Northwestern girls’ track captures 14th state title in a row
JACKSONVILLE
Miami Northwestern fended off a spirited battle from rival Dillard to win its 14th consecutive FHSAA girls’ track and field championship, while University of Miami football recruit Chris Johnson stole the show with a record-setting performance in the 200-meter dash.
Northwestern scored 80 points in total, salting away victory with important 200-meter dash times from Kimora Kinsey and Ida Smith. Dillard prevailed in a relay rubber match with the Bulls, closing the Class 3A meet with a convincing win in the 4x400, but it fell 4.5 points short of toppling the dynasty.
“It’s special because we had to dig deep,” Northwestern coach Carmen Jackson said. “We had to depend on some young kids to get us through the meet.
“It kind of reminds me of my first title. We had to battle — back and forth, back and forth — and we had to keep points on paper. I hadn’t done that in years.”
The Bulls cruised to an expected victory in the 4x100 relay and picked up 17 points in the 400 hurdles, led by state champion Shakynah Tresvant. The junior lowered her personal-best time to 1:01.30, while Emani
Perry and Natyia Alexandre placed fifth and sixth, respectively.
“This year, specifically, it’s been a little bit rocky with winning and losing, winning and losing,” Tresvant said. “Starting from GMAC, we’ve been winning. This 19th [overall] title means a lot to us. We’ve put in a lot of work, and been getting backlash about it. We persevered and worked through it. No negativity, just being humble.”
Nyla Christian added to the Bulls’ point total in the field with a triumph in the long jump, topping out at 5.85 meters (19 feet, 2 1⁄2 inches). Jaiya Burchell placed second in the discus, setting a new personal-best at 40.9 meters
(134 feet, 2 inches).
Dillard opened the day’s festivities on the track with a dominant showing in the 4x800 relay, challenging the state record it set a season ago before settling for a 9:05.17 time, more than 23 seconds clear of runner-up Lourdes and 25-plus ahead of Northwestern.
“They’re a good team, and I know where they get the majority of their points from. But I do know where we have runners, they don’t have as many runners. And with field-event people, we don’t have that,” said
Dillard junior Raquel Edwards, who took second individually in the 800. “It’s like, ‘You can get us, but we’ll get you back.’ ”
Dillard’s star performer, however, was Johnson — one of the nation’s most coveted running backs, who showcased his undeniable speed on the biggest stage. Johnson ran 10.25 in the 100, and then dropped a blistering
20.40 in the 200.
It’s the fastest 200-meter time in FHSAA state championship history, according to race officials.
“It means a lot to me. I hold a record now, and
I’m proud that I did that,” Johnson said. “I put everything on the line today. We didn’t come out with a [team] win, but I did what I had to do individualwise like I always do.”
Belen Jesuit finished second in the Class 3A boys’ team leaderboard with 43 points, 14 apiece in the 1,600 and 3,200 runs. The Wolverines prevailed in the 4x800 relay, and Joseph Socarras (4:13.53) took home an individual gold in the 1,600.
Jacksonville once again brought out the best in Norland’s Matthew McKnight, who dropped his best 110-meter hurdles time (14.12) to win gold. Two months ago, on the very same track,
McKnight went 14.17 in a victory at the Bob Hayes Invitational.
“I’ve got all my family, and they came all the up from Miami to support me. That’s a long drive, so I couldn’t disappoint,” said McKnight, who also secured a second-place finish in the 400 hurdles. “All the adrenaline, the atmosphere out here was beautiful. Bob Hayes was the same thing, so I just came out here and performed.”
Earlier in the day, Archbishop McCarthy senior Sydney Nicholson secured gold in the girls pole vault as the only competitor to clear 3.6 meters (11 feet, 9 ⁄4 inches). The senior, a
3 bronze medalist in 2022, won the event at 12 of her 14 meets this season, per MileSplit. Northeast’s Samantha Kavanagh won the 800 meters with a time of 2:11.73.
RESULTS
Note:
Events without a
Dade or Broward top-8 finisher not listed.
CLASS 3A