Hallandale girls edge Aquinas in final event, Raiders win boys title

FORT LAUDERDALE — The Hallandale girls, trailing by one point in the team standings going into Friday night’s final event at the BCAA track and field championships at Dillard, leapfrogged St. Thomas Aquinas for the school’s first girls title while St. Thomas came away with a landslide victory on the boys’ side.

With 10 points for a firstplace finish in the 4x400 relay and Aquinas earning eight by finishing second, the Chargers edged the Raiders 173.5-172.5.

Hallandale went into the third leg trailing, but Daishon Spann took the baton and gave the Chargers a big lead they would not relinquish.

“All I thought was, ‘I got to bring it up, and I’ve got to open it up for my teammates so we could win this meet, win this race,” said Spann, who also came away victorious in the 800.

The Hallandale girls had Amani Heaven win the discus and shot put and Destiny Castillo win the triple jump. The Chargers also won the 4x800 relay.

The victory has John Battle feeling optimistic about where his girls can go from this point forward.

“If you can win this meet, you can do well in any meet in the state,” Battle said.

They edged Aquinas despite dropping the baton in the prelims to the 4x100 relay, which St. Thomas ended up winning. The result: Ten points for Aquinas, none for Hallandale.

The Raiders girls also got wins in the 1600 and 3200 from Bridget Alex, 100 from Zahria Allers, long jump from Hannah Lowenstein, pole vault from Kendyl Kerekes, 100 hurdles from Eddiyah Frye and 300 hurdles from Imani Christian.

Northeast’s Jan’Taijah Ford was a double winner in the 400 and 200. Piper’s Jada Hill won the triple jump.

The St. Thomas boys clinched their team title following the 3200, the penultimate event preceding the 4x400. Nicholas Rischar and Brian Washburn finished 1-2 there to make the Raiders’ lead insurmountable going into the final event. They ended up with 114 team points, and runner-up Piper had 91.5.

The Raiders boys won the 4x100 relay, but had several other point-earning finishes for the title.

Miramar survived a scare with star sprinter Jamal Walton pulling up grabbing his right hamstring during the 200.

“It’s a cramp,” Patriots coach Chris McComb said, optimistic Walton will make a speedy recovery.

Walton won the 400 while teammate Terrence Horne won the 100.

Earlier Friday, the Dillard track was named after longtime Panthers athletic director and track and field coach Robert A. Green, who coached at Dillard for 35 years in addition to being a Dillard alum.

For complete results from the meet, visit SunSentinel.com/highschool

MICHAEL LAUGHLIN/STAFF PHOTOGRPAHER St. Thomas Aquinas’ Eddiyah Frye wins the 100-meter hurdles during the BCAA track and field championships at Dillard High School.