All-Delco Girls Track: Haverford sophs Elliott, Leneweaver only part of strong Fords youth movement
In addition to girls track Athlete of the Year Brianna Foster of Ridley, the All-Delco team includes:
Morgan Elliott, Haverford: This was a breakout year for the sophomore, qualifying for the PIAA Class 3A championships in three events and coming home from Shippensburg with two medals. She placed fifth in the 400 at the state meet after a third-place finish at the District 1 championships with a personal best time of 57.52 seconds. She then teamed with fellow All-Delco Aubrey Leneweaver, Alyssa Bloxton and Camille Sealy for sixth place in the 4 x 400 relay. While she did run the 100, 200 and 800, the 400 was her specialty. Elliott won the Delco and Central League titles in the event and broke 59 seconds four of the last five times she ran the race.
Aubrey Leneweaver, Haverford: Leneweaver was part of a strong group of versatile underclassmen for the Fords. A sophomore, she competed in the 400, both hurdles, the high jump and relay events. Her best event was the high jump where she won the county title with a personal best leap of 5-1 and matched that a week later to finish second in the Central League championships. She then went on to place ninth in the event at the District 1 Class 3A championships. Leveweaveer teamed with Elliott, Alyssa Broxton and Erin Olsavsky to take third in the 4 x 100 relay at the District 1 championships in a school-record time of 48.04 seconds. She anchored the 4 x 400 relay that plays fourth at districts and sixth at the PIAA Class 3A championships.
Alina LaForest, Chester: A strained hamstring may have sidelined the junior for a couple of weeks but it could not keep her from earning a medal at the District 1 and PIAA Class 3A championships. LaForest bounced back from that injury, which she suffered at the Delco championships, to take eighth in the 400 at the state meet and fifth in the event at the District 1 championships. The transfer from St. Basil Academy also was an outstanding intermediate hurdler for the Clippers. LaForest had the top time and a PR of 45.41 in the preliminary round of the 300 hurdles at the Delco championships but the hamstring injury prevented her from running in the finals.
Lucy Henkel, Radnor: Delco has had a pretty good string of 800 runners lately and Henkel kept that tradition going. The junior finished seventh in the 800 at the District 1 Class 3A championships to earn a trip to Shippensburg for the PIAA Championships, where she finished 11th in the final. Henkel was the Delco champ in the 800 and also took third in the 400 at the Central League championships. Henkel recently ran a personal best 2:14.41 to take eighth at the John Hay Distance Festival and placed 12th in the event at the East Coast Track and Field Championships. .
Therese Trainer, Notre Dame: Trainer’s range stretched from the 400 to the 3,200 but her specialty was the 1,600. The sophomore won the Delco title with what was then a personal best time of 5:10.88 and broke that mark two weeks later to win the Inter-Ac League championship in 5:08.38. Trainer also achieved PRs in the 400 (59.57), 800 (2:13.96) and the 3,200 (11:48.56) and took fourth in the 800 at the Inter-Ac League championships.
Nevaeh Davis, Penn Wood: One of the top sprinters in Delaware County and her range stretched from the 100 to the 400. The two-time All-Delco ranked second in the county in the 100 and 200, medaling in both events at the District 1 Class 3A championships. She was seventh in both events and qualifyied for the PIAA Class 3A championships in the 200, where she finished 16th in the preliminary round. Davis was second in the 200 and third in the 100 at the Delco champs and won the 100 and 200 at the Upper Darby Invitational. The senior also won the 400 at the Del Val qualifier and was a key member of Penn Wood’s 4 x 100 relay team.
Taylor Johnson, Bonner-Prendergast: Johnson came into her own as a junior, winning the 100 and 200 at the District 12 championships to qualify for the PIAA Class 3A championships in both events. She finished 13th in the preliminary round in the 100 and 14th in the 200. Johnson was named the Most Valuable Female Performer for running events at the Catholic League championships after winning the 100, 200 and leading the 4 x 100 to gold and the 4 x 400 to silver. Johnson captured the 200 title at the Delco championships in a personal best time of 25.48 seconds. She also set a PR in the 100 (12.42) at the Catholic League championships.
