Seifried twins go the distance to finish 1-2 in 3,200

CALN — Emma Seifried said she and her twin sister are tough to tell apart.

The latest example was the 3,200 meter run in the District One Track and Field tournament Saturday at Coatesville High.

The Seifrieds finished 1-2 in the Class AA bracket for Country Day School of the Sacred Heart, giving pause to the scorekeeper, the public address announcer, the media and the crowd.

Luckily the contestants wear numbers.

We can confirm that freshman Emma Seifried qualified for states by winning the 3,200 in 11:23.58.

We can also certify that Hannah Seifried, younger by 10 minutes, crossed the finish line next in 12:01.60, not quite enough to get her to states, according to the Double A standard.

Beyond that, Emma would appreciate company at states, but isn’t about to drag her twin along.

“It’s going to be a lot of fun,’ Emma Seifried said. “It was one of my better times. I feel like I can run better. My goal in districts was to just run my best.’

Emma Seifried, the Daily Times girls cross country Runner of the Year last fall, was tested to the limits on the 81-degree day. Later she finished just 2.66 seconds from qualifying for the state tournament in the 1,600 meters, as she crossed the line in 5:20.96.

Add the races together and the distance is one-tenth of a mile short of the 3.1 mile cross country meets Emma Seifried dominated in the fall.

“I was a little tired running the mile,’ Seifried said. “I like the longer distances a little more.’

It was a long, sultry and most sunny day for the District One field.

In Class AAA competition one of the more compelling stories was in the 800 meters, in which Agnes Mansaray of Penn Wood clocked 2:13.22 to lock up a berth in the states.

Mansaray is from Sierra Leone, West Africa, which is battling disease, civil conflict and immense hardships. The average life expectancy in Sierra Leone, according to the World Health Organization, is 38 years old. Life expectancy in the U.S. is 79.8 years old.

“This is my first year of running in America,’ Mansaray said. “I came to the country last year. Next year I’m going to be the best.’

Mansaray came to the country to live with her aunt. In Sierra Leone, beyond the strife there’s basically just one track event a year.

“Every week there’s a competition here,’ Mansaray said.

Mansaray gave the winner of the 800 meters, Maddie Villalba of Central Bucks West, a run for her money. Villalba clocked 2:09.47.

In Class AA competition, Delaware County Christian’s Annette Kempf was second in the 100 in 13.24, just 0.5 second short of qualifying for states. She also had a heartbreaker in the 200, clocking 26.56, just 0.3 short of qualifying from

In the 400, Knights sophomore Maggie Linton was third in 59.62, making the state qualifying time. Rose Favino was fourth but failed to qualify.

The disappointment was over for some of those Knights when the 4 X 400 team of Linton, Kempf, Favino and Cassidy Foxhaven-gamble clocked 4:03.64 to win the event and qualify for states.

Caroline Hedwell of Delco Christian was fifth in the 100 hurdles in 17.25 and second in the high jump.

Elsewhere in Triple-A competition Valerie McLaughlin (Ridley) and Alecia Collier (Penncrest) were fourth and sixth, respectively in the 200.

McLaughlin was fourth in 24.9, qualifying for states with the finish.

The Penncrest girls 4 X 100 meter relay of Brianna Artis, Alicia Collier, Zoe Gable and Mariah Kozub clocked 47.7 to place fourth and qualify for states.

Katie Arbogast (Penncrest) is going to states with a qualifying time of 58.07, good for eighth place in the 400.

Maia Mensyngier (Strath Haven) clocked 10:59.40 in the 3,200 to qualify for the states.

Janese Lynch of Academy Park finished second in the discus with a throw of 130-1, qualifying her for the states. Anita Gambacorta, from Garnet Valley, qualified for states with a fourth-place discus throw of 115 feet.