STETHS coach turns attention to Champs after dominating out west
Published:Wednesday | March 9, 2022 | 12:09 AMKavarly Arnold/Gleaner Writer
Western Bureau:
ST ELIZABETH Technical High School (STETHS) showed its readiness for next month’s ISSA/GraceKennedy Boys and Girls’ Athletics Championship with the defence of both girls’ and boys’ COCAA Western Championship titles on home soil in Santa Cruz on Saturday.
STETHS won the boys title by a county mile with 348.5 points, while Cornwall College were second with 215. Second city rival Herbert Morrison Tech (195), Petersfield High 187.5 and William Knibb with 109.2 completed the top five spots.
STETHS’ girls amassed 343.5 points to win by more than 100 points, with Petersfield’s 237 good enough for second. An emergent William Knibb High School, with 191.5, took third while Mount Alvernia (169.5) and Maggotty (165.5) rounded out the top five.
Marvin James, in his first season as head coach, said defending the STETHS titles was not the repeat that has caused him angst this year. James is looking further down the road at the pressure of repeating the fourth-place finish the school achieved at Champs in 2021.
PRESSURE
“It’s a really great feeling to be champions again. We came out with the intention of defending and that we did. There wasn’t a lot of pressure, we would have sat down and worked out everything. There were areas where we could have and should have done better for example in the shorter sprints,” James said.
“We would be under massive pressure there to repeat the fourth place. I think we should be better than today in the sprints as a few persons that were injured are coming back to their best. It’s back to the drawing board now with hard work for Champs,” he said.
Last year STETHS swept the sprints, but could not replicate that dominance this season. James noted, though, that even if they don’t produce their usual best in the sprints, they have enough quality all-round to amass the points required to be competitive at Champs.
CHAMPS
“We are wide enough to amass a lot of points at Champs. I don’t think we will be sweeping the sprints this year because we started to train very late, so our guys are way behind. We will try to catch pace and keep up with the others to try and defend the sprints,” James said.
After finishing 12th on the girls’ side at Champs last year, James is now targeting getting back into the top 10.
“Mr Coombs, who I have put in charge of that programme, and I are working towards getting the girls to the top 10 this year,” James said.
The first record at Western Champs on the day came in the Class One girls’ 100-metre hurdles from Petersfield’s Alexis James with 13.91 seconds. She later returned to take the 100m in 11.93 ahead of William Knibb’s Nydia Chance (12.55) and Maggotty’s Daviel Alcott (12.75).
The Class One 100 metres was won by Herbert Morrison Technical’s Deandre Daley in 10.59 seconds. He returned later to also take the 200m in 21.40, finishing ahead of teammate Mark Daley (no relations) in 22.55.
William Knibb’s Lavanya Williams won the Class Two 100m in 12.15 seconds ahead of STETHS Habiba Harris (12.23s) and her teammate Crystal Chambers (12.68s).
Mount Alvernia’s Carleta Bernard won the Class Two 200m in 24.60s.