There's a lot of history in the 54th Annual Ed Wells Kiwanis Invite. Meet records still hold from the mid-90s, even some from the 70s and 80s. A few meet records fell on Friday at Clearwater High School, albeit on the girls side with a shorter meet history. First up was Mitchell's Emily Gauvey who made national news at the Calvary Warrior Invite when she high jumped 5-8 and tied for a US #2. Since then, several other national jumpers hit 5-8. Gauvey upped the ante on Friday, clearing 5-9, which moves into a tie for third-best in the nation so far this season.
The next meet mark to fall was in the 300m hurdles. Teammates Taylor Hotchkiss and Emma Stevens took first and second, Hotchkiss at 46.37 and Stevens at 46.49. Either mark would have set down the meet record but neither Hotchkiss nor Stevens could have done it without the other. The pair are training partners, Hotchkiss credited with tempting Stevens to try hurdling. Now practicing on a rubber track in Lutz at the school, the pair have their sights set high.
"It's so good to be running with her (Stevens) this year," Hotchkiss said.
It should be noted that girls meet record at Ed Wells only extend back to 2006, not quite the five decades of competition on the boys side but a feat nonetheless. Hotchkiss and Stevens took second and fifth in the 100m hurdles and Hotchkiss took third in the long jump.
Samantha Davila of Steinbrenner took the shot put with a throw of 34-7.25. She also grabbed fourth in the discus. It helped the Warriors snatch the team title away from 2014 and 2015 Ed Wells champs, East Lake.
It was a battle in the 200m and 400m that helped both squads break into uncharted water. Steinbrenner's Tiyera Joseph and East Lake's Cienna Nichols went 1-2 in both events.
Nichols won the 100m in 12.30 but fell to Joseph 57.92-57.98 in the 400m. Joseph's winning mark was just off her 57.66 from the Berkeley Prep Invite but Nichols set a new PR with her time and Nichols would not be denied in the 200m final.
"She (Joseph) is a good opponent, if not for her, I never run that 57 (in the 400m)," Nichols said. "It fuels me to run against her, I just hate to lose."
Nichols' 25.40 was just off her PR but Nichols said that she's in the right place with the time.
That same dynamic happened on the boys side as well with Lakewood's Terence Ware and Sickles' Andrew Vendrone. Ware won the 100m in 10.79 and Vendrone, in a rare entry in the 100m, took fifth at 11.26. Vendrone got a measure of revenge in the 200m but only by the slightest of margins. Ware, better on turns, came out of it in the lead. Vendrone kicked into another gear and caught Ware at the line as both runners dove across the finish line, Vendrone taking a nasty spill in the process but Vendrone won it with a personal record 21.94. Ware's 21.95 was also a personal record and Ware also had a fantastic effort on the 4x100m relay.
The Spartans were favored to win the 4x100m but two bad exchanges made it look as if the Lakewood boys would lose one of their points of pride on Friday. It never happened as Jordan Williams made up some ground and Ware incinerated the final leg to lead the Spartans to a win in 43.46. If Ware, Williams, Adrian Adams and Ware's younger brother Jalen can get their exchanges down, they will be a potent relay all the way to Bradenton for the state finals.
"To be honest, I thought we'd dropped the baton but we worked as a team and "T" (Terence Ware) brought it in for us," Williams said.
Williams had a busy night anchoring the winning 4x400m relay and sweeping the hurdle events in 14.67 and 38.51. Steinbrenner hurdlers Zack Reinhardt and Jacob Goncalves took second and third in the 110m hurdles and the 300m hurdles, helping the Steinbrenner boys to the team title. Goncalves also won the high jump at 6-2.
"It was a good day, I also his 21-3 in the long jump for a PR on Monday of this week," Goncalves said.
Gonclaves also hit 6-5 in the high jump at that home meet on Monday.
The distance events had some great battles as well. Clearwater's Sean Heera won both the 800m (1:58.67) and the 1600m (4:30.47).
Sickles' Paris Williams chased Shorecrest's Luke Peterson through the first four laps of the 3200m before moving in front and hanging on for a win in 9:50.86.
"I started off too hard in the first mile and had to dial it down," Williams said. "I wasn't worried too much about his (Peterson's) pace, I knew I would eventually catch him, then in the last 800 meters I picked up the pace and kicked it out at the end."
Williams ran 4800m on a toe that he injured earlier in the week where he lost half of the toe nail.
In the girls 800m, Jennifer Lima, just a few months off of ankle surgery, worked into the lead after the first lap, extended it on the back stretch and brought it home in 2:21.77 for her season best.
"I saw that first lap at 1:10 and my coach says if I'm in at 1:10 or higher on that first lap, I've gotta go," Lima said.
East Lake triple jumper Bryce Miller won with a jump of 43-1.5 for his PR. Now with the new, rubber track being put in at East Lake, Miller will have more opportunities to practice in the jump pits on campus where previously, practice time was limited.
Tampa Prep freshman Josie Garba out-lasted Osceola's Emma Grantges in the 3200m. Garba stacked on a five-second lead with two laps to go and managed to knock off 11 seconds from her PR, finishing in 11:43.33.
Grantges, who recently verbally committed to UNF for track and cross country, took second at 11:56.29.
"It's surprising, I thought that if I would be going to college for any sport it would have been volleyball," Grantges said.
Countryside's Sydney Avery won the girls 1600m in 5:25.45.
Dunedin's Olivia Welsh won the 100m hurdles in 14.97, the pole vault at 10-6 and was third in the 300m hurdles.
Dunedin teammate Victor Martinez won the long jump at 22-3. Boca Ciega's Hannah Andrews won the triple jump at 37-2.5. Elizabeth Atkinson won the girls disc at 119-9. Countryside's Thomas Roman won the boys disc at 143-6 and took second in the shot behind Steinbrenner's Kyle Back (45-5.5). The Warrior girls capped the night with a win in the 4x400m as Hotchkiss handed off to Stevens for the final leg.
