The Tribune

By BRENT STUBBS

Senior Sports Reporter

bstubbs@tribunemedia.net

The St Augustine's College Big Red Machine, taking advantage of another free trip by the Bahamas Association of Athletic Associations (BAAA) got the Bahamas rolling at the Penn Relay Carnival in Philadelphia.

Yesterday in the high school girls' 4 x 100 meter relay, SAC's team of Devynne Charlton, Shaunae Miller, Makeya White and Taj Dorsett (no photo available) won the 28th of 37 heats in 47.59 seconds.

The Jack Hayward Wildcats of Grand Bahama competed in heat 12 with the team of Ruddesha Strachan, Deidre Forbes, Kianna Knowles and Regia Penn that ran 52.11 for second place. Winning their heat was Milton Hersey in 49.76.

While SAC finished fourth overall, Jack Hayward was listed at No. 102 out of a field of 298 teams that posted a time. A total of 25 teams got disqualified and three others didn't finish.

Jamaica, which has a rich history at the five-day meet, had teams take the top three spots and they ended up with seven of the top 10 times produced overall.

In the high school girls' 4 x 400 relay, the Big Red Machine had to settle for a fourth place in 3:53.79 with the team of Devynne Charlton (59.9), Shaunae Miller (51.7), Dreshanae Rolle (1:00.4) and Courtney Thompson (1:01.8). Miller's split was the fastest recorded in the heat.

Jack Hayward competed with the team of Deidre Forbes, Ruddesha Strachan, Kianna Knowles and Regia Penn, who got the last of the 12 spots in 4:20.96.

On the field in the high school girls' long jump championship, SAC's Danielle Gibson got fifth with her best leap of 5.71 meters or 18-feet, 8 3/4-inches.

Gibson, who won the gold medal at the 2012 Carifta Games in Hamilton, Bermuda, over the Easter holidays, was beaten by a pair of Jamaicans in first and second and two Americans in third and fourth.

And Antonique Butler, also representing SAC, was seventh in the high school girls' triple jump championship with her best leap of 11.74m (38-6 1/4).

Winning the event was Jamaican Shardia Lawrence of Vere Technical with a distance of 12.40m (40-8 1/4) over a field of five Americans who trailed her.

Today, the Bahamas is expected to be led by the high school boys' 4 x 100 relay teams in the Small Schools heats. Participating are CV Bethel, Queen's College, Augustine's College, Jack Hayward and Moore's Island of Abaco.

On Saturday, all of the above teams with the exception of Jack Hayward will compete in the high school boys' 4 x 400 relay.

SAC, CV Bethel and Moore's Island were all afforded a trip to Philadelphia by virtue of winning their respective events at the recent BAAA Scotiabank National High School Track and Field Championships. The other schools are competing on their own.

Also on Saturday, the BAAA will assemble teams of our elite athletes to compete in the 4 x 100 and 4 x 400 relays that have been dubbed: 'USA vs the World.'

In the men's 4 x 100, the Bahamas is slated to face Canada A and B, Germany, Guyana, Jamaica, Netherlands, Nigeria, Trinidad & Tobago and the USA Blue and Red teams.

The Bahamas women's 4 x 100 teams will run against the Dominican Republic, British Virgin Islands, Jamaica, Nigeria, Trinidad & Tobago and the USA Blue and Red teams.

Entered along with the Bahamas in the men's 4 x 400 relay are Australia, Belgium, Dominican Republic, Germany, Grenada, Jamaica, Kenya, Saudi Arabia, Nigeria, Trinidad & Tobago, Venezuela and the USA Blue and Red teams.

And the Bahamas is also listed to run in the women's 4 x 400 relay against teams from Canada, Great Britain, Jamaica, Nigeria and the USA Blue and Red. The latter teams are vying to secure positions in the top 16 in the world in order to be eligible to compete at the London Olympics in August.