2 weeks Ago By Bruce Adams
By Bruce [email protected] Westtown >> Wind gusts of up to 35 mph presented a challenge for the track and field athletes at the 17th annual West Chester Rustin Invitational Wednesday, but it didn’t stop Kennett High School sophomore hurdler Aydriane Bowden, who won gold medals in the 100, 200 and 400 meter runs.Bowden won the 100 with a meet record of 12.
15 seconds, finished first in the 200 (25.36) and was fastest in the 400 (56.26).
In the 400, she missed the meet record set by Rustin’s Ava Alexander by just .2 seconds.Bowden’s primary events are the hurdles — she finished fourth in both the 100 meter hurdles and 300 hurdles at the PIAA state championship last spring – but wanted to try the running events at Rustin Wednesday.
“I just wanted to see my (running) times out here today, see what I could do, even though it’s not my specialty,” said a smiling Bowden.What made Bowden’s meet record in the 100 more remarkable was that she was running into a headwind on the Rustin track Wednesday.“The key was just driving and working on my form, this was a huge PR for me (in the 100),” said Bowden.
“I love running the 100, it’s so much fun.”Another Kennett athlete, senior Xavier McGreal, won both the boys high jump (6 feet, 7 inches) and the 300 hurdles (39.14).
All of the athletes at Rustin Wednesday dealt with the strong wind, gusting at times to 35 mph.Downingtown East’s Juan Colmenares Bittar took first in the 110 hurdles in a time of 16.02 seconds at the Rustin Invitational Wednesday afternoon.
(PETE BANNAN DAILY LOCAL NEWS)Downingtown East senior Juan Colemenares-Bittar, who won the boys 110 hurdles (16.02), said, “It was really windy; it was hard to stay on balance because the wind was pushing back over the hurdles. I wasn’t close to a PR for me, but I was happy to win in these conditions.
I didn’t change my strategy, I just tried to fight through (the wind).”West Chester Rustin sophomore Aoife Speer-Gibson, who won the girls high jump with a mark of 5-2, said, “I practice in all kinds of conditions, so the wind doesn’t really bother me. There might be some times where I’ll wait until a big gust of wind dies down, but it usually doesn’t affect me.
I was happy with (my finish) – since I swim for Rustin in the winter I haven’t been to a lot of meets this year (yet), so coming back and getting close to my PR is a good start for me.”West Chester Rustin’s Aoife Speer-Gibson, cleared 5 feet 2 inches at the Rustin Invitational Wednesday afternoon.(PETE BANNAN DAILY LOCAL NEWS)Another Rustin athlete, senior Andrew Black, won the boys javelin with a mark of 177-0 on his final throw into the wind.
Black said, “The Rustin Invitational is the biggest meet we have here, I absolutely had to (perform) in front of a lot more people (than usual) and there’s a lot more competition here.”Plenty of Ches-Mont athletes earned gold medals at the Rustin Invitational, including Downingtown West senior Andrew Ernst, who won the boys 100 meter dash with a PR 10.74.
“The prelims were very windy but I was able to chill out in the finals when it was less windy, kept to my race plan and ran a good race,” said Ernst.Ernst also anchored the Whippets 4×100 relay that finished first (42.14) and included Jaden Midgett, Gavin Seavey and Ryan Witherspoon.
West Chester Rustin’s 4×800 finished first and Unionville second at the Rustin Invitational Wednesday afternoon. Shown here Rustin’s Evan Kirkland takes the baton from George Harkins on the final handoff The Golden Knights finished in a time of 8:28.42.
(PETE BANNAN DAILY LOCAL NEWS)Other Ches-Mont boys who won gold medals at the Rustin Invitational included Downingtown West junior Josiah Wade in the 800 (1:59.58), Bishop Shanahan senior Jack Polizzi in the 400 (51.71), Downingtown West senior Connor Zou in the triple jump (43-1), Unionville senior James McGlynn in the 1600 meter run (4:26.
54), Great Valley senior Seth Tshudy in the pole vault (12-6), Bishop Shanahan junior Aidan Civitella in the long jump (22-2), Rustin senior Brady Bley in the 200 (22.84), the Rustin 4×800 relay of Carson Englert, Harold Wood, George Harkins and Ethan Kirkland (8:28.42) and Rustin’s 4×400 relay of Yiannis Makris, Jonathen Sanchez, Bley and Yash Shah (3:31.
73).Other Ches-Mont girls who won gold medals at the Rustin Invitational included Rustin sophomore Nora Reese in the 300 hurdles (48.85) and Downingtown West senior Saania Stewart in the triple jump (35-9.
75).Other boys’ first-place finishers at Rustin were Perkiomen Valley junior Colin Sturges in the discus (154-11) and shot put (54-8.5) and Archmere Academy junior Owen Parsons in the 3200 (10:24.
36).The 4×800 included male and female at the same time at the Rustin Invitational Wednesday afternoon.(PETE BANNAN DAILY LOCAL NEWS)Other girls’ first-place finishers at Rustin were Westtown School sophomore Laila Atkins in the discus (122-2), Padua Academy junior Amirah Lasher in the shot put (38-2.
5), Lower Merion senior Janell Mordi in the 100 hurdles (15.66), Padua freshman Paige Ballinger in the 1600 (5:09.32), Perkiomen Valley junior Ava Flicker in the javelin (153-3), Lower Merion sophomore Paige Evans in the 800 run (2:23.
90), Padua junior Anna Brockus in the 3200 (10:38.10), Lower Merion senior Bryce Murray in the long jump (16-8), Lower Merion in the 4×100 (49.52) and Padua Academy in the 4×800 (10:43.
57) and the 4×400 (4:14.43)..
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