All-Delco Boys Track: Running for fallen friend, Upper Darby’s Lavar Jackson has special season
Every elite sprinter has a routine that kicks in before “on your mark, get set, go.”
Upper Darby senior Lavar Jackson includes a spiritual component to his, sending up thoughts to a buddy gone much too early.
Garnet Valley senior Bryson Hall was just 17 and in the middle of a football season when he passed away, the news jolting Jackson and the larger Delaware County sports community last November.
“We formed our bond through competitiveness and racing,” said Jackson, a two-sport standout like Hall. “I think we first met at the Haverford Invitational, sophomore year. The memorial service for Bryson was a little rough. So, before my races this year I kind of did a little prayer asking God to let (Hall) run with me from up there.
“I did that before every race.”
The Royals’ track coaches have the utmost respect for how Jackson dealt with the heartache, how he channeled it into chasing PIAA Class 3A medals in the 100 and 200 meters. Jackson clocked in at 21.33 seconds to finish a tenth of a second behind gold medalist Jesse Myers of State College in the 200 meters. He ran 10.71 to finish third in the 100 at states.
That’s why Jackson is the 2023 Daily Times Boys Track & Field Athlete of the Year.
Jackson is joined on the All-Delo team by athletes from 11 schools in a very diverse All-Delco squad. Leading the way are three from Episcopal Academy: Sprinter Abaas Hunter, distance runner Michael Woolery and thrower Alphonso Koukou. Haverford School (Jey Brown, James Gates) and Archbishop Carroll (Gabriel Cuffey, Rodrigo Davis) have two All-Delcos each.
Rounding out the team is Walton Garnett of Chester, AJ Glavicic of Strath Haven, Haverford’s Patrick Lawson, Logan Maloney of Cardinal O’Hara, Penn Wood’s Terry Dweh, CJ Simbiri of Delco Christian, Penncrest’s Gavin Mogck and Tyler Klambara of Springfield.
All four classes are represented, with Hunter on as a rare freshman sprinter and the sophomore Maloney. Woolery and Garnett make the team for a third straight year. Lawson and Klambara are two-time selections. The All-Delco team is selected in consultation with area coaches.
It was sweet redemption for Jackson, whose 2022 season ended most abruptly with an injured hamstring after he reached the 100-meter finals in the District 1 championships.
“There were some difficult challenges,” Royals coach Kelsey Bierling said. “He will tell you about them. But he is the most coachable kid ever. He puts in all the work, and more. He’s never satisfied. He always analyzes his races whether it’s not getting out of the blocks or needing to work the turn more. He is a joy to work with.”
Jackson was a later comer to track. A sophomore, he gave it shot to improve his football speed, where as a 5-10, 195-pound running back, he ran out of the power-I formation.
By his junior year, Jackson was more explosive and so were the Royals, who compiled a 6-5 football season. This past fall Jackson couldn’t wait to get back on the track, even with sore hamstrings that had to be built up to race in states.
“That was my first time at states,” Jackson said. “I knew after getting there I’d have to perform at my best and I actually felt that I did that. It felt really good to be on that stand. Just how my season ended last year, I felt like all my work paid off, especially with all the rehab and working to get stronger.”
With Charles Sawyer and current Upper Darby sprints coach Ive Mecure in his corner, Jackson recently clocked a sizzling 10.62 in the 100 at the NYC Grand Prix. It’s a far cry from the previous season that ended with an emotional thud.
At the 2022 District 1 Championships, Jackson qualified for the 100-meter finals only to hurt his hamstring in the 4 x 100 trials. His year essentially over, Jackson got the leg taped, sucked it up and walk-jogged his way to the finish line, dead last, to claim eighth on the medal stand. His 4 x 100 teammates and coaches cheered the finish anyway.
“You get your claps, and that’s good, but I really wanted to be running the 100 in states,” Jackson said. “But we saved it for this year.”
The story of courage resonated not only with teammates and coaches but his family, and likely a few of those kids that Jackson works with daily at the Step-by-Step Daycare in Upper Darby. Jackson is a proud product of Step-By-Step. Organically, through track, he’s become a remarkable example of hope.
“We finished up a workout at Drexel Hill Middle School and there were a lot of kids there,” Mecure said. “All the kids were just so happy to see him. They took pictures with him. He talked to them, tried to give them a little motivation.
“I’m 21. Pretty young for a coach. I ran with Lavar my senior year. He was a freshman. He kind of took a little bit of convincing but now, he’s a real aggressive sprinter. He locks in. The best is yet to come, I’ll say that. And it’s something to look forward to.”
Jackson was MVP of the Royals track team and the Trust The Process award winner. He couldn’t thank his coaches enough, starting with Bierling, for steering him into the light.
“A big part of the success that came this season was because of our coaching staff,” Jackson said. “Coach Bierling, she makes sure that in the classroom you’re academically right. She and our other coaches hold you accountable, and they really push you. I feel like without them I wouldn’t be where I am today.”
The sky is the limit for Jackson, who will run next year at Shippensburg University. He is competitive yet compassionate and grateful for each and every opportunity to move on.
“With his friend passing, that hurt,” Mecure said of Jackson. “That definitely hurt him. But he found a strength. It built a little fire in him. Like, ‘Alright, I’m going to dedicate the rest of the season to him and just let his legacy and name live on.’ That’s who Lavar is.”
