Hallandale sweeps 2A; St. Thomas girls win 4A
JACKSONVILLE Hallandale won both the boys’ and girls’ team titles in Class 2A and the St. Thomas Aquinas girls won in Class 4A as Broward County came away with three of the eight state champions at the track and field championships on Saturday at University of North Florida.
Both the Chargers and Raiders girls ran away from the field in team points. St. Thomas besting runner-up Winter Park by 80 points, 116-36, and Hallandale by 58 over American Heritage, 138-80.
The win for the Hallandale boys was much tighter as the Chargers had to come from behind in the secondto-last event scored, the shot put, and then hold off the Patriots in the final 4x400 relay. They topped Heritage by 10 points, 69-59.
Senior Milton Ingraham was the state champ in both throws for the Chargers. Those were points the Chargers expected to get as Ingraham was favored in each. The key was, in the shot put, Hallandale went 1-2 between Ingraham (63-0) and sophomore John Ferguson (51-7).
The 18 points collected in the shot put Saturday evening put Hallandale five points ahead of American Heritage entering the 4x400 relay, which the Chargers ended up winning.
Ferguson had never participated in track or picked up a shot or discus before this season, and his eight points as runner-up in the shot were instrumental in the victory.
“I told John, ‘We got to go,’ because Heritage, pointwise, was really close to us,” said Ingraham, who threw a 190-8 to win the discus earlier Saturday. “I didn’t tell him the situation, but I told him, ‘Come on. We need a big throw from you.’ And he came through.”
Amari Johnson won the 300 hurdles and was second in the 110 hurdles while also running the first leg of the 4x400.
“This team has incredible heart,” Hallandale coach John Battle said. “They have incredible will about themselves. They fight for one another.”
Senior Sydney McGinley won both her hurdling events — 13.75 in the 100 and 42.20 in the 300 — where Ashonti Warner finished second behind her.
The girls went 1-3-5 in the 2A discus with senior Amani Heaven winning with a 142-7 throw. They also won the 4x400 relay to cap the night.
“It’s been a long ride. It’s been a rollercoaster,” said Destiny Castillo, who helped with points on Friday by winning the long jump. “The team has been through ups and downs.”
The St. Thomas girls had sophomore Zatoria Thompson defend her high jump title (5-5.75) — and also win the 100 in between attempts.
“I just had to stay focused and know that I could do both of them,” said Thompson, who won the 100 in 11.62 seconds. “I just wanted to contribute everything I could to my team.”
Jermecia Brown, also a sophomore, was second behind her at 11.81, won the 400 (55.16) and also anchored the winning 4x400 relay. Freshman Eddiyah Frye won the 100 hurdles (13.96) and was second in the long jump on Friday.
“It was definitely a team effort,” Aquinas coach Alex Armenteros said. “All our relays stepped it up, our distance team, our field events.”
For full meet results with local athletes to place in all events, visit sunsentinel.com/sports/ highschool.