Class One girls will be key for Edwin Allen

WHEN the ISSA/GraceKennedy Boys and Girls’ Athletics Championships (Champs) begins next week, defending girls’ champions Edwin Allen High School will be seeking to make it eight wins in a row and their ninth title overall.

It will not be smooth sailing for the Michael Dyke-coached team, as they will be under tremendous pressure from Hydel High School and four-time champions St Jago High School.

If the champions are to retain their girls’ crown, their Class One girls must lead from front. Sprint stars, the Clayton twins Tina and Tia, are expected to be the standouts in the class for the defending champions. They will be strongly challenged in the sprint events by former St Jago Class Four standout Brianna Lyston. Lyston has since been overtaken by the Claytons, but she is back with a bang this year. Since she went quiet, mostly due to injury, the twins have been ruling the roost among their peers, dominating in classes Three and Two.

Now at Hydel under outstanding coach Corey Bennett, Lyston, now in her first year in Class One, has rediscovered her best form and looks set to dominate both the 100 and 200 metres. Tia will not contest the 200 metres, but the inclusion of Brandy Hall to join Tina in the longer sprint should ensure that the defending champions earn some quality points.

The champions look set to get over 100 points in Class One, and this will go a far way in ensuring that they retain their title.

They are also expected to get a lot of points in the middle-distance events, where they will be led by Rushana Dwyer and Jessica McLeod in the 800 and 1500 metres events, while they look a cinch in the 4x100m. Once the stick goes around without any problem, fans could witness the first sub-43 seconds clocking by a local high-school girls quartet at the National Stadium. They had a mishap at Central Championships, but the quartet of Serena Cole, Tia and Tina Clayton and Hall will be untouchable at Champs.

In the field, Edwin Allen will be well represented. Cole, who has been dominant at all meets so far this season, should go all the way in the long jump, where teammate Paulette Chambers should get a top-three finish.

The likes of Damalia Williams, Rochelle Salmon and Monifa Edwards are also expected to score solid points for their team in the throwing events.