Sprint or distance run? Padua runners ready for either challenge at Penn Relays

PHILADELPHIA – Padua Academy juniors Sophia Holgado and Molly Flanagan were unusually busy and remarkably versatile Friday morning at the Penn Relays.

“It’s odd,’’ Holgado confessed.

They enjoyed every draining second.

“It was hard, but I had fun,” Holgado added, with Flanagan echoing her delight.

Padua’s 4x800-meter relay team of Flanagan, Madelyn Mead, Holgado and Kelsey Wolff placed third in their heat that opened Friday’s competition at Franklin Field in 9:24.19.

Of the four, only Flanagan had run here before. The other three Pandas relished the history and atmosphere that surrounded them at the 127th renewal of America’s longest-running track and field meet. They didn’t even mind their wee-hours wake-up calls for the 9 a.m. race.

Barely an hour later, Tamara Williams and Jane Mazzio preceded Holgado and Flanagan in the 4 x 100 as the Pandas won their heat in 50.52.

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“We didn’t have to run nearly as far for that one, so that helped,” Holgado said with a laugh, comparing the short sprint with the metric half-mile she and Flanagan had gutted out earlier.

It wasn’t the fastest 4x100 among Delaware girls teams as Smyrna clocked a 49.26 followed by Sussex Central (49.72), St. Mark’s (49.87) and Tatnall (50.33).

Padua did qualify in the 4x800 for Saturday’s 4:45 p.m. Championship of America final, getting 10th in 9:20.56.

Padua's foursome of Juliana Balon, Mead, Holgado and Flanagan then won Saturday's Northern Delaware 4 x 400 in 3:56.35. The Pandas earned a spot in the Philadelphia Area championship and won that in a school-record 3:54.33.

Worth the effort

A.I. du Pont had to dodge raindrops plus 10 other teams while placing seventh in the Philadelphia Area 4x400 in 3:27.28.

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Jalen Wright, Dallas Parker, Lathan Love-Brown and Donte Dockery had hoped to beat Friday's 3:24.39 that won the Northern Delaware 4x400 and qualified them for the Philly final. They'd edged Salesianum by three-hundredths of a second, with the Sals also qualifying for the final but scratching.

"It was painful," Love-Brown said.

"We're not satisfied but I'm not mad," Dockery said, "because of the conditions we ran in. I know we can run better on any type of day. … Getting that experience really helps."

Jumping back and forth

Speaking of versatility, Arianna Montgomery and Kiara Davis stepped away from the long jump competition to run in that 4x100 for Tatnall.

Montgomery finished eighth (18-5) and Davis ninth (18-2 ¼) just ahead of Padua’s 10th-place Juliana Balon (18-1½).

Even better

Salesianum’s heat-winning 43.13 Thursday in the 4x100 was swift enough to put the Sals in Friday’s Northeast championship race.

There, the foursome of twins Anthony DelliCompagni and Vinny DelliCompagni, Jasyn Truitt and Lane went faster.

They ran a 42.97 despite a wet track and steady rain to place fourth, which Truitt said made the uncomfortable conditions quite worthwhile.

“It meant a lot to us to earn a spot in a championship race and we made the most of it,” he said.

Foot notes

Middletown's Isabelle Walsh ran a strong mile, placing fifth among 14 runners in 4:53.48.

Delaware State won both its men's 4x100 (41.20) and 4x200 (1:27.07) heats and qualified for Saturday's 4x100 championship race.

The Hornets' Tayshaun Chisholm was second in the 110 hurdles in 13.73 to qualify for the finals Saturday.

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This article originally appeared on Delaware News Journal: Padua Academy runners excel at Penn Relays