Souderton races past North Penn
TOWAMENCIN — Moments after his final javelin throw of the day sailed through the gusty winds blowing around Crawford Stadium Tuesday afternoon, Souderton Area senior Cody Wilde was able to savor the moment.
“It feels very good actually — it’s been a long time since we beat North Penn,’ said Wilde, as his teammates began to pack into the team bus, soon erupting in well-earned jubilation. “We were talking about how it was gonna be tough — North Penn’s a good team…Everyone had P.R.’s today — it was great. Everyone did very well.’
Souderton’s collective effort amounted to a 95-55 victory over the rival Knights, as Big Red ran, jumped, vaulted and threw to its first dual-meet win over perennial power North Penn in over 25 years.
“To beat North Penn — certainly the kind of team everyone models themselves after, I’m really proud of these guys,’ said Souderton coach John Donahue, who guided Big Red to a 5-2 dual-meet finish in the tough Suburban One League Continental Conference this spring. “We’re certainly neighborhood rivals, and it was really nice to come out strong today.’
Propelled by seniors like Wilde, who won the jav with a throw of 168 feet, 8 inches, along with an outstanding sophomore class, Souderton battled its way to what it hopes is a landmark victory for the program.
“We hope to keep this going in the future,’ Donahue said, “and be a perennial contender like North Penn has for decades.’
Souderton was dominant out in the field, placing first in every event, including sweeps of both the shot put and jav.
Sophomore Shamar Jenkins had winning leaps in both the high jump and triple, while junior Ryan Price threw to victories in both the shot put and discus.
Senior Chad Ziegler displayed his versatility with wins in the pole vault and long jump, and on the track, junior Colin Harker took the 110 hurdles and 200 dash while Connor McMenamin, another sophomore, outlasted everyone else in the 1,600 and 800.
“I’m really proud of the guys on the dual meet season,’ said Donahue, whose team heads to Pennridge’s Helman Invite Thursday. “We’re certainly looking forward to leagues (on May 8). It’s gonna be a challenge trying to catch up to CB West.
“We’re tied for second right now, and we’re certainly gonna give all we have and go after West, and hopefully have a shot at a conference title.’
North Penn speedster Dante Watson raced to victory in the 400 dash, ran the second leg of the winning 4×1 and anchored the Knights’ 4×4 to victory. The Knights also crossed first in the 4×8 relay in the second event of the afternoon.”We do have some younger guys coming along,’ said Knights coach Jay Jones, whose team heads to Wissahickon’s Trojan Classic on Thursday night. “They’re good kids, they’re working hard, and our young distance runners are doing a phenomenal job. It’s just gonna take some time. As they mature and get a little bit more seasoned, they should be key contributors for us.’