Teghan Sydnor, Strath Haven: The junior qualified for the PIAA Class 3A championships in both hurdles events, taking fifth in the 300 intermediate hurdles and placing ninth in the preliminary round of the 100 hurdles, just missing a spot in the final. Sydnor was the Delco and Central League champ in the 100 hurdles and finished second in the event at the District 1 championships. She was second in the intermediate hurdles at the county and league championships and fifth in the District 1 meet. Sydnor finished the season ranked fourth in the state in the 100 hurdles and 13th in the 300. She also ran the 100 and 200 for the Panthers and was a key member of several relay teams.
Jiya Clayton, Chester: One of only two returning All-Delco selections from 2019, the last time the team was picked. The multi-talented Clayton ran the 100, 200, 400 and 300 hurdles for the Clippers. Her best event, though, was the intermediate hurdles. Clayton earned a fifth-place medal in the event at the PIAA Class 3A championships after finishing second at the District 1 meet and winning the Delco title. She also took second in the 400 and seventh in the 200 at the Delco championships. Clayton will attend Jackson State University on a track scholarship.
Alice Etienne, Upper Darby: The latest in a long line of outstanding jumpers and sprinters for the Royals. The triple jump was her specialty. The junior finished first in the event in five of six meets before a hamstring injury brought her season to a close. She won the triple jump at the Delco championships, the Upper Darby Invitational and Delco Relays and was second at the Cardinal Invitational. Etienne also ran the 100 and 200, competed in the long jump and was on the 4 x 100 and 4 x 400 relay teams for the Royals.
Maura Timoney, Haverford: The senior distance runner came on strong for the Fords at the end of the season to become one of the top metric milers in District 1. Timoney put on a furious sprint in the final 100 meters to finish third in the 1,600 at the District 1 Class 3A championships with a personal best time of 5:08.52. That effort came 10 days after Timoney shattered her previous personal best of 5:19.93 by more than 11 seconds to take second in the 1,600 at the Central League championships with a time of 5:08.71.
Alexa Brown, Strath Haven: Brown did something neither of her three older sisters could do: Win a medal at the PIAA Class 3A championships and she did so as a sophomore with a seventh-place finish in the shot put at the state meet. Brown recorded her personal best in the shot with a heave of 39-3 to take third at the District 1 championships. Up to that point she had never finished lower than second. She won the shot put at the Delco and Central League championships, as well as the Soroka Throwers Showcase, the Cardinal Invitational and the Delco Relays.
Olivia Dumont, Strath Haven: A change in implements proved to be fruitful for Dumont at the District 1 Class 3A championships. She switched to a different javelin after her first attempt and unleashed a throw of 127-10, a personal best by more than seven feet, to take home the only gold medal for Delco that day. She went on to be ranked 18th in the state in the event, which is also where Dumont finished at the PIAA championships. Dumont, who will attend Clemson University, finished first in the javelin at the Central League championships, Upper Darby Invitational, Cardinal Invitational and Delco Relays, and was second in the event at the Delco championships.
Sophia Hill, Radnor: This was some breakout year for the freshman pole vaulter. She closed her season with an eighth-place finish at the District 1 Class 3A championships with a personal best effort of 10-6. While that did not earn her a trip to the PIAA championships it was the third time during the course of the season that Hill broke the school record. She initially broke the school record of 9-7 in the last of the three weekly Central League meets with a vault of 9-10 and then went 10-2 to win the Delco championship before setting the mark again at districts. Along the way she also won the pole vault at the Central League championships, the Cardinal Invitational and the Delco Relays.
Emma Winward, Ridley: Just a junior, Winward competed in a number of events for the Green Raiders, running the 200, 400, both hurdles, several relays and taking part in the triple jump. Her top event, though, was the 300 intermediate hurdles. She finished third at the Delco championships and won the Central League title with a personal best time of 44.98. Winward also finished fourth at Delcos with a career best leap of 33-7. She also had PRs in the 200 (26.52), 400 (58.93) and 100 hurdles (16.87). She finished the season ranked second in the county in the 300 hurdles and fourth in the 400.
