Thursday’s race, with Artis moving up from the third leg to second, changing places with Kitchin. Arbogast’s 58.9-second opening split gave Penncrest the lead, then Artis put plenty of distance between herself and the rest of the field and Kitchin maintained that comfortable advantage.
“They just wanted me to keep the lead and try to strengthen it,’ Kitchin said. “When I came around the turn (at the end of the backstretch) the wind really hit me hard.
“I knew at that point that I would have to really pump my arms hard. When I got to (the top of the stretch) I just kept staring at Alicia and driving to get to her.’
Arbogast admitted that “it feels nice’ to be able to say that she helped her team to the Central League title at Penn Relays as a sophomore and senior.
“It’s tough being out in the cold like this and then running in the rain,’ the Elon College recruit said. “I know if I can give them the lead, it will really help with their confidence.
“My job is just to make them feel comfortable when they get out there.’
Artis said it was different taking the baton from Arbogast rather than Kitchin.
“We were practicing handoffs for the 4 x 100 (Wednesday) in all that wind,’ she said. “Once I got the handoff today, I knew I had to go out hard. When I tried to come out of that one turn, the wind really hit me in the face, so I knew I had to work my arms to help me.’
For Collier, it was a happy ending to a race held in miserable conditions.
“We’ve had two meets in the rain this year, but this was worse,’ she said. “I felt fine when I got the baton from Megan, but when I hit the 150 mark, I didn’t think things could get much worse.
“I’m not sure I was expecting all the things that have happened this season after the way things went in the indoor season. I know there’s a lot still to do. I would really like to go back-to-back in the 100 and the 200 at Delcos next week.’
In 4 x 100 heats, the Penncrest team of Mariah Kozub, Arbogast, Artis and Collier had the best Delco time (49.80 seconds) but did not automatically qualify for Saturday’s Tri-State championship race, for which the Lions are listed as the first alternate team.
Penn Wood’s Petula Danley, Agnes Mansaray, Ashley White and Maisha Coleman placed fourth in the Suburban A 4 x 400 in 4:11.29.
“We had a rough day,’ Patriots head coach Lenny Jordan said.
Monsignor Bonner-Archbishop Prendergast (Kayla Butts, Taylor Barkdoll, Celsey Golato, Jewel Ford) took third place (4:17.09) and Cardinal O’Hara (Tayzee Harris, Sephora Senstants, Maura Lyons and Uloma Onyemachi) was fourth (4:17.16) in the Catholic League 4 x 400.
Cardinal O’Hara’s Liz Mancini (3:47.07), Alex Patrick (1:01.25), Olivia Arizin (2:18.87) and Grace Mancini (5:13.38) placed 10th in 12:20.35 in the Championship of America distance medley relay.
“It was just so cold out there trying to run,’ Grace Mancini said.
Strath Haven turned in the fastest time among the Delaware County entrants in the 4 x 800 relay. The Panthers’ team of Maddie Forbes (2:24.84), Isabel Cardi (2:26.00), Grace Haase (2:27.74) and Frances Resweber (2:27.15) clocked in at 9:45.72, placing eighth in the first heat.
Garnet Valley (Skylar Berardi, Diana DeMaio, Amanda Kodis, Julia Hellman) finished in 10:01.41 and Ridley (Brianna Wallin, Kelly McGeehan, Jess Higgins, Jenna Ohlsson) came in at 10:02.13 in another heat.
Cardinal O’Hara (Lisaund Barnett, Onyemachi, Arizin, Patrick) had a 4 x 100 time of 50.58 seconds, while Bonner-Prendergast’s Butts, Alaina Johnson, Hannah Oropollo and Ford were clocked in 51.20. The Upper Darby team of Victoria Robinson, Shannon Birch, Mikayla Grice and Michelle Brown-Jones had a time of 51.83 seconds.
Ridley’s Val McLaughlin took 13th place in the long jump at 17 feet, 5½ inches.
Garnet Valley’s Nina Gambacorta had a best throw of 40 feet, 9¾ inches in placing 12th in the field of 18 in the shot put.
