4×100 relay leads North Penn girls to 3rd in Class 3A, Dock Mennonite’s Dodd earns 3 goals at District 1 Championships

CALN >> Mimi Duffy went to a gear she didn’t know was there.

“It was like nothing I ever imagined,” the Central Bucks West junior said of her race to a gold medal in the 400 meters Saturday. “Going into it seeded third I was excited to be up against some amazing competition. And hopefully use that to P.R.”

Duffy not only ran her personal-best time but blazed to a winning time of 55.23 seconds, three seconds faster than the state standard and tops in District 1-3A.

“It felt amazing,” she said with a smile. “I was really prepared for it. I was just trying to trust my training and do the best that I could do today. I saw Ava (Alexander of West Chester Rustin) right next to me and I was like, ‘I gotta go, I gotta go.’ So I found another gear and cranked it up to the finish.”

Duffy’s drive underscored a tremendous day for locals at the District One Championships at Coatesville High.

Hatboro-Horsham’s Brian DiCola completed a distance double, winning gold in the 3,200 (9:09.03) on Saturday after winning the 1,600 on Friday, and the Abington boys 4×400 relay also completed the push to Shippensburg, winning gold in 3:14.62 to close things out on the track.

Church Farm (2A) and Coatesville (3A) captured team titles, as did the Delaware County Christian (162) and West Chester Rustin girls (3A).

The North Penn girls pushed to third in Class 3A, led by their outstanding 4×100 relay, which surged to the gold medal in 47.48 seconds.

“It’s exciting (to win the title),” said Taylor Forbes. “I think we knew coming in that we could win. And I think we just wanted to make sure that everything was perfect going into states.

“I thought the race was pretty good. There are a lot of things we can improve on but I thought it was a pretty solid race.”

Jael Sykes anchored it home for the Knights, who finished ahead of second-place Chester (47.76) and third-place Cheltenham (48.10).

“We’ve had a couple mishaps but we have been consistent with our time,” Sykes said. “Our main thing was making it to states. And that’s what we did.”

Said Maya Adams: “Our last race (at leagues), we knew we had to improve on some things and I feel we did.”

It’s been quite a year for the NP 4×1, with possibly its finest moment still ahead.

“I think we can still clean up some of our hand-offs and we wanna go 46 (seconds) at states,” Madeline Lewis said.

Dock’s Bobby Jo Dodds had herself a weekend.

The Pioneers’ versatile senior won three gold medals, sweeping the Class 2A 100 (16.43) and 300 hurdles (47.28) and out-distancing everybody in the triple jump (32-5.75).

“I’m still flabbergasted about it,” she gushed. “I kind of expected it but I’m still shocked. Last year, my teammate (then senior) Clara Benner was our medalist for the hurdles. And I was off by one hundredth of a second in the 300’s. So that was really sad but I’m going this year.”

Said Dodds: “That was probably my best 300 yet – I won’t lie. It was really smooth. Usually I’m tired at the end but I was feeling pretty good. I was like, ‘keep the form, keep the form.'”

The triple jump pit had some gamers, including teammate Sophia Veltre (31-4.75) and Makiyah Keys of Delco Christian (31-3.5), who rose to second and third.

“I did not expect to get a gold for the triple jump – that was like a bonus,” Dodds said. “I’m hyped (for states). I’ve been there once – my sophomore year, and I had a blast. So I’m hyped up. I’m so ready to go.”

What made Saturday even more special for Dodds was the Pioneers’ ascension to second in the team standings.

“I mainly love track because of my teammates,” the senior said. “(Winning three golds is) a great achievement but I’m more happy that I can do great for my teammates and my coaches. It’s actually kind of shocking because we have a small team this year. Ninety percent of our team is freshmen. So it’s been great to have them and teach them all these new things. We bonded as a team.”

CB West success continued on the track, with Conor McFadden coaxing the competitive fires along with a soar hamstring to seize the gold medal in the Class 3A 200 (21.47).

“I wanted to qualify for states and keep my hamstring under control because I’ve been having issues with it for the past month. So I’m really happy that I got through that healthy,” he shared. “So I’m just gonna baby it some more, get to states, and see if I can get the title there.

“I felt really smooth,” he said of the race, in which he held off Upper Darby’s Lavar Jackson (21.67) and Norristown’s Daunte Bell (21.68). “I’ve been trying to go slower in the first 100 because that’s usually when I’m doing my drive phase and that’s usually when I hurt my hamstring. So I’ve been trying to chill there. I just kept up with the dudes in front of me. I knew they were quick guys. So I stayed with them. And then the second off the curve, I just felt really smooth, kept my arms and just glided right past them. I’m really excited. It’s gonna be a fun time (at states) along with the 4×4 (second in 3:16.47). I think we’re gonna have a great day.”

For Pennridge’s Jared Hess, everything that took place on Saturday, he began to envision a season ago.

“It feels great, based off of last year and how I finished,” he said of notching fifth in the triple jump and qualifying for PIAA’s in 2022. “I finished right on the edge so this year, coming back, finishing first, it’s just a very good feeling. I just trained really hard this year. I really had to get that second phase going.”

It all came together for Hess, who tripled jumped to a gold with a leap of 46-2.5.

“Today was just a great day and everything felt good,” he said. “My first jump was my winning jump. That was a really good feeling to get that through on my prelims. I’m very excited (for states) but also nervous. I know the competition’s super good. So I can’t wait to see that. I’m also long jumping at Shippensburg so I’ll have to divvy up my days and see how I can do.”