The Tribune

By BRENT STUBBS

Senior Sports Reporter

bstubbs@tribunemedia.net

The CR Walker Knights polished off their Government Secondary Schools Sports Association Senior Track and Field Championship title and will put it back on their trophy case after defending it with a close encounter against the CI Gibson Rattlers.

On the final day of competition yesterday at the Thomas A Robinson National Stadium, the Knights outshined the Rattlers by just 38 points in one of the most keenly contested showdowns.

CR Walker, who won both the under-18 and under-20 divisions, won the three-day meet with 625.50 points. CI Gibson trailed with 587.50 and the CV Bethel Stingrays, the last team to defeat CR Walker, was third with 450.

The Knights, coached then by Floyd Armbrister, posted a 10-year reign of the title from 2004 to 2014. The Stingrays, then coached by Rupert Gardiner, won two straight from 2014-2015.

CR Walker, now coached by Ednal Rolle, led from day one but CI Gibson stayed right on their trail until they came down to the 4 x 400m relays where the points doubled. The Knights were able to stay ahead to seal the deal.

“It’s a great feeling. We worked hard and long and finally it has all paid off,” said Rolle before he got dosed by water from the team during their celebrations and victory lap. “It’s a wonderful feeling.”

Rolle said the good thing is that they have some pretty good young athletes who are eager to step up and take over when the seniors leave this year.

“We are going to still have a strong foundation,” Rolle said. “As this one is finished, we’re now going to prepare for next year. I’m the type of coach that don’t want to wait 2-3 weeks before the meet.

“I am want to be ready when I come into the meet. It’s a like s hurricane. If you don’t prepare for it, you’re at its mercy. So I’m kind of a coach who is prepared for any kind of storm.”

Michael Gomez led the charge for the Knights’ under-20 boys when he doubled up in the 400 metres in 49.97 ahead of CI Gibson’s Wadja Octave (50.01) and RM Bailey’s Benny Dumas (50.67) and the 800m in 2:01.08 over Dumas (2:06.65) and his Pacers’ teammate Livingstone Adderley (2:06.67).

Renee Brown, coming of an injury three weeks before the meet, was one of three double winners for the Knights oin the girls’ under-20 division. 

Brown sped to win in the 100m in 12.64 over RM Bailey’s Esther Cartwright (13.12) and CI Gibson’ Alice Adderley (13.20) and she added the 200 to her ledger in 25.98. Adderley was second in 26.72 and Cartwright got third in 26.88.

Anthonia Strachan got her double for CR Walker in the 400m in 1:00.56 over teammate Anishka Lotmore (1:04.57) and CI Gibson’s Carltonique LaRoda (1:09.88) and the 800m in 2:35.60 over CV Bethel’s Kerryann McKenzie (2:46.63) and CR Walker’s Vernecia Hudson (2:58.19).

And Althea Rolle added another feat in the 100m hurdles in 18.22 over CV Bethel’s T’Quavia Rolle (18.24) and Doris Johnson’s Alexis Miller (18.82) and the 400m hurdles over RM Bailey’s Rachel Evans and CC Sweeting’s Anjeneka Joseph.

CV Bethel’s Shantae Rolle led a 1-2 punch for CV Bethel in the girls’ under-18 100m in 13.35 with Cheriah Ferguson getting second in 13.57. CI Gibson’s Jalexia Philstine was third in 13.94.

CR Walker’s Chance Forbes walked away with a double feat in the girls’ under-100 200m in 25.40 over Rolle (26.75) and CR Walker’s Brianne Bullard (26.88) and the 200m in 1:01.82 over CV Bethel’s Maya-Angela Miller (1:02.04) and CI Gibson’s Brittany Bastian (1:05.49).

One of the most impressive performances came from Denvaughn Whymns in the under-18 boys’ 200m. The CC Sweeting 100m winner (11.01) improved on his 200m record run in the preliminaries of 22.28 in winning the final in 21.84.

The record coming into the meet was 22.50. Whymns, however, just missed going under the Carifta qualifying time of 21.80.

In the preliminaries of the under-18 boys’ 400m, there were three athletes – Doris Johnson’s Edward Munroe (51.80), CV Bethel’s Gabriel Hall (53.04) and Patrick Johnson (53.89) – who ran faster than the Carifta qualifying time of 54.20.

In the final, Munroe went on to win in 41.05 and in the process erased the meet record of 51.25 that was set by Bradley Dormeus in 2014. Munroe was joined by three others as they all went under the Carifta qualifier. Hall was second in 52.73, CV Bethel’s Albert Bain did 52.85 for third and Johnson got fourth in 53.27.

Another record performance came from RM Bailey’s Jahmal Wilson in the under-18 boys’ 400m hurdles. Wilson lowered the old mark of 59.05 by Shakeem Smith in 2014 to 57.67 in the preliminaries. He came back in the final and ran a little slower in 58.45.

And after the final 4 x 400m relay was ran, Georgio Pratt put the icing on the cake for CR Walker when he soared 13.75m in the under-18 boys’ triple jump to surpass the old mark of 13.51m by Ken Mulling in 2014.

Once the triple jump was done, coach Rolle led the charge around the track as the Knights began their official victory lap to celebrate their repeat of the championship.